Attracting new customers is by no means easy. Your startup business needs to put all the effort into marketing and catching their interest. Thus, many experts will advise you to ensure that the customers you get will stay longer.
But even that effort needs careful planning on your part. That is where running a customer retention campaign will help you a lot. Lat’s look at how you can develop and implement this type of campaign and discover how Virtua Solutions can help you make it a success.
Why Run A Customer Retention Campaign
Chances are, you might already be running some form of customer retention effort in the background. So, you might be curious why you would want to launch a full-blown campaign. There are some compelling reasons for you to make this move.
Protecting Your Revenue Stream
The single biggest reason you need a comprehensive customer retention program is that it protects your revenue stream. In most cases, the new customers you engage will likely be there for a single transaction. Thus, you need to look for new ones to ensure a steady flow of revenues.
With a retention program, you can more effectively convince customers to stay and spend more. That provides you with a continuing stream of earnings that helps tide you to the next sales cycle where new customers come in.
Repeat Customers Spend More
And since we already mentioned it, it is worth noting that repeat customers do spend more. Loyal customers who return to you will likely spend 33% more money than first-time customers. They are also 50% more likely to buy your new products. With that, you can gain significantly more lifetime value from these customers.
All of this is due to their loyalty to your brand. Once you have already established a connection with them, it becomes easier for you to get them to buy again. Here, your customer retention program plays an essential role in giving them that additional push.
Creating More Market Opportunities
Interestingly, your regular customers can also be the key to attracting more new customers. Since you convinced them to return, they know your brand strengths. With that, they can more effectively share their experience with others.
A well-executed customer retention program will give them the tool to help in their effort to promote your brand. With it, you give them a clear idea of what they love about your brand. They will also be able to better point their referrals to you.
The Components Of A Good Customer Retention Program
Now that you have a good idea of what your startup business can gain from a good customer retention program, it’s time to build yours. These programs can take all sorts of forms. However, there are essential elements that you need to have for these to be effective.
Startup Business Customer Onboarding Process
Your retention campaign should undoubtedly begin the first moment you encounter the customer. After all, people are more likely to stay if they have a great experience right off the bat. The key to that is a good onboarding process.
Make sure that your new customers can start using your products as quickly as possible. Have both a support team and self-help services ready. You also need to understand customers’ goals in using your products. That will help you build a more tailored onboarding process.
An Effective Customer Education Strategy
Beyond the initial onboarding process, you should focus on educating customers more. That helps them better understand and maximize your products. Additionally, it will show that you are always there to support them.
Like the onboarding process, you should have both agent support and self-help services for this. Be proactive in sending them useful educational materials. Newsletters are still popular options for that. These let them study your tips at their own pace. You can also be more creative and use other media to provide a more rounded learning experience.
A Social Responsibility Program For Your Startup Business
Outside of your products, people connect more with your startup business if they see it as being more than just a brand. They would want to see how you put the shared values into action. And with that, they would also want to be part of the story.
"Every day, employees at the LEGO Group are empowered to make decisions to do what’s right for children, our fans, our partners, the environment and our local communities" – our CEO, Niels B. Christiansen pic.twitter.com/Qo617OBd9P
— LEGO (@LEGO_Group) March 4, 2020
Note that this doesn’t have to be something grandiose. Instead, you want it to be attainable by you and your customers. Remember that their participation plays a large part in the success of such a campaign. Make it easier for them to join and share it with others.
A Loyalty Program
It might come in last but a good loyalty program is a strong motivator for your customers to stay. After all, they want to see their efforts recognized. However, you need to plan your rewards program carefully.
The first of our amazing offers we are announcing this week.
We want to reward our loyal customers for coming back time and time again. We even have a handful of schools who have used us for 12 years since we founded WiseUp. pic.twitter.com/FPeBNAGk0s
— WiseUp Team Building (@wiseupteam) December 13, 2022
One good approach here is to use rewards customers can use in conjunction with your products. For instance, you can provide additional months free for subscriptions to your service. Or you can give loyal customers exclusive first-hand access to new features. When you do this, customers become encouraged to spend more on your products. That is because they also want to make the most out of the rewards they received.
Helping Your Startup Business Retain More Customers
One of the challenges when running these retention programs is that you might need more people. This is because a key part of these programs is continued engagements. And with many customers to reach out to, your small team might have a hard time handling all of them.
Virtua Solutions can provide support for all aspects of your retention program. To start, we can handle customer monitoring for you. With that, you can get continuous information on their concerns and wants. That helps you refine your retention strategy to better match customers.
Additionally, we will provide that all-important customer support. With our help, you are sure that your support channels can readily handle inquiries. Our sales team can also run your rewards program, ensuring that every customer receives their freebies and whatnot. Lastly, we will lend a hand in your customer education programs.
With our help, you can cover more bases and keep connected with your customers. That is always an effective way to convince them to come back for more. Contact us today and let us help your startup company.