Now more than ever your customers matter. Not only for revenue from ongoing sales, but importantly for brand advocacy.
Since today’s buyers rely on the recommendations of other buyers to decide what product or service to purchase, your customer’s recommendation of your brand means more than it ever did before. The customer’s satisfaction with your product and service is a key factor to their recommendation, but there are other aspects of their brand experience that make a difference.
Ongoing marketing to your customers must be done with a clear understanding of who they are, what they need, and how and what they may buy again. If, after a purchase, you start slamming new customers with more solicitations to buy more, you risk irritating your customer. This happened to me recently in two different instances.
I’m a runner, and a life-long New Balance customer. I bought a new pair of running shoes online from a third party seller, and it seemed that within weeks I was getting weekly emails about deals on new running shoes. Most runners know that the rule of thumb is to replace your shoes every six months or every few hundred miles (which for me equals six months!).
In another situation, I bought a waterproof and crash resistant smart phone case. I wanted to prevent what happened to my first smart phone when a bottle of water leaked in my carry on and ended up giving my phone a bath! Again, immediately after my purchase of the new case, I started receiving what looked like emails on deals for additional cases. I only have one phone, so I didn’t even bother opening the emails!
I would have responded better to news about running in the case of the running shoe emails. Or, how about a link to a running portal with resources and valuable information? (Or emails about running socks, which I need.) For the smart phone case, since the case manufacturer knows what model phone I have, what about tips and techniques about using and caring for that phone? How about some information on how to prevent smart phone theft, which is a growing problem?
In your customer marketing you must add value and be there when the customer needs to buy more. If you have complimentary products and services, your customer may not even know they need these. You can educate and nurture them through value-add content and information and measured communication. When customers buy more from you, they become more loyal (source: Outsourcing Trends, www.salesandmarketing.com, January/February 2010) and more apt to advocate your brand.
Do you need an effective customer marketing program? Contact New Incite today. We provide analysis, marketing plans and marketing execution for organizations that want to grow faster.
