If you sell subscriptions or consumable products, you are interested in repeat purchases. This is of vital importance for the continuity of your business. The entire production line and all parties involved in sales or rentals must be fully aware of the need for the returning customer. Before doing so, you need to know:
- Who is your target audience?
- What are the wishes of that target group?
- What are the characteristics of that target group?
- What is the location of the target group?
- What does the target audience expect from the product?
- What information does the target group need?
All of this is information that must be alive within the organization. Everyone must realize that this information enables the company to continue operating as well as their own role within the company. To begin with, customer data is therefore a primary requirement.
Customer details
If you already have a lot of customer data and have segmented it within your target group, you have sufficient information to tailor sales and marketing actions to your advantage. Of course, you need to have a large database and regularly add to and update it. That database must always be up to date. From this, you can perform analyses at the level of:
- customer behavior;
- usage patterns;
- interactions with the company;
- response to actions;
- etc.
These are basic details for sales or rental promotions.
For example, you can utilize Cross-media DM (Cross-media direct marketing), allowing you to disseminate your message across various DM channels. The benefits of this include higher reach, power through repetition, the arousal of curiosity, and increased interaction with your target audience.
Another system is Location-Based Advertising, which goes a step further to get to know the customer.
Strategy
For current sales, a company has mapped out all processes to stimulate sales/rentals. But is there also a sales and marketing strategy for repeat purchases? Generally, there is little or no attention paid to this. Often, sales and marketing are carried out in the same way as initial purchases. They are two parallel processes. Existing customer data is utilized, but different questions will need to be asked, such as:
- What are the customer importance factors and why?
- Which criterion is used for the value of a customer?
- What is the added value of the company/product for the customer?
- What criteria do customers use to maintain the relationship with the company/product?
To increase the level of repeat purchases, investing in personnel, IT systems, and processes is therefore necessary. This brings signals from new, returning, and departing customers into view for further analysis. In this way, systems and processes can be adjusted, improving communication with the target group.
New customers
A portion of marketing and sales efforts is directed towards customer acquisition. This is an ongoing process, as there are always customers who no longer purchase your product. With new customers, it starts with approaching them. This is a delicate first step, because you must strike the right tone immediately if you want to move forward. In telephone sales, attempts are often made to retain the customer’s attention in a friendly yet insistent manner, whereas this actually causes irritation. Personal attention, in the way the customer wishes to give it, is crucial for the further course of a conversation.
In addition, there are many opportunities to retain a new customer.
1. Use social media.
2. Hand out gadgets with your company name.
3. Stunt.
4. Conduct joint promotional campaigns with other businesses.
5. Perform search engine optimization for your website; generate visitors via Google.
6. Let new customers know that you are offering something new.
7. Send an article to a blog or website.
A small selection of possibilities to bind the new customer to you.
Trust through knowledge
Trust is usually not earned immediately. Generally, it is earned over time, which can be short or long. However, a new customer might not immediately trust them upon first contact. Therefore, the customer can provide that trust during a conversation or by offering written guarantees. When that moment arrives, emphasize your added value and that of the product for that customer. Win this battle, and the relationship can be lasting.
Customer friendliness
Friendliness, not excessive, but in an appropriate manner that you feel you can apply to that particular customer. This therefore becomes an assessment before a conversation takes place. This is more difficult over the phone than in-person contact. Generally, people like to talk about the matters they are currently working on, so ask targeted questions and listen. If you listen well, you can also ask better new questions and thus influence the conversation.
You can also offer something during the conversation. This could be a drink or a gadget. Receiving something for free influences the customer in such a way that they are less likely to walk away, but make sure you keep their attention. This ensures that customers retain a positive memory and are therefore more inclined to return.
Therefore, consciously focus on customer retention. The customer is worth their weight in gold. Know that, on average, a negative experience is recounted by the customer eleven times to neighbors, friends, family, and at birthday parties.
Another important aspect is that the customer comes to your company or chooses your product because they have certain expectations. Identify what those expectations are with the customer and cater to them. Do not force anything on the customer; offer options. This allows the customer to make a choice. That works better than pushing a sale. There is a good chance the customer will make a repeat purchase from you.
