Newsletter International Q1 2011

Use of successful sales strategies: customer retention vs. customer acquisition

The key objective for every business is growth – but the paths to growth are extremely varied. The apparently simplest way to achieve it is steady new customer acquisition: more customers = greater turnover. The costs expended for every newly-acquired customer are, however, often unknown. A rule of thumb is that the cost of acquiring a new customer is significantly higher than the cost of retaining an existing customer – five times higher, in fact.

It is therefore worthwhile to take a closer look at the potential that arises from dealing with existing customers. If a customer is satisfied with the performance of a supplier, the probability that they will return to the same supplier for any future purchase is high. The same applies to similar or new products from the same source. This gives the supplier or salesman a much simpler negotiating position. In addition, recommendations from satisfied customers are an extremely valuable selling point.

Good customer retention does not of course come by itself. It requires high quality in both products and their associated services. Maintaining a high standard of quality over the long term is demanding, and in spite of it, should always be one of the main goals of the business. Good support plays an important role in this. If a company listens and responds to the questions, wishes and concerns of customers, a competitor will find it difficult to entice the customer away.

Customer service is always in the foreground for antispameurope, and we say in our mission statement, “We provide reliable quality which meets the highest expectations of our customers.” We are proud of the high satisfaction level of our customers. Let’s build on it!