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So You Lost a Customer. How Can You Turn This into a Positive Experience?

Posted on March 1st, 2016 Read time: 2 minutes

Due to expensive sales calls and marketing, it costs more to find new clients than to retain existing ones. Learn four ways you can encourage lost customers to do business with you again.

  • Target Customers

Create different campaigns according to customers’ lapses in purchase times. Segment your customer base according to time since their last purchase, typical length between purchases, and total dollar value spent. This will help differentiate campaigns for severely lapsed customers versus those who haven’t purchased for a slightly longer time than usual. Gather information about customers throughout the lead process, at the point of sale, and from exit surveys to cultivate the most information about your customers. Utilize this information to deliver a personalized experience for each customer to boost your revenue.

  • Offer Targeted Deals

Win back lapsed customers by personalizing deals based on their purchase history. Offering a one-time discount often encourages customers to utilize your products or services. By presenting the discount in dollars rather than a percentage, you’ll typically get twice as many customers coming back. Persistently follow up with win-back emails, as customers tend to read subsequent messages more than originals.

  • Respond to Complaints

Sometimes customers leave due to negative customer service experiences. You’re more likely to retain customers by responding to complaints quickly and effectively, than by resolving the issue slowly or not at all. Ensure you uncover the entire problem and resolve each part of it. For each customer who voices a complaint, there are many more who remain silent. Utilize targeted surveys to uncover these issues and plan ways for your company to address them.

  • Continue Testing

Reengagement campaigns require rigorous testing to determine what methods are most effective. Test subject lines, deal types, and send times on win-back emails to see what results in getting back customers. Try various segmentation methods to determine when lapsed customers become severely lapsed, and vice versa, to make the most of your data. Since your business is unique, the only way you’ll understand your customers’ behaviors is by conducting these tests. You’ll then be able to determine higher engagement rates and growth in future revenue. Losing customers becomes more predictable and preventable when you speak openly with them.

Turn losing a customer into a positive experience. For more help with retaining your customers, contact the professionals at Innovative Employee Solutions today!

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