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LOYALTY
- THE BOTTOM LINE:
Trust is built by being
consistent, relevant, and transparent while meeting your customer's
expectations. Loyalty is created
through a series of trusted transactions that delight your customers. It takes time to develop trust and earn loyalty,
but it can be lost in an
instant. Based on a Consumer Trust Study
by Yankelovich (2004):
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66% feel that if the
opportunity arises, most businesses would take advantage of the public if
they believe they are unlikely to be discovered.
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45% say there is at
least one business that they they trusted at one point but no longer trust,
which resulted in an average 87% decrease in spending by that group.
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28% feel there is nothing
a business can do to regain their trust once it is lost.
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Once trust is lost:
A
study by Walker Information (2004) of information technology (IT) customers found the
following average profitability by degree of loyalty:
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Loyalty
Leaders: 12%
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Loyalty
In Limbo: 6%
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Loyalty
Laggards: -11%
Benefits of Loyalty:
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Reduced marketing costs as loyal customers are more likely to promote your
business, and retaining more customers means there is less need to acquire new
customers.
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Improved quality & service
as you are able to redirect marketing dollars from customer acquisition
to other initiatives in your business. Loyal customers
are also more likely to collaborate with you on product
development and offer other ways to improve your business.
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Increased efficiency
and lower transaction costs as you have a better
understanding of customer needs and existing customers are
already familiar with how you do business (ordering, service
and support, etc.)
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Increased
cross-selling revenue from satisfied customers who are
more likely to try your other brands, products and services.
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Less dependence on a low-price marketing strategy
as loyal customers are less inclined to switch based on just
price alone. Also, loyal customers are more likely to
stick with you in tough times if trust has been developed.
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All of these
lead to increased margins, higher profits, a greater
share of market and share of wallet of each
customer.
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Start
here to build trust and loyalty>
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