Nurturing Customer Relationships: The Key to Client Re-Engagement

Photo credit: Mark Guim

Customer relationships are a quintessential factor in your current sales figures and the sustainable future of your business. According to a recent LinkedIn report, when a customer has purchased from you once, he or she is 60 to 70% more likely to become a repeat buyer.

The question is: what happens when a loyal customer falls off the bandwagon?

The rapport you have with your existing customers is like most interpersonal relationships—it’s prone to natural ups and downs. Which is why you should have a strategy around re-engaging your customers and clients every now and again, especially if they used to buy from you.

Our hope is the following strategies spark ideas on how your company can re-energize and re-engage an audience who’s grown apart from your business.

Write and deploy a “just because” nurture sequence.

There’s nothing that says “I love you” or “you’re awesome” better than an unexpected gift at an unexpected time. (Speaking of which, go ahead and download our latest free guide that covers 10 Call to Action DOs and DON’Ts that Increase Your Conversion Rate.)

Send your peeps a new report, video, or checklist…and fork it over at no cost. When your existing customers opt in for the free goodie, place them into a nurture sequence that offers relevant information and tangible takeaways that coincide with your original offer.

Reach out for a review.

We had a client who sent a very simple email to her list, and the results were impactful to say the least. To paraphrase that very simple marketing email:

Hi FIRST NAME,

If you have three seconds, please hit reply to this email and tell me one word that describes your relationship with us. Just one word.

That was pretty much it, and then a few minutes later the replies began pouring in with adjectives such as “enlightening, empowering, clarifying, wonderful, educational, and loving.”

Um, wow.

That’s engagement.

With such a simple technique, our client engaged her list in a profound way. She not only received good feedback, but she also reminded her audience why they engaged with her in the first place.

Photo credit: Jason Howie

Surf the social media waves.

Customer re-engagement happens when you reach out via various platforms. As much as we love marketing emails, sometimes it’s best to add a little variety to your customer communication.

Facebook engagement is a no-brainer route to take. Facebook’s Custom Audience tool allows you to target people who have recently purchased from you.

Here’s some more info on how to set that up.

Make existing customers feel special. 

A basic human need is to feel appreciated, so let your peeps know that you’re their biggest fan. There are multiple ways you can show your appreciation.

Here are a handful of ideas:

• Offer a discount or sale for existing customers.

• Create a nurture sequence based on a new trend or development in your industry that your existing customers might not know about. For example: if you work in SEO, prepare your audience for the next Google update.

• Develop new products and services specifically for existing customers. This goes beyond the concept of upsell—think of it as your business evolving with the needs of your target market.

No matter which route you take, your customers need to feel as if you care about them—that you will continue to make their lives easier.

And when your marketing accomplishes that milestone, it’s a thousand time easier to re-engage your customers.

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