No business would be able to survive without its customers. They are the ones bringing in the profit and keeping operations going. That’s why the top priority for business owners is attracting new customers and keeping the ones they already have.
Customer acquisition and retention are both important in the world of business. By boosting customer retention rates by just 5%, companies can increase their profits by up to 95%. But for true success, you need to focus on acquiring and keeping customers at the same time.
If you want to know how to get and keep high-quality customers, keep reading.
Perfect your proposals
If you offer services, you’re already familiar with proposals. Within a project proposal, you explain the scope, objective, and outcome of the project, trying to get your potential clients to sign on. The quality of your proposal will greatly influence whether or not you get that signature.
A well-written proposal is supposed to:
- Set expectations. Your client needs to know what to expect from you and the services you offer, which is why your proposal needs to do a good job of setting the client’s expectations. This includes what the project will look like, how long it will take, what deliverables they can expect, and how much it will cost.
- Establish your credibility. Each one of your clients will want to know that you’re capable to fulfil their expectations and complete the projects they’re hiring you for. With a well-written proposal, you can show your professionalism, past experiences, and capabilities.
- Show how well you understand the project. Before a project can begin, you and your client need to agree on a lot of things and there isn’t much room for mistakes or misunderstandings. In your proposal, you need to explain in great detail what the project will look like and how it will be executed.
It’s important to note that proposals consist of a lot of aspects and they need to be written perfectly if you want to show yourself as a leader in the industry and rise above your competitors.
To save time and prove yourself to your potential clients, you can use a template. With customizable proposal templates, you only have to put in a little bit of information and you’ll have a professional-looking proposal in no time.
Step up your customer service
Today’s customers don’t just hope the businesses they work with will have amazing customer experience, they expect it. That being said, not a lot of businesses do more than the bare minimum when it comes to customer service, and that needs to change.
If you step up your customer service, here are some of the things you can expect:
- Improved customer retention. As much as 91% of customers would consider another purchase after positive customer service interaction, and that shows that retention is almost guaranteed. If your team ensures your customers leave every interaction happy and satisfied, they will surely come back.
- Increased referrals. Consumers talk about their experiences with businesses, both positive and negative. If you give them something good to talk about, other potential customers will find out about your business through word-of-mouth marketing and be willing to buy from you.
- Improved customer satisfaction. Not all of your customers will be completely satisfied with your products or services, and that’s normal. But when they reach out to your support team with an issue or a complaint and they leave with that problem resolved, their satisfaction will increase.
Don’t forget that your customer service team interacts with your customers more than anyone else in your company, which is why they need to be at their best. Reliable customer service software can help you make that service go from good to exceptional.
Keep them coming back with a loyalty program
Maintaining customer loyalty is one of the most effective marketing strategies that will help you take your business to the next level. So why shouldn’t you have a program directed toward loyalty?
Customer loyalty programs have increased in popularity significantly over the past years because they’re a win-win for both the customer and the business. Customers get rewards for shopping at their favorite stores while businesses get rewarded with loyal return customers.
The premise behind a loyalty program is very simple and straightforward. Every customer that signs up for the program gets points whenever they make a purchase or a certain amount of money and they can later exchange those points for prizes.
The incentive you use for your program can be anything from sample products, discounts, free shipping, early access to new collections, exclusive products, or anything that you know your customers want.
Loyalty programs were proven to bring in more customer referrals while also increasing customer retention. And what’s best of all, they encourage repeat business, increase the average order value, and promote brand advocacy.
Final thoughts
Your customers are the life and soul of your business, so you need to treat them right. If you want to attract high-value customers and make sure that they return, you should direct your focus toward making them happy.
The strategies we talked about here aren’t difficult to implement, but they can improve your sales figures more than you probably realize. So don’t waste time and start bringing in those customers today.
