Would you like more customer loyalty? Here are four ways you can

It does not matter what kind of business you are in; we all need customers to survive. If you learn how to keep your customers loyal you will have more chance of staying in the game for the long haul.

Having a following of loyal customers gives you the option to get it wrong sometimes and still have them support you, non-loyal customers often will not give you a second chance.

You want to have your customers feel an attachment to your business, so they think hard before going somewhere else because it is more convenient, having some guilt attached to doing that.

Here are four simple pointers which will help keep your customers happy and loyal to you, they are not hard to get right. Doing these will help you slowly increase your loyal customer base and in return, you will see more success and have your revenue increase at the same time.

  1. Keep your product consistent
    You do not have to have the best product each time, although you do have to ensure you keep it consistent. People want to know what they buy each time is not going to be of a different quality than the time before. If you mostly have consistent product, your customers will allow you to make a mistake and still forgive you.
  2. Own up to your mistakes and fix them
    We are all human and mistakes can happen, owning up to your mistakes and offering to make it right, will keep your customers happy. People are much more accepting of errors when someone takes the blame, instead of making excuses. Fixing the error may cost you extra time and money, it may even be worth more than the actual sale, the good will that follows in the long term will make it all worth it.
  3. Genuinely be interested in them
    Get to know all your regular customers if possible, learn and remember their names. Be interested in who they are, ask about their family, where they work, what makes them happy, do not think of them as a transaction, think of them as a person, a friend. If they have a regular order, try, and remember it so you can get it ready for them as you see them enter your store, before even needing to ask. Keep in mind though if you are asking them questions, make sure you remember what they say as it can backfire if you continually ask the same question and not listen to their answers.
  4. Train your staff
    It is no good if you have all the customers skills possible, but you have not trained your staff the same. Ensure you give them the training necessary to be providing a service that is above and beyond every single time a customer enters your store. You want your staff to be trying to ensure each time a customer walks out of your business they feel like they had an experience, not just a purchase.

Remaining authentic to who you are in the process will keep you having loyal customers, you do not need raving fans (even though that would be nice), you just need them to feel good about their experience.