It costs 4 to 6 times more to acquire new clients than keeping existing ones; an existing customer is 14 times more likely to buy more products or services from you, and 73% are more likely to recommend you. Yet, despite these crystal-clear statitics, businesses’ priority is still very often about capturing new clients to the detriment of existing customers.

As the new year is starting, make a resolution to implement these simple ideas to create a better relationship with your current customers.

Offer your existing customers valuable content

Valuable content isn’t only the best way to convert people into new customers, it is great to nurture existing customers. Surveys or purchase history will help you understand what they are interested in and create content accordingly.

Blogs, tutorials, videos and FAQs are all good ways to stay in touch, but be careful not to overdo it and schedule them not too close together or you may face a wave of unsubscriptions to your communications

Don’t neglect occasional customers

A loyalty program is a sure method to encourage repeat business. However, brand loyalty is at an all time low: customers shop around and buy from whoever offers the best value for money. It doesn’t mean that you are powerless to influence their decision, but more that you mustn’t undervalue them as they represent a significant percentage of your customers and all they might need is a gentle push at the right time to buy from you again.

You will need to develop a communication strategy specific to this group to rekindle the relationship but they are definitely a group you can’t ignore.

Use social media

If your business is in retail, social media is the communication channel by excellence as it gives you direct and real-time access to your customers. It enables you to deal with their queries and complaints promptly so that they feel they can trust your brand.

Get Personal

We all want to be valued, even as clients, and a personal communication will always go a long way. For example, if an exisiting customer has an issue or a complaint, have a representative call them back after it is resolved to check whether everything is to their satisfaction.

As you can see, customer engagement can be put in place easily and at low cost so don’t hesitate.