Online relationship marketing is a process which should attract, maintain, and enhance your relationship with key customers using the internet. Its aims are to increase the likelihood of a customer returning to your business and therefore contributing to your business in the following ways; lowering the cost of acquiring new customers – this can be higher than maintenance costs. Customers become less price sensitive – their past experience of a quality service/product will build loyalty and therefore they will trust that your going rate is competitive. Happy customers are much more likely to recommend you to others. You will not need to consider discounts to motivate future customer sales and the more they use your services the higher they will invest as trust develops. The further along the relationship path each customer progresses the more valuable they will become to you. It’s important to realise who your strongest and most valuable customers are in order that you can begin to maximise the return on your resources. Do you know who your most valuable customers are? We can split your current portfolio into three very general groups:
First group: The Cash Cows
Just like Pareto’s 80/20 rule, the cash cow group will consist of the small group of customers (perhaps >20%) that provide your organisation with <80% of your business. These customers will have purchased the highest volumes or most highly priced products. You are less likely to need to encourage retention with these customers; instead you will want to extend your relationship with them, taking the relationship to a closer level. Due to their invaluable contribution you should do whatever is in your power to keep them happy, whatever expectation of quality they want you ensure they get it (within reason and cost)! If it is appropriate place personal managers on a one to one basis with these customers, they may just be your cash cows.
Second group: Don’t ignore the middle person!
The second important group of customers are those that have the highest growth potential, that is to say they have not purchased much yet but have the potential to do so. Either they are expanding, or their market is expanding or maybe they just need more experience of your service, they just don’t request the higher end volume or product yet. You will need to push your services and product benefits a little harder with this group, carefully though as you do not want to scare or bully them. They must understand why you are worth committing to – you may find out that they just didn’t know the potential of your service. Using online marketing strategies you can make use of e-mails with your website to advertise recommendations, keeping these customers informed of what new services/products are available to build this relationship.
Third group: Time to be strong!
The third group – you will have customers who no matter what tempting offer you throw at them just won’t bite, and end up costing you more to keep than they are worth. Get rid of them. Lean up and focus on the other two.
Once you have your customers branded into either of the top groups it’s time to find out how satisfied they are. How can you maximise this expectation?
