Loyal customers are more valuable than ever to businesses. In fact, over 60% of loyal customers make extra efforts to buy from their favorite brands instead of competitors. When your customers have your back, your business benefits everyday. In other words, there are endless benefits to keeping your customers loyal. Some of the other perks include:

They Are Your Biggest Brand Advocates: A brand advocate is someone who builds up your business’ brand through word-of-mouth marketing. Brand advocates are happy customers who leave positive online reviews about your products and services. Over 70% of consumers trust online reviews from strangers and a whopping 92% trust word-of-mouth recommendations. Your loyal customers recommend your business to their families and friends, making your business more trustworthy to all of their contacts. Having real customers advocating for your business online and in person is priceless to any business owner. 

They Buy More & Spend More: Happy customers are 87% more likely to buy upgrades and new products/services your business offers. They frequent your business more often so they’re spending more money on your offerings than new or one-time customers. Besides the fact that loyal customers are hiring your business frequently, they are also much more likely to purchase your more expensive services because they already know and trust your quality of work. Loyal customers buy more and spend more, making them increasingly valuable to your business. 

They Provide Honest Feedback: The best way for a business to grow is to listen and learn from their customers. Reading your negative and positive reviews is a great place to start, but you can rely on your loyal customers to provide you with honest feedback. Oftentimes, reviews are altered by a person’s one-off experience or bad mood. However, when a loyal customer tells you about something they dislike about your business, you can learn from their feedback and make changes if necessary. This goes both ways, as your happy customers tell you about the things they love about your business and why they’re loyal to you. 

Loyal customers make efforts to support your business, so your business should make efforts to support them right back. Engage with your loyal customers regularly and provide them with loyalty programs, great customer service and easy, personalized communication.

For more insights on marketing strategy that actually works for small business, connect with Jay Bean, Founder of FreshLime and Small Business Marketing Expert on LinkedIn and Twitter. If any of these tips have helped you or if you have anything to add, please comment below. We’d love to hear from you!