The magic secret to a successful business – listening to your customer
There are many ways to succeed in
business, such as quality products, good marketing, and a steady stream of
investors – but the most important factor of all is the customer. Without the
customer, there is no business really – no one to purchase your products or
market your wares to. Thus, the question becomes: how can you attract new, and
retain existing, customers? The answer is simple – listen to what they have to
say.
Why listening is
important
Studies have shown
that as many as 86% of customers will move to a competitor if their current
business does not provide good customer service or value their feedback. The
loss of existing customers can be a devastating blow to a business, as
maintaining a good relationship with existing customers is far less expensive –
and of course much easier – than garnering a new set of customers and brand
loyalty. And, as Forbes so accurately points out, what
drives [customer] retention is listening, and just as important, acting on what you have “heard.” So, it is not merely enough to provide pleasant customer
service agents who listen to feedback, if no action is taken to assess and
implement this information.
The case of the Haypp Group
Moreover, the success of listening to
one’s customers and using their feedback positively can be seen in the case of
the Haypp Group. The nicotine company was founded in 2018 and was reported as
selling approximately 80,000 cans of nicotine pouches per month in 2019.
According to the Haypp Group’s Head of External
Affairs, Markus Lindblad, the
strategy used to achieve this
success was to “[become
close] with our customers [so] we understand their needs across different
markets and customer segments. Only then can we be on the customers’ side and
create proper change.”
Interact with the customer online
It is important to remember that
interacting and listening to your customers can take many shapes in this age of
digitalization and social media. Customers are able to contact companies
directly with complaints through a simple Facebook post, and even tweet out
negative experiences and reviews for other users to see. Thus, interacting with
your customers on these platforms and showing them that you care about their
problems will help to prevent some negative publicity from finding its way onto
the internet. Of course, the reverse is also true, as listening to customers
and building their loyalty will also make them speak to others about your brand
in a positive light – and perhaps even use social media to spread the gospel of
your business. Nothing persuades customers to try a business more than rave
reviews from family, friends and even strangers on the internet – which is why
brand ambassadorship can be a boon to any business – especially if you are
targeting a more youthful or millennial crowd who tend to occupy social media
channels to a greater degree.
Focus groups for open discussion
Market
research is another route in which to gain invaluable customer feedback.
Putting together focus groups and allowing customers to discuss your business
openly and honestly will allow for natural suggestions and ideas to flow.
Topics could range between anything from website usage to product quality and
even in-store experience. If customers within the group are experiencing
certain issues or challenges, you can be sure that they are not alone. These
intimate chats with customers will allow you to remedy aspects of your business
that you may not even have known were broken or lacking. Be sure to use
experienced focus group moderators who can guide the discussion appropriately
and home in on key issues. It is also important to include a large range of
your target demographic, so that each segment can be properly heard and
accounted for.
There
are a number of ways in which to make your business more customer-centric, and
it is important that you employ as many of them as you can, in order to truly
listen to what each segment of your customer base has to say.
