Do you know why you lose customers?

Do you know why you lose customers? Most people don’t take a proactive approach to keeping customers and focusing on customer retention. One of the main things you must do is devise a strategy to keep your customers, to keep them coming back to you, and to keep them buying from you. Here is a undeniable fact. Your customers are probably not only going to be buying from you. You will probably not get all of their business.

So how do you get MORE of their business, and how do you keep them coming back. It comes down to relationships. You must absolutely, positively, build relationships with your customers so that they know you, like you, trust you, and want to do business with you.

So how do you do THAT? It comes down to timely, appropriate, and valuable communication.

How often are you speaking with your customers? How often are you getting their feedback? How often are you asking them for your help? How often are you connecting them to your network?

Now, if you say something like, “Well, we send an email newsletter…” then more than likely that is not enough. The average open rate of email is declining and is only about 20%. So your messages are not getting through. You need to incorporate multiple media into your business and customer retention.

And do you know the number one reason why you lose customers? Customers feel under appreciated — lack of communication, – complacency.

Ultimately if you understand this it means that more than likely, someone else came along and scooped them up as a customer. Someone broke into your house and stole your customers, because you didn’t build a steel cage around them. You didn’t nurture them, protect them, and continue to advise them.

So here are some things you can implement immediately to continue to nurture your clients.

1) Have a valuable newsletter that recognizes them
2) Reward and recognize for referrals
3) Send them thank you gifts
4) Call them to see how they are doing
5) Send them thank you cards and holiday cards.
6) Ask them who you can introduce them to in your sphere of influence
7) Send good information, articles, etc. regarding their business and industry to them.

Which basically can be summarized as, “Be a friend to them, and help them a ton, and be valuable.”

You will still probably lose customers, but you will reduce the amount immediately.

And it is 5x more expensive to get a new customer than to keep one, so by keeping them you’re making your business more profitable all around.

So to start this, take one simple thing, write it down on the calendar and time block, and start implementing it as best as you can. As always, I’m available for help.

-Matt