Customer loyalty is a measurement of a customer’s willingness to continue engaging and purchasing your product or service. Building customer loyalty is important and helps bring in new customers.
There are many ways in which you can measure your customer loyalty, you need to know the intent behind repeated purchases for example customer satisfaction. When it comes to customer satisfaction, there are five levels of measurement:
Not satisfied: The customer felt their needs were not met.
Slightly satisfied: The customer felt that some needs were met but most were not.
Satisfied: The customer got what they expected.
Very satisfied: The customer got what they expected plus some pleasant surprises.
Extremely satisfied: All expectations were completely exceeded for the customer.
You need to develop and practice building customer loyalty. Here are a few steps to get you started.
Improve your customer experience
Customers remember when they’re treated well and they remember when they’re treated poorly. They usually tell their friends and family, and that can either mean more business for you or lost business opportunities. It’s important to pay attention and identify any areas you can improve on for their experience.
Activate loyalists to help spread the word
When you understand your values, you can find the supporters of your brand and its values. Consumers who mention you on Twitter, who tag you in their Instagram Stories and tell their friends how much they like your product or service.
It’s your job to find them and learn as much as you can about them, so you can find others who fit the same profile. These people will become your brand ambassadors and you should engage with them often.
Determine the best communication channels
Consistent communication with your customers keeps you fresh in their minds and lets you pass along important information, but it’s important to know which platforms and methods of communication are right for them. It could be email, social media, phone calls among others.
It’s important to make sure that what you’re doing works best for your customers. Their ability to easily communicate with you will help keep their trust and loyalty.
Develop a reward program
One of the best and cheapest ways to reward customer loyalty is to give perks to your most dependable customers. This extra bonus can look different depending on what works best for you and your business.
Segment Your Marketing Lists
Learn as much as you can about your customers based on their buying behavior and the feedback you request from them. You can then separate them into categories and contact them with offers that are relevant and appealing.
Offer a head start on rewards
If you want to start a customer rewarding program for example liquor shops, use one where customers buy a certain number of drinks to earn a free one while considering to give them a head start. If you give your customers a head start on the program, they’re more likely to stick.
Encourage Referrals
The “Refer a Friend” program is an effective way to reward your current customers while gaining new ones.
This can be something like “Give $10 and Get $10” or you can offer reward points for every friend a current customer recommends to your company. Referral programs give businesses an opportunity to get creative.
Seek out customer feedback
Send out surveys, ask questions on phone calls, and keeping track of your ratings while asking for as much feedback as you can get. Doing so will indicate that you engage with all customers and that you take them seriously in order to best serve them.
Consider different payment plans
A business can decide to offer a payment plan through which customers can start purchasing at the beginning of the year and pay a little throughout the months leading up to the end of the year rather than paying all at once.
This plan helps customers by giving them manageable monthly payments, and it helps the company bring in cash during an otherwise slow time of year.
Partner with Another Company
Partnering with another brand is a great way to boost your exposure. For example, if you’re a construction company, you may partner with a local hardware store. This will get your company’s name in front of the hardware store’s customers and vice versa.
Give customers a reason to be loyal
Apple has the most loyal fans out there. Brands like Apple are successful because they know how to excite their customers by making product reveals, sales, and launches an exclusive event. They think about the customer’s experience as more than just using their product, but how they feel throughout the entire interaction with the business.
Show Gratitude
Handwritten notes delivered along with a purchase are an incredibly thoughtful way to show your thanks, your customer loyalty plan can include a monthly goal for how many notes you’d like to write or you can use printed packaging inserts.
Investing in customer loyalty will lead to future benefits. The above tips will help you keep the customers you have and motivate them to keep coming back.
