Does Your Customer Own You?
Posted on August 04, 2014 by Jim Barger, One of Thousands of Business Coaches on Noomii.
Businesses don't need more leads - they need better customer retention. But more than customer loyalty, they need customers to own them in their mind.
Discussing customer loyalty with a group of business owners I work with, I shared this story:
I decided to buy some life insurance recently. A guy I met on LinkedIn contacted me randomly and we set an appointment. I bought a policy. No surprise, but here’s the thing – I have an insurance agent for my car and home insurance. The question I keep asking myself is:
“Why didn’t I buy the life insurance from my agent?”
He’s my insurance guy – why didn’t I just call him up and get a policy? Why did I go to someone I’d never met before? The answer is the beginning of that sentence – He’s NOT my insurance guy. Not in my mind, at least. If he was, I would have called him.
So WHY isn’t he my insurance guy? He’s a nice guy. No beefs. Good service when I need it. Calls me every year to schedule a review (which I decline). But he didn’t earn that “insurance guy” spot in my mind.
What else could he have done? Here’s a couple of ideas I’ve come up with that may have increased my customer loyalty:
- He could have called to have coffee and NOT TALKED ABOUT INSURANCE.
- Could have shown interest in my business.
- Could have come to one of my events.
- Could have introduced me to a business owner he knows.
- Could have shared something of value – even an article.
- Maybe could have given me an umbrella or something.
- He might have even coached me to say, “You are my insurance guy.”
I can’t guarantee those ideas would have worked, but it would have started to build a phrase in my mind: “I’m Your Insurance Guy.” If that thought becomes clear enough, I will call him when I have a need.
So here’s the question – Are you your customer’s Plumber? Accountant? Landscaper? Website Designer? etc. The question is not “Do I do good work for my client?”. It’s more personal than that. You must belong to your customer in THEIR minds.
A business often doesn’t need more leads – it just needs better customer retention, i.e., customer loyalty.
But more than customer loyalty, businesses need customers to own them.
So give it some thought – how could you get them to say, “You are my ______________.”?
UPDATE: One further thought – I still don’t have an Insurance Guy. Just because I recently bought from my new agent, doesn’t make him my guy. That position is still open – any takers?
For more of my thoughts on business, visit my blog at www.next90.com
