| Here's a checklist for evaluating and prioritizing | | | | multiple points of engagement. To restate, "loyal |
| relationship-driven clients. A smart rating system | | | | customer" doesn't mean "please take my money." |
| applies to every company database, revealing only the | | | | Your best clients must feel like they're genuinely |
| marketing campaigns that matter. It's tempting to jump | | | | understood. |
| to conclusions in building your Client Personality Profile. | | | | The value of a good client list boils down to the "truth" |
| Keep in mind a few "myth busters" on Loyalty | | | | you can get from them in a mutual-respect |
| Marketing: | | | | environment. Companies are constantly adapting to |
| YOUR BEST CLIENTS ... | | | | changes, trends, supply, demand, economic factors, |
| Your best clients are not always your biggest | | | | and more. As soon as you've lost a good client's |
| spenders | | | | respect, you've lost a resource for roadmapping |
| Clients are most valuable not because they are your | | | | profitable campaigns. |
| cash cows (though a profitable side of beef is always | | | | Your best clients want shortcuts, not "logins." |
| nice) rather because they're with you for the long haul, | | | | If you're looking for a customer who will "jump through |
| they help you in tooling your best message, and most | | | | hoops" then you'll likely be short-changed. In exchange |
| importantly, they help corral new business to increase | | | | for their loyal business, your best clients want |
| profits. | | | | no-strings-attached value in return. We're not talking |
| Your best clients might never have purchased anything | | | | about dumbing down customer privacy, rather avoiding |
| from you. | | | | the points of friction that will frustrate your clients or |
| That's right. Some of your biggest customer assets | | | | make them feel monitored. Web cookies can be a |
| might just be prospects. Remember, the value of a | | | | great upsell/resell tool, but be sure they're functioning |
| client is calculated not only on the revenue they create, | | | | as they should. |
| but also on revenues from referrals. It's an | | | | Your best clients want benefits, not features. |
| exponentially powerful formula. | | | | Self-explanatory. Nobody wants features. |
| Your best clients don't like to be "sold to." | | | | Your best clients will always champion good referral |
| You never earn the "right to sell" to a customer. When | | | | programs. |
| they sense you're selling to them, they'll feel like a | | | | We often think that people who like our products |
| project or statistic (even the most loyal of them). If you | | | | know intuitively how to point others through the right |
| want a loyal client, throw the traditional sales tactics | | | | doors at the right time. Just as we train our sales staff |
| out the window and stay genuine. | | | | on best elevator pitches, customers and prospects |
| Your best clients aren't always the first to respond to | | | | need similar tools. Make it easy for best clients to |
| offers. | | | | "sneeze" your products. Better yet, offer them a |
| Don't tag your best customers based upon quickest | | | | concrete incentive for doing so. Not even the best |
| response times. This approach is fundamentally flawed | | | | clients will do something for nothing. Give them |
| because it mocks the intelligence of a healthy client | | | | something of value for being contagious. |
| who makes informed, methodical decisions. Consider | | | | Your best clients should help engineer your product |
| yourself as a client-are you the quickest to make a | | | | offerings. |
| decision or a purchase? | | | | If you're strategizing about your next best marketing |
| Your best clients aren't easy to locate in your Web | | | | campaign in staff meeting, you're going about it all |
| stats. | | | | wrong. The whole basis for refining your customer |
| Test it yourself. Are your best customers showing up | | | | base is to glean a qualified mouthpiece for your |
| at the top of your Web stats? Is Web page "duration" | | | | product offering. If your best customers aren't sharing |
| an indicator of piqued interest? Or just as easily an | | | | their ideas with you, maybe you haven't invited them to |
| indication of "being lost on the page" or "breaking to | | | | a staff meeting lately. |
| nuke a frozen burrito?" Stats have their place in any | | | | Your best clients are innately loyal, and are not "turned |
| sound marketing campaign, but they're not the | | | | into" loyal. |
| strongest indicator. | | | | I like to save the best for last. I've seen a lot of dollars |
| Your best clients aren't compelled by pricepoints. | | | | in research, technology, and "marketing speak" revolve |
| This should come as a relief, since nobody wins at the | | | | around the idea of "converting" customers into loyal |
| commoditization game (somebody's always cheaper). | | | | customers. This mentality defeats the whole process |
| In addition, bottomless pricepoints attract flighty | | | | of growing the right customer segment, and letting the |
| commodity-driven customers. Value-driven customers | | | | rest drop off the radar. The danger with the "no client |
| are accustomed to paying what something is | | | | left behind" approach is there's no clear-cut process |
| worth-your job is to show them the value of that | | | | for filtering your database, since all would wear the |
| something. | | | | same number of stars on their foreheads. |
| Your best clients can't be found in a predictible | | | | Every customer gets respected, but it's vital to focus |
| demographic. | | | | on the right customers-your "evangelists." When you |
| This fact sometimes creates resistence, because | | | | craft a message that speaks to your hand-picked |
| "demographic profiling" is easy to measure. Keep it in | | | | crowd, that message will sift out your profitable clients |
| the cards, but use it in a supporting role to much more | | | | from your loss leaders. Although I might concur that |
| potent "behavior profiling" strategies. | | | | anybody can become a "loyal customer" if you work |
| Your best clients differ from each other in their sales | | | | hard enough on them, but consider the costs: You'd be |
| cycles. | | | | expending enormous resources and neglecting the |
| It should come as no surprise that your customers | | | | clients who need you most-whom YOU need most. |
| (even your best customers) are all at a different point | | | | Just a note, American Express took this idea to the |
| in their purchase decisions. Additionally, sales cycles | | | | extreme when they actually "paid" their riskier |
| differ greatly in length. All of this amounts to an | | | | customer base to leave. How did that turn out? |
| exercise in "good listening." Don't pitch the "closer" to | | | | Google "AmEx pays customers to close accounts" to |
| your elite list all at once, instead offer multiple offers for | | | | see some of the negative publicity. |