Loyalty is the holy grail for any business. If you can get your customers to fall in love with your company and the services or solutions you offer, then you’ll always have a way to make profits.
Even in difficult times, consumers stick with the brands they trust most, making effective loyalty a critical component of your strategy for business continuity.
Unfortunately, many business leaders spend so much time focusing on how they can attract new customers and forget to consider how they can delight their existing audience.
Since your repeat and return customers are the ones that deliver the highest amount of customer lifetime value, those are the ones that you should be appealing to most.
Here are some quick-service business strategies that you can use to enhance your chances of loyalty.
1. Upgrade Customer Service
Salesforce says that the average customer now users around 10 different channels to communicate with a company on a regular basis.
It’s not enough to just give your consumers the option to reach you through phone calls and email today. Instead, you need to upgrade your customer service strategy to include all of the channels your audience is using.
Make sure that your customers can get in touch with you when they’re browsing on social media or searching for the right solution on your website. Tools like live chat on a site are becoming increasingly valuable in the new landscape.
Crucially, aside from having the right platforms available for your audience to choose from, you need to ensure that you’re offering a consistent quality of service from each channel.
Don’t make the mistake of failing to respond quickly enough to messages on social media and chat.
2. Ask for and Implement Customer Feedback
One of the easiest ways to ensure that you’re cultivating loyal customers is to ask for and implement the right amount of feedback.
Whenever you interact with your client, ask them to provide feedback on what they thought about the service.
Are there any ways that you can improve the way you support your consumers? Can you offer more information on social media, for instance, or provide virtual knowledge bases for people who want to learn more?
Gather customer feedback on everything from your social channels to your conversations with customers over the phone, then use those insights to inspire your next business decisions.
If you’re having trouble generating feedback from customers, consider offering them a discount or a freebie in exchange for their time.
3. Reward Loyal Customers
Speaking of providing your customers with gifts for their efforts, you should always be rewarding your loyal customers.
Setting up a loyalty program where your most dedicated fans can get free gifts and discounts whenever they recommend your store or purchase something new makes a huge difference to your brand reputation.
Around 72% of men and 76% of women say that they’d shop at a store that offers a loyalty program. Consumers feel more appreciated, and therefore they’re more likely to stick with your brand. At the same time, a loyalty program helps you to differentiate your brand from other companies that don’t offer the same level of respect for repeat clients.
4. Stay in Touch
Loyalty in the business world often comes from familiarity. The more time your customers spend with your business, learning about you, and discovering how trustworthy you are, the more loyal they’re likely to become.
This means that if you want to strengthen your connection with your clients, then you need to stay in touch.
Contact your consumers on their birthdays with a free discount or consider getting in touch when you’ve spent 6 months or a year providing the same service.
At the same time, remember to personalize the experience for your audience. Address them by their name in your messages, reference the products they use most, and recommend relevant extras.
Lastly, 2020 and the pandemic it brought about has made both customers and businesses insecure about the capacity and ability they’ll have to continue providing and receiving services.
Stay in touch either through social media or email. Let your customers know that you’re still in business and if anything has changed in the way your business operates.
Your customers will otherwise look to your competition to receive the services or products they need if they’re not sure about their future with you.
5. Simplify everything
If your customers have to jump through hoops to do business with you, they won’t be enticed to go through the same ordeal each time they need to place an order.
Therefore, consider streamlining any processes so the customers can complete their goals as soon and as simple as possible.
For instance, look at your checkout process from the customers’ point of view.
Can you enter the details of your customers with accounts on your website automatically, so they don’t have to type information out every time? Can you automatically send out notifications when your customer is due for a maintenance check or stocking up on supplies?
In a world where your audience has limited time, simplicity is key. This is the secret sauce behind the success of mobile apps. They’re convenient, one-stop venues for customers to easily find information about their account and upgrade their services whenever they choose.
Additionally, mobile apps make purchasing a breeze. For your business, it means you can stay on top of their minds with targeted push notifications about new offers, maintenance reminders, or service upgrades.
The simpler it is for your consumer to continue interacting with you, the better. Go through the buying process like a customer and see whether there are any friction points that you need to address.
Loyalty is Crucial
Loyalty takes a long time to build successfully in today’s business environment, but it’s well worth the effort.
The more you leverage your target audience's loyalty, the easier it is to convince them they should continue buying from you instead of your competitors.
Don’t underestimate the power of loyalty, and start building it today.
Author bio:
Ashley Wilson is a digital nomad and writer for hire, specialized in business and tech topics. In her self-care time, she practices yoga via Youtube. She has been known to reference movies in casual conversation and enjoys trying out new food. You can get in touch with Ashley via Twitter.