Do your customers remember you?
This may sound like a silly question, but it’s an important one for you to ask. You might be thinking, well, of course they do! I did great work for them!
And that may very well be true. Unfortunately, doing great work isn’t always enough to keep your business top of mind. You might have the best product in your market and the best customer service in town, yet your customers may forget about you within a few months and go straight to your competitors the next time they need something.
Imagine the kind of impact that this has on your business. Beyond losing a customer to a rival company, you also miss out on all of the potential referrals that a customer might have generated for your business.
So, how do you prevent this from happening?
The answer is, you need to make your business memorable.
Of course, this is much easier said than done. It’s not as simple as reminding your customers of your name a few extra times. Rather, it requires a collective and concerted effort from your entire company to ensure that your customer’s experience is a truly unforgettable one.
The Forgettable Plumber: A Cautionary Tale
We had a pipe burst during a holiday a few years back, and I urgently needed to find a plumber to make repairs. Unfortunately, my past experiences with plumbers had been less than stellar. Every new plumber I hired either didn’t show up, did poor work, or didn’t stick to their quote.
So, as you might imagine, I was wary of starting the search for a new plumber again. After hunting around, I finally came across a plumber who could do the job. I wasn’t expecting much, but guess what? He was actually great! He showed up on time and did excellent work for a fair price. Needless to say, I was thrilled with the result.
Given my positive experience with this plumber, I would have called him for any other plumbing issues I had in the future. In fact, there was a major freeze in El Paso only one year later, and many of my friends and family members had plumbing issues. I could have easily referred them to him!
But there was one major problem—I couldn’t remember his name. Worse yet, I must have paid him in cash because his name didn’t show up in any of my financial records!
Now, I’m sure this plumber would have appreciated repeat business from me, as well as business from those in my sphere. Based on the quality of his work alone, he certainly deserved them.
However, it is not your customer’s job to remember you. It’s your job!
How to Make Your Customers Remember You
If you’ve struggled to make a strong impression on your customers in the past, there’s good news—you can change that!
What could you be doing differently to ensure that you stay top of mind with your customer base? Follow these steps to make a more long-lasting and memorable impression on prospects and customers alike:
Make Your Brand More Memorable
First things first. Do you have a company name and slogan that is easy for people to remember? While you may be tempted to use a personal name if you’re a sole proprietor or small business, consider coming up with a unique or catchy business name instead—one that will stick with people!
Call Your Best Customers on a Schedule
Sometimes, nothing beats a good old-fashioned phone call. With no other reason than to check in, call up your best customers to see how they are doing, and ask if there’s any way you can help them. This personal connection will go a long way towards keeping your business top of mind!
Create a Newsletter for Your Customers
One of the best ways to stay in touch with your customers without having to call each of them individually is to send out a weekly, monthly, or quarterly newsletter. Be sure to strike the perfect balance between information and fun in order to keep them engaged.
You can deliver your newsletter via email or physical mail. The form isn’t important, as long as you stay consistent with it!