Are You Spending to "Get" or "Keep"?

For many small business owners, the economy is having an adverse affect on their revenue. Many, faced with this new reality, are forced to reduce their marketing budgets, which brings me to today's topic. Are you cutting your spending on customer acquisition or customer retention?

Many will choose to spend less money working to maintain their existing client base, spending their entire budgets acquiring new clients. I maintain that this is a slippery slope and very, very dangerous. If you do not effort to keep your current client base engaged, pretty soon you may not have a client base at all.

Think about it this way, the cost of acquiring a new client is, depending on what or who you read, is somewhere between three to seven times that of maintaining a current client. More importantly, spending to retain your current clients generally improves the profitablity of that client by 25% to 100%. So why do so many business owners focus all their effort on acquring new customers? I think it is because they think that is what everyone else is doing. They see their so-called competitor's ads in the newspaper or hear their voices on the radio, so they think they need to be in those spaces as well.

What I propose is that the small business owner focus on their current clients. One strategy, and he most cost effective method, is to simply pick up the phone and call. Just "check in" with the client. Let them know that you were thinking of them and just dialed them up. No pressure, nothing to sell, just reach out and touch someone.

Then, take it one step further. After you hang up, follow up your conversation with a card. It does not have to be long, just something like, "Hey, thanks for taking the time to talk with me today. I really appreciate your business!" That's all, or maybe you want to include a coupon or small discount for their next transaction with you. I send my cards through a great, low cost, very personalized card sending system, SendOutCards, you can learn more about this system and send two free cards on me (!) at www.mykeepintouchstrategy.com.

So, in these trying economic times, think about starting to spend to "keep" your current clients, rather than spending to "get" new clients.

Want more customer retention strategies? Want to learn more about the Book Yourself System and how personal coaching on this system can help send your business soaring? Check out my blogsite at www.coachbrent.com.