[The Essentials] Where Should You Start with Online Customer Acquisition? [Existing Customers First]
From ACIDHOUSE, INC., this is Tetsuya Ashida.
I sometimes get this question from small and medium-sized business owners with websites.
I want to do something about it, but where should I start?
This article should help those with the same question.
Simply Creating a Website Won't Generate Sales
First, an almost too-obvious premise: a website itself does not produce money.
Some people expect customers to arrive automatically once they build a website, but that doesn't happen. Opportunities to generate money arise when you properly attract customers and get them to apply or inquire.
internet live stats says the number of websites worldwide is over 1.9 billion as of February 2019. Simply having a website no longer gives you an advantage, so attracting customers' interest is crucial.
The First Step Is to Bring Existing Customers to Your Website
When you hear “attracting customers,” you may first think of finding new customers.
That isn't wrong, but leave that until a little later.
The first thing to tackle is directing existing customers to your website.
Unless you've only just started a new business and have no customers other than new ones, approaching existing customers makes it easier to generate money.
Have you heard of “the 1:5 rule” and “the 5:25 rule”?
The 1:5 rule: Acquiring a new customer costs five times as much as retaining an existing customer.
The 5:25 rule: reducing customer defection by 5% leads to at least a 25% improvement in profits.
Frederick
Reichheld (Bain & Company)
The web is good at building relationships with existing customers and cost-effective.
- Offline (through direct mail, store visits, etc.), encourage existing customers to visit your website and subscribe to your newsletter.
- Publish useful content online and sell with an offer.
- Follow up with thank-you emails and so on.
- Repeat steps 1–3.
Honestly, this alone should generate sales.
Your existing customers already trust your products and services, so you're simply replacing the means of communication with a website and email.
Email lets the recipient respond at their convenience, so you can send it without hesitation.
Some people say “emails aren't read,” but ultimately whether they are read depends on the relationship between you and your customers.
Also, email and newsletters are by no means outdated promotional tools; they are still very much in active use.
...I don't understand any of it anymore!
There's no need to freeze up like that.
What you do is simple. Just get customers' email addresses, send emails regularly, have them visit your website and take action.
To send newsletters, subscribe to a dedicated email delivery system rather than using an email program such as Gmail.
There are also guidelines for email wording and frequency. I'll explain these in separate articles.
Points to Watch When Getting Newsletter Subscriptions
This is very important.
- Provide a benefit for customers who subscribe.
- Always follow the Act on Regulation of Transmission of Specified Electronic Mail.
Let's look more closely.
Provide a Benefit for Customers Who Subscribe
To give the conclusion first, make sure customers receive a coupon or promotional gift when they subscribe.
People are inherently reluctant to make an effort, so without a benefit they won't act.
Think about what benefit would make you happy to subscribe if you were the customer, and prepare an offer. The offer's contents affect the proportion of customers who subscribe.
*In direct response marketing (DRM), a benefit that encourages action like this is called an “offer.”
Always follow the Act on Regulation of Transmission of Specified Electronic Mail
Handling email addresses is actually governed by law.
For the official details, search Google for the Act on Regulation of Transmission of Specified Electronic Mail, but broadly, covering the following points is enough.
- Send newsletters only to customers who have given permission.
- Do not buy mailing lists from vendors and send to them.
- If a customer requests an unsubscribe, stop sending promptly.
- Manage customers' email addresses strictly in accordance with the Act on the Protection of Personal Information.
It's the law, so compliance is expected.
Casual judgments and baseless assumptions that things will be fine are strictly unacceptable.
They undermine credibility, the most important thing in business.
I am not a legal expert, so be sure to consult the Spam Consultation Center or a lawyer and base your actual operations on their feedback. I cannot accept any responsibility for consequences arising from implementing the contents of this article.
Dormant Customers Are Existing Customers Too: Bring Them Back to Generate Sales
If you have customers you dealt with in the past but haven't heard from in a while, that's an opportunity.
These are so-called dormant customers, but you can bring them back and make them active customers.
*Typing “reactivating dormant customers” into Google brings up plenty of information.
Your reason for contacting them can be “Our website has opened”.
If their birthday is coming up, you could also use that as a reason to get in touch.
The key is to make a strong offer (a very generous offer).
For example, you could increase coupons normally offering around 10% off to 20–25% off, or add a promotional gift or sample.
Attract New Customers After Generating Sales from Existing Customers
In this way, you can generate sales with just a website and email.
Only after doing this should you work on attracting new customers.
Again, this is because acquiring new customers costs a lot of money.
*Some people mistakenly think the web lets you acquire new customers for free, but that is a complete misunderstanding.
The smart approach is therefore to earn sales from existing customers, which you can expect efficiently, then attract new customers.
In the next article, using this as a premise, I'd like to explain where to start with acquiring new customers.
[The Essentials] The One Method to Master for Acquiring New Customers [Still the Answer in 2019] February 17, 2019