For small businesses, a loyal customer is worth their weight in gold. Loyal customers spend more, are easier to convert than new customers and give more referrals. So what are you doing to build brand Loyalty?
Everything you do and don’t do communicates to customers how they should feel about your business. It is often not enough to just be best at what you do. To win more business, you need to prove to customers that their money is better spent with you instead of your competitors. Knowing how to do this isn’t always clear, but when you find it, you’ll be rewarded with something special, a customer who is loyal to you and your business.
To help shed some light on the situation, we’ve compiled a list of 4 easy things you can start doing now to win your customers over and build brand loyalty.
Keep Your Promises
Actions speak louder than words, and that is why your ability to keep your commitments is your most valuable asset. When you tell a customer you’re going to do something, they see this as a promise, and if you break this promise, you’re going to lose customer trust. Just one bad customer experience is enough to spoil all the goodwill and brand loyalty that you’ve been building so it is crucial that do everything you can to keep your promises. It’s a bit cliche, but that is because it works: Undersell, over deliver. If you always commit to what you know you can realistically do, and deliver on it, you’ll have more lifelong customers than you know what to do with.
Hand Written Thank You Notes
One way for you to build brand loyalty and build on your customer experience is to start doing handwritten thank you notes. Many businesses have caught the “automation” bug, and as they add more ways to let computers do the work, they remove the human touch. People have noticed this change, and that is why old school ways of doing things are becoming new school. Be it a thank you letter, milestones with a customer or for special occasions, a handwritten note adds a level of personalization that we rarely see today. Each time your customers see your note, it will serve as a reminder of the excellent service you gave them and show that customer’s willingness to work harder than everyone else. This type of customer service is kind of a lost art, so if you feel nervous or unsure about how to do this check out How to Write a Killer Customer Thank-You Note.
Pass On News & Opportunities
As a business owner, you talk to all sorts of people, getting the scoop on local news and opportunities. Much of this news might not be of interest to you but certainly is to someone else. When you come across information that one of your customers might be interested in, give them a call or shoot them a quick email. With this simple action, you can keep in touch with customers but also show them that doing business with you is a lifelong venture and that you are always willing to go the extra mile for them.
Get to Know Your Customers
Building brand loyalty is all about building relationships. Learning things, like customer birthdays, names of family members, hobbies and interests can go a long way. For some, this type of conversation comes naturally, and they seem to have a knack for remembering this kind of stuff. For most of us, well, we need a system. When you talk to your customers, purposefully ask questions about themselves and make a mental note of their answers. If you’re using Daylite, you can record this information as a relationship, as an extra field, or as a linked note. By talking about things they are interested in and discussing the things that are happening in their lives, you show a depth and interest in your customer’s lives and will make them think twice before moving to a competitor.
“You have to be no less than a customer concierge, doing everything you can to make every one of your customers feel acknowledged, appreciated, and heard. You have to make them feel special, just like when your great-grandmother walked into Butcher Bob’s shop or bought her new hat, and you need to make people who aren’t your customers wish they were.” Gary Vaynerchuk, “The Thank You Economy”
When you’re always looking for ways to increase brand loyalty, you are bound to win more business. With more satisfied customers you will be able to get more businesses word of mouth, more repeat business and even increase how much your customers spend. Follow these 4 tips and see how easy it is to win over your customers.
