Posts Tagged lifetime customer value
10 Questions To Ponder About Your Business
Posted by Mike Paffenback in General on August 3, 2010
The economic pendulm continues to swing, though I’m not sure in what direction exactly. As things start to gear up in the aftermath of the economy of mass destruction, here are ten questions to consider for your business’ health and long term well-being:
- Could we be selling more of our “stuff”?
- Have we defined exactly how we want our brand(s) to be perceived in the real world?
- Have we clearly communicated this to employees?
- Are all of our operations — from manufacturing to sales to customer service to admin — aligned with how we want our brand to be perceived?
- Do we know which of our brand touchpoints drive long-lasting customer relationships?
- Do we track what our customers, prospects, and influencers really think of us?
- What is the benefit users receive from each of our brands — our value proposition?
- How are we distinctive from our competitors?
- Are we generating the most return from the customer lifecycle?
- What’s getting in the way of achieving our business goals and objectives?
Chew on these for a while. When you’ve answered the questions and formalized your action plan that I’m certain will result, you’ll be well on your way to business health and long term success. Happy pondering.
Why Post-Purchase Brand Touchpoints Matter
Posted by Mike Paffenback in Brand Touchpoints on July 28, 2010
The sale is made. Cha-Ching! But how do you keep existing customers coming back for more? No matter what business you’re in (except, maybe funeral homes?), repeat sales are most likely a vital part of your continued success.
And that’s why post-purchase brand touch points are a big deal, not to be overlooked while so much emphasis is naturally placed on getting the sale to begin with.
Consider all of the ways you continue to interact with your customers, post-sale. What situations and issues are likely to infuriate those customers the most, driving them away forever?
- Product/service quality
- Warranty performance
- Tech support
- User training and documentation
- Return policies and procedures
- Product packaging
- Customer service personnel
- Etc.
Each and every one of these post-purchase brand touchpoints – and possibly hundreds more for your particular business — play a role in helping your customer decide if he or she will ever do business with you again.
Remember how hard it was to reel in that customer to begin with? How about considering the potential lifetime value of that hard-won customer relationship. Now add in the power of social media and user reviews and how those customers could very well spread the word about how great your product or service is … or isn’t.
Isn’t it worth the considered effort to keep them happy after the sale?