Why is gaining the trust and loyalty of your consumers so important? According to studies, recurring consumers tend to spend more money on your brand than new customers. This is due to their familiarity with your brand and what it offers.
Not to mention, acquiring new consumers can cost anywhere from five to twenty-five times more than selling to existing customers, making a loyalty programme one of the most cost-effective methods for a business to enhance ROI..
However, in order to attract loyal consumers, we must first earn their trust. How can we accomplish that? Here is a step-by-step guide on how you can build and maintain your own loyal clientele.
Make your values known
Understanding which facets of your brand are deserving of your consumers' loyalty is the first step in boosting customer loyalty. You must uphold your brand values and concentrate on your strengths if you want to truly connect with consumers. Create a marketing plan with your team by sitting down and outlining your brand's unique selling proposition, your company's mission, and how your fundamental values complement those of your target market.
Your marketing strategies should concentrate on your brand's distinctive qualities to differentiate yourself from the competition.
Know your customers
Make them feel heard and seen. Show them your appreciation for supporting your brand. For example, know their names and birthdays so you can send them a personalised birthday email on their birthdays along with a discount code. Everybody loves a good discount code!
CRM systems make it simple to keep track of important client milestones such as birthdays and wedding anniversaries, allowing you to prepare and queue up marketing emails in advance for each event.
Engage with your customers on social media
Social networking is an excellent method to connect with your consumers. In fact, many consumers would regard your business as outdated if its not on social media networks especially in this day and age. For example, sharing a little behind-the-scenes information about your company and products or services, as well as engaging with your followers, will help you build a strong online community that will entice customers to return for more. This helps people feel closer to your brand.
Encourage asking for feedbacks
We can’t stress this enough, ask for feedbacks. Asking for feedbacks from your consumers indicates that you appreciate them and you are committed to enhancing your service. Send out surveys, ask for email evaluations, and keep an open mind about the responses you get. Listen to the customer feedback, use the results to improve your business, and then let your consumers know that you heard them and took immediate action to make their experience better. Customers are more inclined to invest in companies that respect their feedbacks and thoughts.
Reward customers
Rewarding customers for repeat purchases can go a long way. Who doesn’t love a ‘buy 10 free 1’ card? Have a point system and allow your customers to redeem their points. Offer free delivery services for orders over a certain amount or send a complimentary gift with every purchase. The list is endless, the most important thing is to ensure your customers feel appreciated.
Furthermore, be sure to mention an expiration date for their ‘reward’ so your clients will be motivated to buy before the deadline. Nothing encourages a sale from a client more than knowing they’re about to lose a good deal.
Offer discounts
Using technology, businesses may offer customers discounts on things they buy frequently, as well as products that complement previous purchases. Don’t wait for birthdays and special occasions to throw in a good deal, discounts are especially useful during slow periods, for example, 10% off movie tickets on a weekday. Knowing that they may obtain a better bargain on a specific day can assist you in building a loyal consumer base.
Use referrals
An efficient strategy to both reward and attract new clients is to provide a "Refer a Friend" programme. This could be something like "Refer a friend and get 10% off your next purchase," or businesses could provide reward points for every referral an existing client refers to their business.
Referral programmes allow you to be creative because there are so many different methods to spread the love.
Work on your customer service
At the end of the day, it all boils down to your customer service and how you make your consumers feel. No amount of points or rewards can help your business if you don’t treat your customers with respect. Your customer experience comprises of everything your customers do with you, from the minute they land on your website to the time they contact your customer support staff for help. People generally have high expectations, especially when it comes to customer service.
All in all, building connections is the key to gaining client loyalty. As with any connection, establishing trust takes time and work. Loyalty and retention are not something that can be purchased, they must be earned. Take into account the experience of your customers and do all in your power to make their interactions with your brand simpler and, ideally, more enjoyable.
SO, WHERE DO YOU FIND THIS PARTNER?
Well, aren’t we glad you asked! We at DigiCom are obsessive data-driven marketers pulling from multi-disciplinary strategies to unlock scale. We buy media across all platforms and placements and provide creative solutions alongside content creation, and conversion rate optimizations. We pride ourselves on your successes and will stop at nothing to help you grow.