Attracting and creating loyal customers is of upmost importance. Did you know that it costs 5 to 25 times as much to attract a new customer than to keep one? Think about that number for a while – all the precious time and resources needed to reel in consumers.

With that in mind, your focus is to build a vital and prosperous relationship with your customers that will keep them coming back to you.

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Loyalty will pay off in a long run for your business through decreased customer acquisition costs, client and employee retention as well as reduced marketing costs.

Satisfied customers will be walking marketing machines. Trust me when I say this, a customer who is satisfied with their product or a service will be more than happy to recommend you to their friends and family.

1. Be Heard and Seen!

Ever hear of the 80/20 rule? Well it’s pretty simple. Basically what it is, it’s a ratio of time allocation that goes into creating a product or a service and then promoting it.

20% of the time is spent on creating something, and the other 80% of the time is used to promote it!

It sounds absolutely crazy trying to spend 80% of the total time on just promoting something. You’d think “maybe I should spend more time on the product itself”.

There is no point in having a great product and great customer service if there is no one to service in the first place!

With so much content available on the internet, its easy to get lost in all that noise. Learn to stand out from your competition and promote yourself and your business wisely.

2. Respect Your Employees

Employees are the face of your company and they represent you and your work. There is a strong correlation between quality work environment, productivity and customer satisfaction.

Think about it from your own perspective. I am sure most of us would be a lot more happy and willing to put in more effort in what we’re doing when our work is appreciated.

Taking care of your staff will go a long way. It promotes happiness in the workplace and in turn employees help preserve customer loyalty. Happy employees are always more diligent and will go above and beyond when on and off the clock.

When you’re doing business with customers, they will not only be interacting with you from time to time but will spend considerable amount of time with your employees too.

The happy and determined faces of your staff will be the ones your customers see first.

All this will be a positive reminder for your customers when they conduct business with you today and tomorrow.

3. Make Sure the Customers Know You’re Listening

Most people don’t enjoy being ignored. We all need some sort of confirmation or reassurance that we have been heard.

Make a habit of listening to customer’s comments and concerns. This will help establish a positive rapport between your business and the customer.

Taking into consideration the feedback you receive helps you a lot. It aids in improving relationships with your clients and also has a chance of positively improving the product or a service you offer.

You may not even realize something needs to be changed until you hear it from multiple customers disclosing their thoughts and ideas.

4. Remember the Customer and Don’t Be Afraid to Get a Little Personal

This one is very easy to implement and will put a delightful smile on the consumers face, turning them into a repeat client.

Personalized Design

If you can, figure out creative ways to add some personalized touches to services or products that you create.

Learn about your customers and see how you can improve their experience when choosing to do business with you.

Urge your employees to get to know the customer on a deeper level. This will improve the overall quality of the service they receive. Customers will get used to leaving your business with a smile on his or her face.

Remember Those Days

It is always nice to be acknowledged when something happens in your life such as your birthday or a big holiday for example.

Depending on the client base you have acquired, try and keep tabs on basic dates such as their birthdays, anniversaries, and major holidays.

Holiday emails and simple birthday cards can leave a lasting impression for your customer. Don’t be afraid to offer discounts or other types of exclusive deals for your client’s birthday or during the holiday season.

Imagine being a customer, it’s great to receive a little holiday greeting in an email or a mailbox. If you package it up nicely with a worthwhile coupon, it will give them another incentive to pay you visit.

5. Be Honest About Yourself and Your Service

Honesty can and will go a long way when dealing with new and existing customers. Being transparent about how you conduct business is good for promoting a healthy customer – business relationship.

If you rely on local suppliers for manufacturing, be vocal about it. Let everyone know where and how your materials are being sourced. Are you supporting other small businesses as you grow and develop your own?

People will be more inclined to doing business with a company that stays committed to their community and other small business owners.

This way you will cement your bond in your area making it hard for competition to knock you off and keeps customers coming back to you.

6. Be Passionate About What You’re Doing

Confucius once said – “Choose the job you love, and you won’t ever have to work a day in your life.”

Passion is the keystone of your business that holds everything together.

Have you ever had a conversation with someone about a topic that the person was really interested about or is keen on learning? You instantly notice their expression change, their tone of their voice rises and the excitement begins oozing out of them.

Just like that, the customer will notice if you’re passionate or not about the work that you do. This will also reflect in the end result that your customer gets.

Passion creates quality. If your passion doesn’t wither away as time goes on, your quality will remain. Customers remember those things and you will notice them come back time and time again.

7. Look Into the Future

As trends come and go, customer’s needs are altered; your business model should be adjusted accordingly to stay relevant!

You should always focus on the changing market as customers will stay with the businesses that are always up to date.

Learn to anticipate arising new needs and untapped niches in the market that you can take advantage of. Henry Ford after the invention of the assembly line and improving automotive manufacturing said this- “if I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said ‘we want faster horses.'”

Think about that when preparing for the future. Entice customers to come to you and stay with you because of your unique, never-before-seen approach to solving their problems.

Customers Are Your Lifeblood

There is a saying “happy wife, happy life.” I think this can apply to your business, just replace the wife with customers. Just don’t physically replace your wife with customers – she wouldn’t be too happy about that.

Always remember that customers are what gets you and your employees paid and your business’s doors open.

Maintaining a great relationship with your customers will keep them coming to you with smiles on their faces.