Building Groups As a Customer Retention Gambit

Should We Not Think of Our Customers As Being in One Group--Ours?

No. Here's why--the times, they are a-changin' to throw in a little 60's Bob Dylan. A person in business for 5,10, 25 years often looks at his or her customers with the idea that they are simply one homogeneous group--their customers.

But are they really one group? The thinking person would have to say, "No, of course they are not one group. They have different demographics and psychographics as to their makeup. Yet they are still this person's customers. That is one thing they argree on by the virtue of their wallets."

OK, granted. I've mentioned the National Association of Business Coaches (NABC) that I created in the mid-1990s with my 'recovering attorney' friend, the late great Hal Wright who is now with the Lord. (Some of the following may be construed as criticism for my buyers of NABC, but it is not intended.)

For Example, Different Backgrounds Coming Together as Business Coaches

At NABC we had folks who wanted to be trained as business coaches who were very successful business owners themselves, some were retired, but just wanted to 'give back' to the market or niche that made them successful. They didn't need the coaching fees but their clients needed to pay them.

There were others who wanted to make business coaching a vocation and only work with women business owners. Still others only wanted to work in the corporate environment and work in the peer to peer niche. Others only wanted to work with speakers, only medical people or only retailers.

My point is that although the 'niche' of our business may be looked at as being narrow, i.e. 'just business coaches,' in reality our membership was comprised of many varied interests. It is too bad that I often hear back from past members who continued with my buyers (it is the Worldwide Association of Business Coaches--they couldn't improve on the name that much), telling me that they are uncomfortable that there is a pervasive 'feminine' attitude throughout the organization now. [Believe me, this is an opportunity for someone, not 'something they will just have to get over and live with as I have been told!]

Questions to Ask Yourself About Your Customers With Retention in Mind

Maybe with my NABC example above, there needs to be a 'men' angle and 'women' angle (political correctness notwithstanding) to divide the gender from the get-go. The time for this type of thinking should occur back in the strategic planning stage in conjunction with what kinds of back end product or service you want to provide. Our focus then, being customer retention, should bring some questions to mind that need noodling as you are faced with an ever-growing array of competition possibles. Ask yourself...

1) As I look over my customer list, are there some natural 'divisions' I can see in the likes and popularity of one or more of our products and services?

2) Do I feel there are enough people to warrant a separate 'club' or promotional activity to them? Who else feels that way that I respect? Who does not feel that way whom I respect?

3) Could I build enough margin into a special back end product just for my identified niches so that I do not HAVE to have a 'quota' of people? [eg Creating a special big-ticket coaching or 'how to' package that could be fulfilled by you or a qualified employee where you DO NOT have to even have any number of 'quota'. You simply advertise the service along with your regular out-going customer communications and when you get a bite on the big-ticket back end, you have the time or staff to fill it as the opportunities present themselves.]

4) Would/Could this new backend activity be an everlasting, ongoing part of my business?

5) Would/Could it be always 'evergreen' in presentation to customers? (Meaning it never goes out of date and has little if any decline on the effectiveness of the product/service in the lives of your customers.)

Do not get 'creating group blinders' on. Think why your customers chose you when they have a plethora of your competitors to go to....or stay away from. You may come up with a new product or service that DOES NOT need a group--just a sales effort. Building groups is tough work, but once identified, built and functioning (you are to the 'tweaking' stage), the lifetime value of a customer shoots up dramatically.

We will be getting into building congruency in your groups, your offers and products, in a more pointed manner.

Good stragegy,

Steve