This is a guest article from our friends at Veed.io 💜
Customer retention is a key component of the customer experience and it can have a significant impact on the bottom line.
However, as many as 70% of customers will leave if they don’t get what they need from your business.
In addition, according to research conducted by Frederick Reichheld of Bain & Company, increasing customer retention rates by 5% increases profits by 25% to 95%.
Customer retention is the most vital aspect of business growth. The most successful companies in the world have learned that the only way to drive profits and increase their customer base is by retaining their existing customers.
If you want to start a new business or grow your existing one, you need to ensure that your customers are happy with your service and product offerings. Retaining the customers you worked so hard to get is the best thing you can do for your business. So how do you keep customers?
Here are four proven steps to help you retain customers to improve customer activation and retention:
Tips To Increase Customer Retention Rate
1. Make it easy to contact customer support
One of the most effective things you can do to improve your customer retention rates is to make it easy for customers to reach you. Customers want to be able to contact their favorite companies easily and quickly if they need help or have questions about an order. However, many companies are not doing enough to make that happen.
To increase customer retention rates, let your customers know what number to call or what email address to send. You can also offer them different ways to contact you by creating social media accounts where customers can ask questions or leave comments about your company.
Email newsletters can also be a great way to keep in touch with your customers. Send them out at least once a month, and make sure that the content is relevant to their interests. You can also create a blog where people can post questions about products or services offered by your company. This will ensure that everyone else who visits the blog will see these comments as well.
2. Offer loyalty programs to reward repeat purchases
One way to improve customer retention is by offering loyalty programs. A loyalty program is a type of marketing strategy that rewards customers for repeat purchases and encourages them to continue doing business with you. Loyalty programs can be as simple as giving customers discounts on their next purchase or they can be more complex, such as providing members with access to exclusive content and special events.
Rewarding loyal customers are especially useful for businesses that sell products or services that are frequently used, such as fast-food restaurants or movie theatres. The program allows businesses to reward customers who consistently buy from them. It also gives those customers an incentive to keep coming back so they can continue earning points or other rewards.
3. Provide excellent customer service
When providing quality customer service, you need to keep in mind that it's not just about what you're offering, it's about how you treat them.
It's easy to fall into the trap of thinking that your customers are only interested in getting their hands on whatever it is that you have for sale. However, that's not true. According to a Kolsky study, 66% of customers switch brands due to poor customer service. Customers want to feel valued by the company they are purchasing from; if they do not, they will find someone else who will. They want to know that they're being taken care of by someone who cares about them as a person, not just a dollar sign.
You can tell if you're doing it right by looking at how many repeat customers you have. Customers who return again and again are probably doing something very positive for your business.
You can also look into a customer satisfaction score, like the CSAT. Whatever you look at make sure it improves over time.
4. Create a clear path for how your product works
One of the biggest challenges in customer retention is that customers don't know how to use your product. To understand where users struggle the most or which parts of the product are the less used during the first sessions, you should run a feature audit analysis. Your customers must understand how to use your product or service. This can be done by providing them with clear instructions on how to go about doing it. Or, it can be done by giving them an example of what they can do with it.
You can provide them with a FAQ page or you can use video content to create a simple tutorial. This will walk users through the most relevant features of your product or service.
Video is a very effective way to showcase your product. In fact, it's one of the most effective ways to get your customers excited about what you have to offer. If you're looking for a way to increase your customer retention rate and make your products more appealing, here are three tips for using video:
- Use a video that explains how the product works. When customers see how easy it is to use your product, they'll be more likely to buy it. Plus, if you're selling something complicated like software or an appliance, this will help them know whether or not it's right for them before they buy it.
- Don't forget about the text. A video alone won't give you a complete picture when it comes to selling something online - both images and text in the video are needed so that potential customers know exactly what they are buying (or not buying).
- Make sure that people can see what they're buying. Don't just post videos of yourself discussing the benefits of your product; show them what it looks like so they know what they're getting before buying anything from your store or website.
Take Away
Having a customer retention strategy is central to any solid business plan. However, without actively working on it and analyzing your data periodically, you will not be able to improve your retention rate.
The customer is the centre of your business and you should take every necessary step to ensure that your company can last longer.
The number one goal of any company is to retain loyal customers and make them brand advocates. Customers returning to you often are more likely to make purchases, recommend your products, and assist your brand in building a strong identity, which is why customer retention is one key to sustainable growth.
