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Think for a moment about a service or product you purchased from a salesperson for your home or business, whether six months or six years ago. How many times have you seen or heard from this rep since that purchase? Most buyers would have to answer that question with ‘few to none.’
I call encounters like these “hit and run” sales events. If you are making your living as a commission-based salesperson, a “hit and run” is as much of a crime as it is when you’re behind the wheel of a vehicle.
Let me explain…
Why would anyone plant a crop and then ignore it by failing to weed or prune what was planted?
Why would I buy a stock for my portfolio and then not track its movement to see whether it is increasing or decreasing in value or if the dividend is stable?
Both of those examples might sound foolish, but that’s exactly what happens when a salesperson ignores their most valuable asset, their existing customer base.
Investing the time and effort to stay in contact with your customers pays off in several different ways:
+ Cross-selling and Up-selling naturally occurs as your customer communication and attention uncovers needs for other services or products you offer. However, if you’re not in regular contact with your customers “you won’t know what you don’t know!”
+ Referrals and Testimonials produce new residential sales to new customers as satisfied, happy existing customers tell friends and family about your caring customer service along with the value your services and products provide for them.
On the commercial side, sister businesses to your customers will eventually develop needs for what you sell. When they ask your customers, “Who would be good to call for…,” don’t you want an automatic and whole-hearted recommendation for both your service AND your excellent customer care?
+ Competitive Snipers are kept at bay when you build a wide moat with regular ‘touching’ and strong relationships. How many times have you heard me say, “Everybody wants a guy (or gal)?” Once you become that rep to a customer, it is much more difficult for the competition to steal them away.
Salespeople often squawk that it takes too much time and effort to ‘touch’ existing customers. After all they were hired to bring on new business and make quotas in order to earn the maximum bonus, right? Well, if you’re one of these squawkers my response is…SERIOUSLY? Please re-read the three numbered points above and I’ll just move on.
Before all the sand runs out of the hourglass for today’s post, let’s talk about my ‘touching’ suggestions. I recommend you reach out to residential customers 4 times each year (quarterly), and commercial customers between 8-12 times each year. Let the size of the customer by revenue determine the ‘touches,’ with the largest ones getting attention monthly.
Photo credit-customersthatstick.com
Remember that a ‘touch’ is any communication from you to your client:
+ Email (follow-up on a commitment, just saying hello, offering assistance, etc.)
+ Telephone Call (sharing good news, or congratulating customer on a milestone)
+ Snail mail (an article on business, a hobby, or benchmark info on a competitor)
+ In-person meeting (quality assurance and/or just a non-business visit)
+ Text (link to interesting article or announcement)
+ Post Card (announcing a new offering or one this customer doesn’t have)
+ Special Occasion Card (holiday, birthday, anniversary, company milestone)
+ Facetime or Google Duo (video call to ensure your smiling face isn’t forgotten)
Remember the slogan, garbage in-garbage out when determining what to communicate on your ‘touches.’ If you send junk just to say you are ‘touching’ folks, your customer will quickly learn to ignore you and your communications. On the other hand, if you are communicating something of interest and value, your customers will quickly learn to not only anticipate, but to pay close attention to what you send.
My final comment on this subject is that you can expand your customer base if you volunteer to open an adoption agency for your company’s customers sold by salespeople who are no longer in position, or have left your company. They need to be ‘touched’ before a competitor finds them and turns on the charm. If you’re interested, I wrote about how to accomplish this HERE.
————Don’t Skip This————
When is the last time you read a good book chocked full of selling ideas and tips that put more money in your pocket? Oh, that long? Well I’ll make you a deal. Go to my website and order a copy of Sell is NOT a Four Letter Word for $16 and I’ll ship it to you for FREE. After reading it, if you don’t make back 10 times your purchase price within a week, I’ll refund your money and sing and dance at your next family event. Fair enough?
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