One digital marketing secret that you should know is how to develop customer loyalty. This is especially challenging when running an online business, given the anonymity prevalent in the World Wide Web as well as the fears that have arose because of the many scams associated with its channels. But building customer loyalty is not impossible. In fact, it has become a necessity if you wish to sustain a high profit rate for a long period of time. After all, you cannot rely on new customers alone. Such will be too limiting.
So how can you develop customer loyalty, exactly? Here are 10 tips that will help you achieve this goal.
Be honest in everything that you do, especially in your dealings with your customers. Don’t call a spade a diamond. Tell your customers the advantages and disadvantages of certain options. This may make you lose some sales from time to time, but in the long run, your customers will learn how to trust you, and this will result in continuous sales in the future.
Assure your customers that you are a reliable and dependable businessman. Respect deadlines and provide excellent post-sales support. Try your best to entertain any and all queries that your customers will have about your product. Promise them that you’ll always be there to answer their concerns, and live up to such words.
Deliver what they have paid for. This is the most obvious step. People have trusted you with their hard earned money. Reciprocate such trust by actually, expediently and efficiently delivering your products in a manner that will be convenient for them.
Over-deliver. It pays to give your customers more than what they have paid for. Unannounced bonuses, for example, will build your reputation as a generous businessman. And if they’re given a choice between a generous provider and a conventional one, the former will always end up the victor.
Send them your sincerest appreciation. A Thank You email usually does the trick, but you can always do better than this. Perhaps you can consider giving them a discount coupon for succeeding purchases as a token of your gratitude. Such discounts can also pertain to the products of your JV partners.
Encourage your customers to leave some feedback. This will ensure them that you’re exerting some efforts to improve your service. Their voice counts and you should always remind them of that.
Offer incentives for customers who have purchased from you before. People love being made to feel special. Reward their fidelity in kind. Again, this may be in the form of discounts, freebies or extra service. Exclusivity can be one of your selling points as well. You can classify your loyal customers to a special group with special privileges.
Follow up. Your relationship with your customers does not end with the sale. On the contrary, it should be treated as the beginning. Capture their contact details and provide them with updates and some sprinkling of generosity from time to time. Building customer loyalty presupposes the fact that you’ll be able to stay in contact with them, after all.
Treat your customers as friends. Treat them as family, even, if such is possible. Always go beyond the buyer-seller relationship and try your best to establish a more personal dealing with your customers. A personal approach will result in a tighter bond, and this is critical in building their loyalty to your brand.
Show a genuine care for your customers. Let them know that they’re in good hands. This way, you’d be able to reassure them that they’ll be receiving more value for their buck if they’d choose your enterprise in the future.