Whether you are a business owner, marketing professional or an entrepreneur, your past and present satisfied customers are the key to creating a steady income stream and keeping your cost of sales lower.
Too often we focus our marketing efforts on finding the next new customer.
The fact of the matter is there's usually no reason we can't continue helping our customers indefinitely. By developing a continuing stream of sales from existing clients, we enjoy the benefits of their lifetime value. And they enjoy the value we add to their business.
Not only is this a 'win-win' scenario, it's a lot less expensive.
Once you've done business with someone, they know, like, and trust you. And if you've delivered what you said you were going to and more, they're very likely to buy from you again. And again. And again. Without you having to shell out tons of money on advertising and promotion.
Here are 5 ways you can build your lifetime client marketing pipeline:
1. Get your prospect and/or client contact info. Without a way to contact your prospects, you can't market and sell to them. Sounds like a no-brainer doesn't it? And yet a quick analysis of a random selection of websites reveals the site owner has no mechanism for collecting email addresses. Without a way to get prospects into your marketing funnel, there's no chance to develop a lifetime client. Once you have a client, continually look for ways to obtain additional contact information. Things like addresses. Phone numbers. Start to add buying histories or particular interests they have. Keep the information in a centralized database and this will become the heart of your lifetime client relationship.
2. Keep your clients involved. There are many ways you can engage your clients and keep them interested in what you have to offer. You can collect prospect/client information via website forms. Special draws. Sending out self-addressed, stamped postcards. You can create VIP programs. Conduct contests that offer incentives. Maybe give them a free sample of your service that whets their appetite for something else you offer. The key is to be creative in how you go about developing a more extensive profile of your client or prospect. And keeping your relationship alive.
3. Stay in touch on a regular basis. You can send a newsletter, create an ezine like the one you're reading here, use direct mail, send notes or pick up a phone and call. By being in front of your clients on a consistent basis, you'll have a good chance of being the one they contact when a need arises. Someone was telling me last week that ClickBank conducted a survey of why people bought things that were offered in email campaigns. The most frequent answer was 'because I needed it at the time I received the email.' Right place. Right time. Regular contact takes luck out of the equation.
4. Let your clients sell each other.
Happy clients will be glad to give you powerful testimonials you can use on your website. Or in your ezine. Remember, when we say it, it's selling. There's no getting away from it. No matter how we try and communicate the benefits we offer, our clients know we wrote the words. Does that mean we shouldn't make sure our copy uses emotion and structure to sell? Of course not. It's the words you use in your copy that determine whether or not you can convert a qualified prospect into a client. However, third party testimonials provide a powerful, independent endorsement. They support your copy. Use them on your site. In your ezine. And in your newsletter.
5. Keep your clients informed of new products and services. After the initial sale, it's important to keep your clients up-to-speed on a new developments and additions to your business. Even after the initial sale, make sure they know what other products and services you offer that could benefit them. It's not unusual to learn that a client bought a service you offered from someone else. Not because they didn't want to do business with you. But because they didn't know you offered the service. As soon as you add new services and products, get that information out to clients who have previously bought. Especially when you introduce a higher ticket offering.
Focus on your existing clients and they will reward you with ongoing business and a steady income.
About The Author: Gerry Black is an independent copywriter and marketing consultant specializing in helping solo professionals and small businesses develop and implement simple, proven website marketing strategies that attract clients. Visit http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=001aZ8IucWyiP2NlJeOYzwk0vEN2CZLeObPE2U-T83Rtl0q1VJ35B1b4a_6ohiCkBhlRXCYYAl5vYS0WQhuxuaMElrcxZfq8ZZOuI82neVR7AMLeoILi0VgK6Y4qa753-zP for his free report, "The #1 Website Mistake That Is Costing You Clients."
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