The Best Online Strategies to Gain Loyal Customers

Loyal customers are more than worth their weight in gold for any business, big or small. Some companies make the mistake of only pursuing new customers without helping the old customers feel valued, while other businesses establish a solid network of loyal customers and then lose all progress because they take their success for granted.

You don’t want to end up in either of these boats, so try incorporating the following strategies into your business plan. Tactics have changed now that so much of the customer experience occurs online, but it’s completely possible to woo new customers while still reminding repeat customers that they are appreciated.

In fact, the social analytics platform SumAll explained that, “25% to 40% of the total revenues of the most stable businesses come from returning customers. Even better, steady customers help businesses weather lean economic times; businesses with 40% repeat customers generated nearly 50% more revenue than similar businesses with only 10% repeat customers.”

Make Your Fans into Stars

One of the reasons social media has grown so tremendously in the last ten years is because people love seeing themselves and sharing their ideas and accomplishments. Feed into this by featuring your fans in your online content. By placing fans in the spotlight, you’ll show your appreciation and encourage reciprocity in the form of brand loyalty.

Take Customer Advice and Say Thanks

No business is ever perfect, and it’s much easier to accept it honestly and be open to change than deny things need to improve. Customers are some of the best people to identify potential improvements, so listen to their feedback. When your company ultimately makes the change—or even considers the change—acknowledge and thank the customers who brought it into the spotlight.

Give Loyal Customers an Upgrade

If you’ve ever been upgraded from the back of the plane to the business class, you know how exciting this can be! For the customers who have proven their devotion to your business and remained actively engaged, find a way to improve their experience through some form of an upgrade that would normally cost extra money. Word of mouth will spread, and you’ll tap into new customers by pleasing the old.