Customer loyalty is one of the most important areas in small business marketing that we strive to strengthen. It does not happen overnight and takes continued effort; however the benefits can greatly increase our business and marketing success.

There are many ways to find out how to gain customer loyalty and one of the best ways is to learn from others and share knowledge.

This post is all about sharing knowledge. I asked nine people in successful businesses to share their top tips  to keep customers loyal and I appreciate each one taking the time to contribute.

Here are their terrific tips for greater customer loyalty:

Anita Campbell from Small Business Trends: “To keep B-to-B customers loyal, give them marketing visibility.  There’s nothing like promoting your customers and helping them get visibility to make them feel waves of love toward you.  Example:  profile a customer in your monthly newsletter.  Or write about the customer on your blog, outlining something impressive they’ve accomplished.  Or offer to allow them to guest-blog an article on your site. Or simply create a “customer spotlight” box on your website with a photo of one of your customers or their place of business, along with a link to their website.  Admit it – we’re all human.  Most of us love seeing our name or our business’s name up in lights.  It makes us feel special, and has a powerful effect on us as customers.”

Deborah Chaddock Brown from Make or Break Moments: “Build a relationship with your customers. People buy from those they like and trust and the only way to build that trust is to learn about your customers as people not just cash in the register. Taking steps to build a relationship with your customers may seem time consuming, but the efforts and future benefits far outweigh the energy it takes.  If you want loyal customers – become their friend; even if the friendship is only for a single moment in time.  The experience will be remembered and the beginnings of customer loyalty will be established.”

David A Brock from Partners In EXCELLENCE: “Create value in every exchange you have with your customers.  Make sure your marketing programs are focused on the value you create, the problems you solve, the opportunities you create for your customers in growing their businesses. In selling to them, don’t pitch your products, understand what they need, both from business and personal points of view. Become a facilitator of their buying processes, not a product peddler.  Help them understand the critical things they should be considering in implementing a solution, leverage your experience and expertise in working with others on this. Customer experience matters—it is the true test of your value proposition because it is in the experience that customers see what you have claimed as value.”

Angela Raspass from Ideas into Action: “Say “Thank you”. It’s simple, effective and surprisingly rare to be thanked when you purchase from a business. We all like to feel special and so do your customers. Practise “planned spontaneous recognition” – send your thanks at an unexpected moment, not just after a purchase. Take the time to utilise good old snail mail – it’s a good idea to have a supply of cards printed with your logo on hand so they’re easily available when you need them. And, I believe it is essential to hand write your thank you note. Another rare gesture in the digital age!”

Heather Smith from ANISE Consulting: “I like to forward an article, including e-published articles I have written, that I think my client may be interested in or benefit from. If they come back and say they like the article I now understand them better and I have further developed our relationship without being pushy.”

Gopal Shenoy from Product Management Tips: “Keep it human. In the times we live in, customers are bombarded with marketing messages from all over. In this noisy world, companies that stand out are the ones which retain the human touch. The best way to buy customer loyalty is by treating each one of them as a unique human being at every touch point. Buying after all is a human behavior, so make sure you respect the “human” part of it. What does “keeping it human” mean? It can mean a website that helps the customer finalize the buying decision and written in a language that the customer understands as opposed to one with marketing gobbledygook where the customer feels stupid. Or a no questions asked, quality guarantee for all purchases or a follow up phone call to make sure the customer is satisfied a few days after purchase.”

Lisa Lange from Beautiful Baskets: “Implementing a strong Customer Relationship Management (CRM) programme is vital to maintain customer loyalty.  When giving your clients gifts as part of that program try and stand apart from your competitors and pick special occasions (eg anniversary of the date you closed your first business deal with them, birthdays, end of financial year etc) instead of the usual times like Christmas to show how much you value their business.  Also, when giving a gift to your client on occasions such as these remember that it’s not appropriate that the present be a promotional item or product with your company branding on it.  This is a time to show your appreciation (not push your business) think things like gourmet foods and high quality products (within your budget) that aren’t readily available  – extra effort is always appreciated and recognised. “

Danielle MacInnis from Macinnis Marketing: “Listen – start connecting by listening. This means act like a customer. Ring your own phone number. Stand in your own queue. Understand them. Invite them to participate in improving your product or service. Educate them and inspire them, but mostly join their conversation. Observe conversations in your sphere. Listen to the experts in your business on blogs, tweets and other social media forums.”

Heather Stone from You’ve Been Promoted: “A simple token of appreciation can go a long way to gain loyalty with your customers, especially during these uncertain times when customer loyalty is vital to all businesses. The token of appreciation does not have to be expensive as it is more about you making a simple gesture that you are grateful for their purchase of your products. When a customer orders through us we just send a nice box of chocolates to say thank you for the order and from that small token we not only keep getting business but we also get referrals.”

So we can learn from you, please share your top tip on how you keep your customers loyal.

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