At one point, some of us have experienced being loyal to a brand, and no matter how competitive other brands are, they couldn’t convince us to look the other way.
Have you asked yourself precisely what made you so enthusiastic about your favorite brand that you even tried to spread the word about their products? There are multiple reasons why loyal customers are born and most of the time, it is because the company exceeded their expectations.
Customer Retention & Increasing Repeat Customers
Customer retention can be defined as the percentage of long-term clients of a company. Long-term clients are more valuable than short-term clients because they are more likely to become repeat customers or brand ambassadors who build references to your product.
The most valuable asset of a company is how they are perceived by the customers. Increasing repeat customers rely on providing them with a delightful experience. A great experience leads to trust, then maintaining a strong relationship leads to repeat sales.
There are different ways to gain loyal customers. Below are some best practices we can share for an equipment rental business.
Market your Products with Integrity
Acquiring a new customer is usually 5 to 25 times more expensive than retaining an existing customer. However, retaining existing customers only applies if you already have a portfolio to work with.
If you’re starting up a new equipment rental business the first thing to remember is to market your products with integrity. You should be consistent with your brand and avoid false advertising.
A guide when creating a marketing strategy is to remember your company’s mission and vision. Having positive references about what you want to achieve is something that potential clients would highly appreciate.
If your company is new, it is recommended to have a 50-50 split between customer acquisition and retention. Once your company is established with processes and automation, it would be the best time to focus on retention heavily.
Offer Programs to Boost Loyalty
A customer retention strategy that has been proven effective is a loyalty program. The goal of a loyalty program is to make your customers excited enough to repeatedly purchase from your company.
An example of an effective loyalty program has been provided by credit card companies for many years. Whenever you purchase with your credit card, you earn reward points that can be used to avail of products or services from a list of participating partners. As a result, some people deem credit cards as the preferred way to pay compared to other options.
You can be very creative when building a loyalty program for your rental company. Some offer discounts, tiered rewards, or incentives to attract and retain customers.
Personalize Your Offer Based on Data
Historical data can help a lot when knowing about your customers. Reports such as frequently rented equipment, the duration of rent, client requests, etc. can help you create an offer that is tailored to your target audience. Creating a new product offering can add some spice to your business and spark curiosity for new and existing customers.
The most effective way to gather relevant information from within your business is to use rental software. Due to its capability to automate mundane tasks, it often makes it easier for employees to extract historical data. An analytics dashboard that usually comes with the rental software can also be handy when you want to view real-time information such as total sales, profit, new customers, etc.
Be Accessible Online
Accessing your business from anywhere can attract and retain customers. Imagine if you had no online visibility, there would be tons of lost opportunities. People who are far away from your physical location wouldn’t know that you exist, and customers who are already advocates of your service won’t be able to efficiently spread the word about your products and services.
A great way to start having online accessibility is through E-commerce integration. E-commerce for equipment rental businesses can increase your return on investment by inviting more customers through different channels. It can also make it more convenient for customers to know about your product and inventory, reserve equipment online, and explore different online payment options.
Update Inventory Based on the Trend
Although there are some benefits to having old technology, a lot of clients would like to try out new things. Updating yourself about the trends within your niche will likely benefit your business.
Having a new item in your inventory will allow people to explore new rental products. As a result, you will be able to collect data earlier than your competitors and determine whether or not to add them to your list of assets.
Be Involved and Ask your Customers
Finding ways on how your business can improve is easier said than done. The best practice to know what needs improvement is to ask your customers politely. It is essential to understand what your clients think and feel about your product or service.
Involving your customers shows that you genuinely care about their perspective; it is also a great way to start a conversation which can eventually lead to a long-term relationship.
Always Resolve Customer Complaints
It is only natural for a business to protect its reputation and do its best to avoid getting any customer complaints, however, this is something that is bound to happen one way or another.
The good thing about resolving complaints is that If your company makes a mistake and corrects it, customer satisfaction shoots up even higher than if you have never made a mistake in the first place. An effectively resolved complaint can result in a loyal customer.
