BY Amanda Levin
Bringing in new customers is an essential part of running a successful business, but it is a time consuming and costly process. What is MORE critical to ensuring your success lies, instead, with your existing customers. Forbes.com contributor AJ Agrawal writes, “Strategies to increase sales from customers you already have are as important as what you do to acquire new customers.”
When was the last time you looked at the value of your existing customers? Has their value increased? Decreased? Stagnated? Even if their value has increased, it is time to review their account and see if you could be selling them more.
In his article, Agrawal shares 6 strategies to help you increase the value of your existing customers:
- Deliver at the Right Time.
Whether you provide a physical product or a service, you are always making promises to your customers. And you MUST deliver those promises on time. And this applies to more than just delivering your product or service. This applies to meetings, promises to send through information, resolving conflicts or issues, etc. When your customers know they can trust you to meet your promises and deadlines, they will become more loyal, less likely to abandon you for a competitor and more open to increasing their spending with you.
- Force an Upgrade.
How many times do you land a new customer because they want to purchase your lowest tier of service or your cheapest product offerings? Customers often feel uncomfortable shelling out lots of dough for something they are unfamiliar with. They have yet to see the value you are offering. But have you followed up with them to talk upgrades? If you deliver great service every time for your customers, they will listen with open ears as you push higher price tags.
- Track It!
Tracking your existing customers’ value is critical to growing your business. As you implement strategies to increase value, tracking results will help you determine what works and what doesn’t work. This can vary by customer and other factors. Agrawal suggests taking a small sample size of your most loyal customers, and then determine their average spend by month, by year and beyond.
New customers are important to your business, but acquiring them should not overshadow the importance of retaining and strengthening relationships with your existing customers. Start implementing these strategies and Agrawal’s others and watch your sales and business grow!