Keeping Customers Happy

Keeping Customers Happy is essential to exceptional customer service. How to keep your customers happy.

Keep Customers Happy: Pamper and Thank your customers

Sam Walton made sure his employees provided first class customer service which would always make customers feel special. The employee pledge reads as follows: ‘I solemnly promise and declare that for every customer that comes within ten feet of me, I will smile, look them in the eye, and greet them, so help me Sam.’

AT&T made headlines when it sent out loyalty packages to its 20 million customers a while ago. Each package contained free long distance minutes that every customer would almost certainly find useful. And the customers more than showed their appreciation – this campaign generated more than 600,000 signups for additional services.

Keep Customers Happy: Create Communities

Another powerful secret of some of the most successful marketing companies in the world: they create their own communities of fiercely loyal customers. For example, Harley-Davidson customers are well-known for their fierce loyalty. Each purchase of a new Harley-Davidson and you will automatically receive a free, one-year Harley Owner’s Group membership. Members are invited to company-sponsored Harley-Davidson Group events which attract at least half a million riders every year.

Volkswagen similarly offers customers membership to the Volksvagen Club. The Club offers special ticket and even reservations, magazines, special partner incentives. Though membership will usually no longer be free the next year, most customers are more than willing to renew their memberships for a fee.

Keeping Customers Happy

Yet another powerful example from Yahoo’s Vice President Seth Godin. He describes the five incremental steps to ‘dating’ customers:

1. Give them an incentive for joining – a sweepstakes entry or e-letter
2. Over time, start to teach them about you
3. Reinforce permission with fresh and customized incentives
4. Get more permission with more valuable incentives
5. Begin to create profit from permission

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