✔ “Don’t be a stranger now.”
or,
✔ "You'll be a stranger here only once."
or, these special words from a new customer
✔ "I'll be back."
or, better yet
✔ "I'll be back real soon!"
For Etsy Shop Owners a regular repeat customer and client is essential to success; at least for most it is.
And, it is important to understand how to build a base of customers who return to your business time and again. Here are some ideas to consider:
✔ Repeat customers cost less than new ones. Studies show that it's less expensive to bring existing customers back than to attract new ones. Also, getting a new customer's attention can often be a matter of timing.
✔ "Prospects will only listen to your pitch when they're ready to buy or make a change," says Ed Brennan, chief creative officer of Harrison Leifer DiMarco, a marketing and public relations firm. "That means you have to constantly be in the hunt to find those few that are ready to make a switch."
✔ Repeat customers are walking billboards. If a customer comes back to your Etsy Shop, chances are pretty good that your customer liked or loved what she or he saw the first time around. And, from there, chances are she or he is going to spread the word—publicity that comes free of charge to you.
✔ "Recent estimates put each person's circle of influence at between 50 and 300 people. Imagine the time it would take to generate 300 potential prospects," says Jay Lipe, author of The Marketing Toolkit for Growing Businesses. "Yet by connecting with a repeat customer, and finding ways for them to communicate with their circle of influence about your company, you've just expanded your sales force, without incurring additional overhead."
✔ To build repeat customers, be consistent. On the surface, a solid base of repeat customers might seem little more than a matter of providing excellent service or products. True, but excellence cannot be a hit or miss proposition—repeat customers return because their experience is consistently solid. Drew Stevens, author of Gold Medal Customer Service, cites three companies that are icons of consistency:
• Starbucks Coffee ("They always hire excited and passionate baristas. It's no wonder that consumers don't mind paying a premium for coffee.")
• Southwest Airlines ("Decreases the cost of flying with a consistent fee.")
• McDonald’s ("Offers fast, reliable and efficient service in any city.")
✔ Be an individual who are positive, friendly, and really cares about doing a great job is the first step. Understand well the importance of creating a positive interaction with your customer or guest.
✔ Know your customers well. It's hard to build repeat business if you don't know what your customers value.
✔ Keep it personal and yet business too. A repeat customer is someone you get to know. Nurture that by keeping your relationship as professionally personal as possible.
"Connecting on a personal level with customers is one of the best competitive advantages there is," says one source. "Everyone loves it when they go into a coffee shop and the server remembers their name and their favorite beverage."
✔ Stay in contact the best your can.
Do you agree?
Thanks,
Mike
