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Business is a romance! 7 simple keys to customer loyalty

ICX Association Executive Director Alicia Lavay shares 7 simple principles to help you build customer relationships that last a lifetime. The ICXA's annual Customer Experience Summit will be held September 11-13 in Charlotte, North Carolina.

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May 5, 2023 by Alicia Lavay — Executive Director, ICX Association

The salesman's parable

Alicia Lavay is the Executive Director at the Interactive Customer Experience Association.

Once upon a time, I met the perfect suitor. He held the door open for me, brought me chocolates and wrote me affectionate notes. But, after a month, when this pursuit seemed likely to succeed, his behavior suddenly changed. He stopped asking for dates in advance, expecting me to be available on a moment's notice. Confused by this abrupt transformation, I asked why he suddenly was taking our courtship for granted. He replied by telling me the tale of the salesman and St. Peter.

In the story, a salesman dies and finds himself at Pearly Gates. St. Peter tells the man that he has led a good (but not saintly) life, and so he will be granted the unusual option of choosing his own eternal fate. St. Peter first introduces the salesman to the archangel Michael, who makes the sales presentation on behalf of Heaven. This includes a tour which shows the joys of sitting on innerspring clouds, playing a harp and singing hosannas. The salesman then meets the diabolical Nick, who presents the sales pitch for Hell. This tour shows an endless party hosted by lovely starlets.

After considering both proposals, the salesman chooses Hell. He hurries eagerly inside when the gate suddenly slams shut behind him, and demons start prodding the salesman into the sulfurous flames amid all the other dismayed partygoers. The salesman turns to Nick. "But it wasn't like this yesterday!" he protests. "Ah," his sales representative replies with a smile. "Yesterday, you were a prospect. Today, you're a client."

Bad romance is bad for business!

While the parable has powerful lessons for the dating world, its insights apply across human relationships, including business — and, make no mistake, every business is a relationship. As in friendship or romance, these relationships require ongoing nurturing and development long after the initial sale is complete.

We're all customers, and I'm sure we've all experienced the wrong approach, where companies fail to value their existing customer base after that sale and the initial "love bombing." Suddenly, like a suitor with a wandering eye, the company's attention seems to waver and shift to new potential clients, who start receiving all the "cards and flowers" (such as preferential pricing). Ironically, the prospective customers are often price-hopping and have little loyalty or interest beyond a quick savings; meanwhile, the jilted customer base, which was genuinely invested in the brand, now feels devalued and ignored.

This happens all the time with phone, cable and internet service providers. An extremely attractive price is frequently offered upfront, to anyone willing to switch. But after you've been with the new outfit for 12 months, the price mysteriously goes up and up. (This is especially on my mind right now because I recently was "rewarded" for staying with my provider for two years — by getting a hefty price increase!) You also see lots of companies bragging about how they treat new clients better than their bread-and-butter customers — the very customers whose loyalty has generated the profits being spent to acquire new customers.

It's more than bad taste; it's bad business. Data clearly shows that it costs more than twice as much to get a new client than it costs to keep an existing one, partly because happy customers refer their friends — that's free word of mouth marketing! Moveover, disgruntled ex-customers often take their revenge by "flaming" the suppliers who have not appreciated them (not unlike a jilted lover seeking justice on social media!)

7 keys for lasting relationships

Just like dating and friendship, the solutions aren't very complicated; they just take diligence and patience. With these simple steps, you'll quickly stand out from your competitors and establish happy, lifelong customers with the power of old-fashioned people skills that have been strengthening relationships for generations!

Make them feel valued.Acknowledge long-time clients for their patronage. Feature them in your advertising, newsletter, website and other marketing materials.
Make them feel heard.Be everywhere that they are — stay connected to them through social networking sites, on their blogs, making sure to comment and engage with their posts. Lend your hand to help make them successful.
Show the whole world how much you care.Host client appreciations events. This can be especially effective by giving your prospective customers and suppliers the opportunity to meet your best clients. Ensure that those clients come away from that event feeling special and understanding how much you value their business. As a bonus, they will be happy to tell everyone else how your business relationship makes them feel!
Say thank you — and mean it!When clients make referrals that bring in new business, make sure to acknowledge them, thank them for their efforts, and offer them a thank-you discount. Reinforce behavior that you want to see repeated!
Do nice things without an agenda.Put your Referral Mindset on! Look for opportunities to refer firms that you do business with to clients whose products or services can help them. Show your customers that you're invested in them beyond what you can get out of them, and it won't be long before you see them doing the same!
Think long-term.Remember, too, that today's small customers can become tomorrow's large customers, and they may have influence with other prospects out of all proportion to their size. Show low-volume, but profitable, clients that you appreciate their business too.
Loyalty — good karma, good strategy.It is more cost-effective to retain your current customers, because once you lose them, chances are no "new" marketing initiative will get them back. Encouraging loyalty with existing customer incentives is a great way to build a stable client base, as well as driving new business.

You know, it didn't take long for me to feel unappreciated by that "gentleman" suitor I told you about, but I learned a valuable lesson that has served me well ever since, both in my personal and business relationships. People tend to value their relationship to you about as much as they perceive you to value it, so a little consistent investment goes a long way. Whatever you do, never leave them wondering, "But will you love me tomorrow?"

The ICX Association's annual Customer Experience Summit will be held September 11-13 in Charlotte, North Carolina, with industry luminaries and leading firms sharing insights into building customer relationships that last.

A version of this article originally appeared in the ICX Association website and newsletter.

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About Alicia Lavay

Alicia Lavay is the executive director of the ICX Association and brand director for Networld Media Group. She was previously the president and publisher of Vending Times.

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