These are unprecedented times that we find ourselves in and running a B2C business during these times is challenging. To be blunt, customers have concerns. They don’t know how the economy is going to fare the COVID-19 pandemic evolves and changes and specifically, they don’t know if they’re going to have the money to keep spending on services or products like yours.
But there are ways for you to keep your customers active with you during these challenging times. Below are 11 tips for maintaining your customer relationships during this evolving situation.
Communicate Proactively with Your Customers
There’s still a high level of uncertainty in the world related to the pandemic. People are looking for guidance and want to be communicated with so that they know what’s going on. Your customers are no different. Keep your customers informed whether you’re changing your hours, closing your doors, modifying your refund policy, offering new delivery procedures, and more.
You should also give your customers the opportunity to provide feedback. Keep the communication channels open. If you haven’t, use social media to keep your customers updated on the latest news.
Share Your Coronavirus Customer Strategy
Continue to inform your customers of the steps that you’re taking to ensure their safety. Are you cleaning your premises regularly, have you installed safeguards to protect the customers, have you limited capacity, or are you now only accepting appointments?
These are things customers need to know so they feel comfortable continuing with your business in these trying times.
Show How Your Product Can Be Used during the Global Crisis
This might be the time for your product or service to really show value. There’s potentially a feature or benefit of your business that is amplified during this disruption. For example, you might have a supplement that can help boost the immune system, an app that is perfect for someone who is working from home, or a book for parents who need to home-school their children.
Look at everything your company offers and think about how it can be used differently or uniquely during the pandemic crisis.
Share What You’re Doing for Employees
Showing transparency during these times is a great way for you to connect with your customers. Telling them how you’re taking care of your staff shows empathy and reveals the human side of your business.
Even relaying bad news such as layoffs, pay reductions for upper management, or similar can show your customers that you’re not just a faceless corporation.
Provide Additional Resources for Free
Your customers’ needs are changing constantly during this evolving crisis. So, you should be prepared to offer them different offers to help them through this. We all saw how restaurants reacted by pivoting from the dine-in model to the take-out model and now moving back to the dine-in & delivery model. A lot of retail stores that had to close their doors changed to the online model and are now, returning to normal in-store business.
Giving away free information, training, or other valuable products will only boost the customer relationship. For example, a restaurant that couldn’t do the take-out model might have offered free videos of their chefs showing how to cook their most popular dishes or a realtor who sent out free weekly e-letters with tips for increasing your house value.
Your company specializes in something of value and don’t be afraid to offer it for free during these still challenging times.
Promote Your Gift Cards
Gift cards are a great way for a company to get instant revenue to help them stay afloat. Restaurants have offered gift cards to be used at a future date when they can re-open. But this could also apply to sporting goods stores, beauty salons, personal trainers, and a whole host of businesses.
Look at your model to see if you can create a gift card of value and offer it to your customers for an instant jolt of cash.
Pay Special Attention to Customer Success
It’s still important that your customers see success during these times. If your product is designed for self-improvement or education, follow up with your customers to ensure that they’re succeeding with your product. You can do this in many ways as I’ll outline below.
Offer Extra Training & Office Hours
If your product requires training, offer extra training so that your customers are satisfied and less likely to cancel. Change your office hours to suit their changing needs. As previously mentioned, having appointment booking options can help you manage this.
Stream or Video Chat Your Services
If you cannot physically stay open and interact to help train your customers, you can do so remotely using technology. Try video chats or stream live tutorials to multiple customers at once.
Extend Your Trial for Prospects
If you offer a trial subscription product or something similar that involves a no-money-upfront style offer, strongly consider extending the trial, especially to those customers who inquire about canceling or a refund. Don’t be afraid to offer extended trial offers to help not only keep prospects in the funnel but also prove the value of your offering.
Provide Promotions That Can Be Redeemed
Similar to gift cards, keep your customers informed about “back to normal” promotions or promote a “grand re-opening” sale or have them register for an event now that you have re-opened.
Your business doesn’t have to stop during unprecedented & unpredictable situations. The bottom line, the only way to ensure your business stays healthy & operational is the same as it has always been, making sure you appease your customers. Remember, they’re feeling the stress too, so don’t be afraid to show your compassion and show them you care. Do that and they’ll be loyal to you.
At North American Media, we specialize in helping our clients create robust, effective, mail pieces and direct mail campaigns. Our variety of services can be customized to suit your business goals, and we have packages that can work with a range of budgets. No matter the size of your organization, we can help you target your audience, retain customers, and build your reputation among your audience as a company they can trust. Our full line of services includes print media advertising in newspapers & magazines, direct mail marketing, digital marketing, alternative media/inserts, radio & TV advertising, list brokerage, data solutions, list fulfillment, and list management. If you need assistance creating a robust marketing program, consider working with North American Media.
For more information about growing your business, contact us at (475) 256-0303.
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