|
Phase I: Prospecting and Acquisition
In this phase, a business seeks to acquire the right customer from the beginning. Marketing research, customer profiles, and database marketing analysis can give you a more accurate vision of who your best and most profitable customers are. And, loyalty tactics can provide the "hook" which will lure prospects to participate in marketing initiatives and purchase your products and services. For example, meaningful awards and special recognition vehicles assist in acquiring new customers with the promise of value vs.. margin-eroding price discounts.
Phase II: Activation
Research indicates that the sooner your customer uses, or "activates," their option to purchase, the more loyal the customer will be long term. Loyalty/frequency programs can supply the stimulus to activate. And, as usage grows, so does your customer's equity in your products and services, which leads to the next phase ...
Phase III: Retention and Recapture
Multi-wave direct mail, employee training and incentive programs, telemarketing, marketing research, frequency programs, membership clubs, on-site recognition delivery, customer satisfaction studies, and attrition modeling are all loyalty-based management deliverables. In this phase, you need to attempt to continue to build customer equity through awards, recognition, increased knowledge of your customers and ongoing dialogue with your most profitable users. Through the customer dialogue fostered by loyalty marketing, you can spot customer service problems and react quickly and proactively. You can even predict which customers are most at risk and likely to defect so that you can implement targeted marketing interventions to keep them.
Phase IV: Cross-Sell and Up-Sell
Frequency program statements, affinity programs, award offerings and/or loyalty-generating direct marketing programs supply opportunities to communicate other company products through free samples and other trial offers. This is called cross-selling.
Likewise, through purchase incentives such as double points, you can stimulate increased purchases and usage. This is called up-selling.
Phase V: Advocacy
Having done all of the above, your customers are now shouting your praises and telling all of their friends and family how great your products or services are (this is labeled advocacy). And, you reward them for doing so through special thank you'd like extra points and special services.
You have now seen how loyalty impacts all phases of the customer development process. Keep in mind that loyalty works!
÷
|
