7 Tips For Increasing Repeat Business

It’s not easy or cheap to get a new customer. You can literally spend hundreds of dollars just to make a sale that nets you less than ten. So why do it? Because that single $10 purchase can give you a customer for life, meaning they spend $10 with you every month, refer you to their friends and family and help you to grow your business. Companies look at the cost of acquisition a lot differently now. Let’s use the example of a dentist, a very competitive field where it may cost a lot to acquire a new patient.

However, once you’ve acquired that patient you more than likely have a loyal customer for years. That’s two cleanings and an x-ray every year, not to mention they will come to you if they need a root canal treatment, wisdom tooth pulled or something else. They will also have their family come to you. So, that single patient, even if you had to spend hundreds of dollars to acquire them, is now worth thousands of dollars in new business. That’s why you cannot just look at the initial sales price. You have to focus on getting repeat business and these steps can help you accomplish that:

1. Email marketing: A great and cost-effective way to reach former visitors and customers is to send them monthly emails. It reminds them that you exist, alerts them of new promotions and helps bring in repeat business.
2. Retargeting: This is a great and easy tool to use. When someone visits your website, you can make sure that your ad follows them around as they browse other sites. This not only reminds them of your brand but is a great way to introduce other information to them.
3. Getting followers on social media: Encouraging people to follow you on social media is always a good idea when it comes to marketing and trying to get repeat business. You can boost a post that goes directly to your followers, meaning the only people that see the ad are people who are familiar with you and who have done business with you in the past.
4. Produce regular content: You do not want to just alert previous customers about a new sale. Send them something educational or entertaining, show them some new things you are doing or ways they can improve their experience.
5. Newsletter: A great example of content that you can produce and how you can utilize email marketing for more than just sending new promotions is a monthly newsletter. They are easy to put together and give your list something interesting to read.
6. Asking for reviews: Reviews are great for your company because new customers will usually research you before giving you their money. If a customer writes a good review about a company, it increases the chances of them using that company again.
7. Show appreciation: You can use email, social and retargeting to make sure that your brand stays front and center in the mind of the consumer. However, the best way to get people to come back is to show your appreciation and offer them discounts or other perks for being a loyal customer. If they have a birthday coming up, send them a free $10 off their next purchase or something like that; just to establish a long-lasting relationship.

Getting that initial customer in the door takes time and money. However, once they are there, you need to do everything you can to encourage repeat business. These tips all offer cost-effective ways of encouraging people to come back to your site again and again.