INCOMING

The big question

According to statistics, each year the average company loses 15% of its customer base. What is the best strategy to address this shortfall and which is more important - acquiring new customers or retaining existing ones?

Jointheconversation

/businesscornwall @biz_cornwall /businesscornwall/

businesscornwall.co.uk

SAM OATEY

Oatey Media

I feel that it’s important in being proactive in always offering more value to clients. It’s easy to complete a project with a client and then not hear from them for a couple of years - but being able to offer more value, whether that’s using pre-shot footage and reworking into other content or producing other films that can help brands.

I think there’s a balance between keeping existing client relationships and bringing in new clients - I love being able to work with clients on a consistent basis, you get to know each other and you’re practically an extension of their team. However, it’s also exciting to get new brands on board and new projects.

CHRISTINE FOULDS

FouldsCRM

There are several different reasons why customers leave a company. The company no longer fits the customers need: each customer is part of a lifecycle. Sometimes a customer naturally gets to the end of their lifecycle with the company by either moving up or down the market.

The price doesn’t reflect value for money: Pricing strategy is a fundamental part of running a business and takes hours of research. Sometimes, customers use pricing as a reason to leave but what they are actually unhappy about is poor customer service or products that no longer meet their needs.

The product is no longer good enough: This is one of the most straightforward reasons to leave. The product is not as good as it used to be, it doesn’t solve the customer’s problem or competitors can do it better. The customer doesn’t feel looked after: This is one of the main reasons why customers leave, and most of the time, doesn’t get the attention it requires to keep customers loyal to the company. Trust is very fragile and once it’s gone, it’s almost impossible to regain.

JESS RATTY

Halo

Data and culture together are a maverick mix. Data enables you to evaluate performance, understand delivery shortfalls and enhance measurements, but culture brings the power of relationships to the table. Combining the two creates a maelstrom of possibilities where anything can be achieved if you understand what works for both company and client. At Halo - customers, in our case clients, are not “lost” - projects end, business arrangements come to term, and people move on - but we still have the relationship, the care and culture that we first built the working period upon. We are firm friends with all clients we’ve worked with over the last few years - and this means the opportunity to work together continues. Leaving the door open for clients to return is part of what works for us at Halo. We know that business is business, and a change of scene or wanting to try something new doesn’t have to - and shouldn’t - be seen as something to hold a grudge over. What works for the client works for us and we’re always happy to accommodate change or mix things up a bit! It’s easy to forget that behind the big name and cool logo of a company or a client, there are living, breathing people - and remembering that can make all the difference in ensuring that a client sticks with you, instead of jumping ship and being treated as one big homogenous blob by a different agency.

Data is an unavoidable necessity in its cool and cold relevance to a successful business, but only on paper. Culture, and the relationships that culture brings, is ultimately what tips the scale, and that can never be understated.

RUPERT COOPER

Philleigh Way Cookery School

The best way to stop customers leaving is to remain focused on delivering the best service/product possible. To increase loyalty, reward schemes, discounts and regular communication with customers all helps.

As to which is more important - acquiring new customers or finding ways of retaining existing ones, it has to be a fine balance. Retained customers will become delegates and marketers for your business itself. But to grow and balance the books, new customers are vital.

ANN VANDERMEULEN

FSB

Both losing business and gaining business is going to cost you out of different budgets. Attention to both retention and acquisition is vital for growth. The beauty of any small business is that element of personal customer service. Offering expertise and time, making customers feel understood and valued and giving exceptional value for money is a surefire way of retaining customers and getting new ones as word get around, especially in a place like Cornwall.