4 Tips for Building and Maintaining Client Relationships

When you’re just starting out as a business owner, it’s perfectly natural to focus all of your expertise and a massive chunk of your budget to gain new clients. You work with sales experts to generate more leads, you woo them in the hopes of signing them up, or you simply strive to make your brand known by more people in your target audience. All of these, and many other goals are noble and perfectly plausible. What’s missing, however, is your effort to build and preserve the existing client relationships for the long haul.

Just to put things in perspective: did you know that acquiring a new client can cost your brand up to five times more than retaining your existing ones? In a similar manner, improving your retention just by 5% can lead to up to a 95% profit increase! These numbers tell a very important story, one that you need to use to your advantage in order to focus and allocate your resources towards the most effective strategies, in this case, retention. Here are a few time-tested ways in which you can improve your bonds with your existing clientele and continue to grow your business!

Transparency should be your policy

Customers know they have a choice. In fact, they have many choices, and they’re not afraid to make them. Shelves are brimming with brands that make the same, mostly vague promises, and the digital world is equally bursting at the seams with experts that present themselves as the best possible option. Customers, however, do not rely only on logic or price, but they choose the brand they’ll be loyal to based on many different things. Among them are your values.

If your target audience is big on sustainability, you need to make sure they know what you are doing to make this world a cleaner, greener place. If they are vested in equal education rights, you need to make sure they know how your business contributes to educating those in impoverished regions. You need a clear, strong voice to achieve this, and you need to be transparent when and if you slip up. This is an opportunity to humanize the face of your brand, to make amends, and to connect with your clients on a much deeper level. That way, they’ll be willing to stay loyal to you even after they’ve seen you make a mistake because you’ve decided to own it.

Business is personal

The ability to make a brand more appealing and more relatable is somewhat of an art form. This is especially complex for brands that only exist in the digital realm, as face-to-face communication with a touch of personalization can tip the scales in your favor immeasurably. Whenever you have the opportunity to go above and beyond to impress your clients – do so. It can even be a small gesture such as handing out promotional products that are useful and carry your logo. This simple act will keep you in their minds, and they’ll feel grateful for your gift.

In fact, you will likely inspire organic word of mouth in this way, since they’ll gladly talk about your brand to people they know, as you’ve treated them with special care and attention. It may be just a branded flash drive or an umbrella from your perspective, but it’s a purposeful, thoughtful present they can put to good use. Throw in a hand-signed thank-you card for their loyalty, and rest assured they’ll be inspired to talk about you and come back to your store, digital or otherwise.

Acting on feedback makes a difference

Businesses often pride themselves on using surveys and similar formats to learn more about the perception of their company. Often used to make sure their employees feel appreciated and that they’ve met their clients’ expectations, these feedback-sourcing methods are useful for many other things, but only when used properly. That means that you need to go beyond simply asking. You need to act on what you’re told in the process.

Modern-day companies have this unique opportunity to continuously track their clients’ preferences. The percentage of opened emails, clicked links, time spent on pages, all of that combined with actual data they share can become useful when you need to take action and change how you do certain things. Analytics tools show you subtle hints that your audience prefers certain kinds of content. Direct questions you ask will reveal actual issues. If you act on them and let your clients know what you’ve done to do better, they’ll know their opinion is valued and your relationship will have a chance to thrive.

Leverage your authority in the industry

Clients like to trust their own issues and their business with companies that have earned their reputation as leaders in their industry. While you may be a new player, you still need to make sure that your voice, presentation, and your promise are in line with that expectation of excellence.

Remember, this is a strategy you use for the long haul, not temporary or immediate results. You can achieve this by posting content of value that educates your clients, by sharing insights with your unique take on trends, and by positioning yourself as an authority in the field. It takes time to develop this image, but if you’re after long-term commitment from your clients, then you need to act in the same spirit and invest in long-term strategies.

Summary

While every business will always dedicate a portion of their funds to client acquisition, focusing on your existing clients is equally vital for your success. Use these tips to give your business a stronger chance, and always do your best to keep your clients happy!