If everyone agree that twenty friends won’t play for twenty years, nobody said nineteen of them wouldn’t?
This same premise applies to your pool of customers. While a few of them will leave you due to occurrences beyond your control which include relocation and passing away, a lot more will abandon you for your competitors. This of course can be prevented or at best be mitigated.
Here are 5 reasons why your customers might be leaving you for your competitors, (shifting you closer to the edge in the process) and possible ways to make them stay.
1. You aren’t Innovative
Think about new ways to improve upon what you already have. This applies to (but not restricted to) your product(s) and mode of operation. you can take a cue from competitors and even industry leaders.
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Another means of executing this is getting your customers involved in the process as that’d make them have a sense of belonging in your business.
A simple twitter poll, google form or even a direct meeting with few selected of customers (seeking their opinions) can help you achieve this.
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2. You Hired Wrongly
Aside the skills and technical know-how which many business owners are always on the look out for when recruiting, crucial traits like the underlisted are often overlooked, causing a subtle demise of their businesses.
Emotional intelligence: customers posses different temperaments, backgrounds and also an unequal level of understanding. it therefore takes an emotionally intelligent mind to deal with each accordingly, especially during situations when these customers are either indecisive or angry.
Good manners: this shouldn’t be overstated as it’s a crucial part of the hiring process. A 30 minutes conversation (if well utilized) can unmask an ill mannered folk, making it possible for you to identify an employee with an ‘as e dey hot’ attitude.
Company fit: An unfit employee in this context isn’t one who’s sick or dislikes the gym. they are just individuals whose traits doesn’t tally with the company’s culture.
Don’t get it wrong, this set of people might posses everything from the required skill set to emotional intelligence down to enviable manners. They just would find it hard blending and in the process harming slightly the way you operate.
3. You don’t give gifts
Customers like being appreciated. And they will do everything to stick with whoever showers them with appreciation especially when accompanied with gifts.
When you do this at expected times, they get delighted, if done when they least expect, you’d for a long time remain atop their minds, but your customers will swear to you an allegiance if you customize these unexpected gifts.
A Flash drive, mug, notepad or even a customized T-shirt can do the trick.
4. Poor branding
Have you ever had any course to live or work with someone who owns an apple device? How can you describe their attitude towards these gadgets?
A Macbook user will barely refer to his/her laptop as ‘laptop’. You’d be showered with a full dose of disdain if you do otherwise as it’s perceived to be a disrespect their gadget. They were’t born that way. Apple caused it, and that’s exactly the power embedded in proper branding.
Little moves such as a getting a simple but classy logo, sleek business card and a vibrant online presence can turn your customers to unrepentant evangelists of your brand.
5 . You don’t go personal
You will be wrong to assume your dealing with your customers ends after each transaction. Very wrong. What happens to follow-up calls? How about placing random calls to your customers to inquire about their challenges with the aim of knowing how you can help?
This process can be a good way of matchmaking customers who you feel can help themselves or probably collaborate on projects.
I becomes a win-win situation for every party involved at the end of the day!
The sad thing about allowing your customers escape to your competitors is that they will probably not return to you.
So there you have it.
Have you ever lost a customer to a competitor? let’s know what you did wrong.
