The most often overlooked marketing asset of any company is your existing database. This database consists of former clients, current clients, and prospective customers that you can quickly generate sales from.
This is also known as account-based marketing, a strategic approach to business marketing based on account awareness in which an organization considers and communicates with each prospect or customer accounts regularly with different messages.
Many companies are beginning to see the need to market strategically and creatively to generate more profit.
To grow successfully, you not only need to get new customers, but you need to understand the importance of finding ways to retain your existing customers for life.
If companies fail to do this, they will lose customers faster than they can find them, ultimately leading to failure. Since you want your business to survive and flourish, you need to consistently communicate and market to your existing customer base on an ongoing basis. The first step in doing this is to ensure that your company is accumulating a useable record of your customer base.
There are so many customer relationship database systems out there you can leverage to set this up properly. This is done by reviewing old invoices, work orders, sales tickets, receipts, or anything else with your customer information. Then, input this contact information into a customer relationship management system (a CRM system).
Statistics have indicated that 65% of people stop doing business with a company because they feel that they are not necessary.
It’s not the price, quality, selection, or other reason that causes customers to stop doing business with a particular industry. People stop doing business with a company because they stop feeling as if they are essential to that company.
In other words, customers expect you to market to them. They feel unwanted if you don’t, and they will go someplace else. Be careful.
Current customers don’t want to be treated like everyone else. They don’t want to receive just another “flyer” like you send everyone. They want to be told that they are unique.
That they are essential to you because they are a current customer. Therefore, you must segment your customer database by several different factors. Who are current customers, past customers, and who are prospective customers?
The most critical aspect of your account-based marketing is your current and past customers because they already know, like, and trust you. As a company, it is so vital that you understand your numbers.
You should see how much each customer spends with you in the last three months, last 12 months, and how often they purchase from you.
Other relevant information you would like to have stored in your database are factors such as:
- How many children do they have?
- When is their birthday?
- Where do they live?
- What are their hobbies?
Never stop gathering information about your customers, as once they see you as a friend or trusted advisor, they will remain customers for life!
If you would like help to optimize your current hidden assets or properly market to different segments in your database to generate sales quickly, we invite you to book a FREE Quick Wins Growth Session!
