Website Retention

Customer Retention and Loyalty Issues and Internet Marketing

In some businesses the nature of the service or product is such that there is unlikely to be a repeat purchase or need for maintenance services in the near future so although a website may need a good level of attention on the conversion and SEO aspects, retention and loyalty points can take a back seat.

For most businesses however the SEO, Conversion and Retention / Loyalty aspects of web pages all need consideration, work, regular monitoring and / or updating. To an extent Conversion and Customer Retention / Loyalty are linked, and they have a close relationship with the company’s marketing and branding. When it comes to including customer / client retention / loyalty in your Internet Marketing Strategy and associated tactics, what are some of the main points to consider?

Regular communications are important in all businesses and are an essential part of your online marketing. Ways in which this can be achieved online could be by regular postings of news on your website and / or blog, regular answers to questions on your forum / noticeboard (if you have one), and generally keeping your website updated.

You could also collect email addresses via a Newsletter sign-up field on your website (with an incentive to sign up), and send regular, interesting, value adding email newsletters to registrants and exiting customers. People tend to be at different stages of different buying cycles at different times, and regular newsletters may be a good way not only maintain loyalty and top-of-mind awareness, but also to make more sales.

Adding value from the point of view of your website visitors and customers is always important. This can be achieved in a number of ways e.g. through the use of good content, offers and discounts, the right products and services, and a user centred website design.

Listening to customers can help you to learn more about their needs and expectations and make you better able to alter your marketing in order to retain their loyalty and interest. For example you can read their comments on your blog, read their emails, reviews, and request feedback from them about their experience of the website.

Thanking customers also helps towards retention and loyalty. This can be done automatically as part of the purchase process, in auto responders, or by rewards such as discounts, offers, or free / added services. Thank you emails / landing pages after a sale can also be a good place to suggest upselling options.

Testing aspects of your website can reveal ways in which some changes not only increase the conversion rate, but also increase the possibility of loyalty and retention e.g. by making sure the website is easy to use and meets customer needs.

Prioritising and responding quickly to customer complaints is also important and can often avert and turn around potentially negative situations and a reduction in the lifetime value of customers.

Customers should always be able to contact you easily. This can be achieved by always keeping the telephone number in a prominent position, and providing email links and online forms throughout. The quality and speed of your response is also very important.

A feedback mechanism for your own marketing is also necessary to allow you to respond positively and effectively to customer communications and in a way that enhances your own marketing.

Any incentives offered to customers should always be of real known value to them rather than just something that perhaps is surplus. Remember that your marketing anyway is ideally about making what you can sell rather than selling what you can make.

Everybody appreciates personal service as it makes us feel special and valued. Try to allow personalisation in your communications as much as possible.

Knowing your target market(s) is necessary, and it may also be good idea to concentrate on how you can segment your target markets into groups towards which you can target specific offers and / or content.

Identifying customer behaviour e.g. purchasing / repeat purchasing (or not) , their communications and comments (or lack of them) can also lead to you being able to notice if / when they may be thinking about leaving you, thus giving you an opportunity to potentially retain their loyalty.

Keeping things simple is always appreciated by visitors and customers alike. Make sure this is the case for your website visitors, and for all of your online communications.

Consider operating and offering a loyalty scheme. This can be done in house, or it can be outsourced.

Having large enough barriers to exit is another way of retaining customers, and identifying ways in which your online marketing could link to this can therefore be beneficial.

Building and maintaining a strong relationship with your customers can also be helped by the ‘way’ you communicate with them e.g. use a welcoming and respectful tone, but be aware of the need for persuasion, trust and keeping your credibility levels high, and how you may be able to achieve this in your web pages and communications.