Think you have to go out and drum up new customers in order to increase your sales? Prospecting is an important tool for revenue generation, but there are ways to increase your sales from existing customers, too. Here are three simple, but highly effective ways to increase revenues from the customers you already have.
1. Bring ‘em back!
Revive lagging customer relationships. Identify those customers that used to order frequently but who have dropped off the map. Send them a note telling them you missed them. Ask them to fill out a survey to find out why they disengaged and
offer a coupon encouraging them to come back.
2. Cross-sell and upsell.
While prospecting can be enormously profitable, your most profitable relationships are the people who already buy from you. Take advantage of these relationships to cross-sell and upsell relevant products. If you are an auto dealer and know a customer’s lease is about to expire on a Toyota Corolla, for example, send a personalized brochure appealing to all of the benefits of upgrading to a Toyota Camry.
You can also tie in discounts to increase their spending or to sell multiple products. For example, if your customer usually spends $50, offer them $10 off of $60 to get them to try a new product. Or you can sell two items as a buy one, get one half off. This encourages them to try more items.
3. Tap into loyalty.
Do you have a loyalty program? Why not start one? These programs encourage customers to maintain their relationship with you based on discounts, rewards, and deals. Sometimes benefits are things like discounts and free merchandise, but especially for luxury items, exclusive access and insider information can be powerful incentives, too. If you are a local winery, ask tour visitors to sign up for a wine club. Offer insider “deals” like exclusive wine tastings and access to lectures from local celebrities.
