Before 2022 came to a close, you likely reflected on the events that took place in your business throughout the year. This is a great practice for businesses (and individuals) wanting to celebrate the wins, learn from the mistakes, and get ready to do it all over again!
Well, it’s 2023 so it’s time! To go a little further, work a little smarter and set goals for your business. In doing so, don’t forget your clients!
So often I see business owners focusing only on what’s inside the business and forgetting that when it comes to resetting and reflecting – you need to consider your customers too. After all, it’s your customers that enable you to have a successful business!
Gaining feedback from yourclients and your team about how well you served them enables you to improve what you do and how your business serves them, but before you do, you need to look at how well you engaged with them last year.
- How often did you communicate directly with your customers, about their needs and pains?
- How often did you connect with them through personal or private messaging?
- How engaged were they on social media, at events or coaching sessions (if this is something you offer)
Give yourself a score out of 10 for each point – if you scored 24 or above – congratulations! A score below, and you may need to start this year with a plan to (re)engage with your audience.
(Re)engaging with your clients help build strong relationships; and when that engagement is personalised and speaks to their needs and wants, it helps builds trust and creates loyalty. Customers, after all want to feel valued and connected to you and your business. Ultimately, they want to feel that they matter – and they do!
In addition to what engagement does for your customers, it also helps you build a better business. Regular communication be it on email, social, calls or allows you to learn more about your clients, their expectations and what they want from you, and helps improve the products and services your offer. Taking the time to listen to your clients can also help identify new opportunities in your current market or identify new markets.
Here are some #tips to help you (re)build a connection with your customers in 2023 and beyond.
Tip #1: Stay connected with your clients with regular communications. Create a plan of how often you connect with your clients through email, phone calls, or social media. Track your performance against your plan to be sure you stay connected.
Tip #2: Personalise your interactions. There is nothing worse than getting an email that says “Hi” Why? Because I gave you my name when I signed up!!!
When sending emails, be sure to personalise it with, at the very least their name. Mailchimp, Keep, Drip etc all have this feature and it is SOOO EASY to use! Making this small change will help your clients know you are talking to them!
Tip #3: Offer your clients special events or promotions. There is nothing better than an exclusive offer! Build loyalty by providing unique opportunities to your customers. Whether it is a free gift, discount or exclusive experience, build engagement by providing something that your clients want.
Tip #4: Send your clients some appreciation messages. How great is a “I am thinking of you” every now and again! Whether you like physical or digital cards sending notes to your clients to say thank you for buying a product, being loyal, attending an event, or on their anniversary sends the message that you care about them. Sites like TouchNote provide the option to send a physical card and OpenMe provides a digital option.
