Nathan Vecchio asks if you are maximising business with each and every one of your clients?
Director of Hunter Galloway, Nathan Vecchio, started broking in 2015 and using the techniques from Joshua's Top Broker Handbook, is writing big numbers, leading to Vow Financial naming him Broker Partner of the Year Rising Star in 2016.
Last week, I came across some interesting facts about customer retention and how you can maximise working with clients. Which got me thinking about how relevant these facts are to us. So I thought I’d compile six ways for brokers to determine if you’re leaving business on the table. Sometimes it’s general customer service that makes all of the difference and can often be the deciding factor between one broker and another. So let’s take a look at these facts and see for yourself how much you can relate.
Fact 1: Loyalty is irreplaceable
Loyal customers are worth up to 10 times as much as their first purchase. – White House Office of Consumer Affairs
This means that once you have managed to land a new lead and convert them, you have a world ahead of you. Building a solid relationship and showing your client undeniably good customer service and how effective you are to work with will help to bring you forward in their eyes in both trust and reliability, making you their first point of call for any financial needs in the future.
Fact 2: New clients verse old clients
5-20% – Probability of selling to a new prospect
60-70% – Probability of selling to an existing customer
Source: Marketing Metrics
Keeping the sales within the funnel is what it’s all about here. So if you’ve got 3+ times the chance of being able to sell to an existing customer, then what retention strategies have you got in place?
Think about regular email communication, blogs, or giving your clients free tools. We’ve covered this here before, but I’d love to know exactly what you’re doing to keep in touch with your clients and build a long lasting relationship?
Fact 3: It’s all about the feeling
70% of buying experiences are based on how the customer feels they are being treated.
Source: McKinsey
I don’t think there’s any other way to point out just how important customer service is and this fact sums it up pretty well. It’s all about how your clients feel in the process.
I know even when I go to the supermarket, if the cashier is having the worst day and not feeling good, it transfers onto me too.
The same goes for your clients.
When dealing with something as big as taking out a loan, offering them support and reliability are the key things they’re looking for. Which is just another reflection of how important the customer journey is….
Fact 4: It’s all in the detail…
Employees only ask for the customer’s name 21% of the time.
Source: ContactPoint Client Research
Well, if everyone has a name, what happens the other 79% of the time?
Think about it though, how often do you actually refer to your clients by their first name? Or let’s even bring it down to a smaller scale amongst your friends and colleagues too?
Our first names are the most pleasant sound that we can hear. Have you ever met someone that’s had your attention for some strange reason, then proceeded to realise that it’s due to them referring to you directly, by your first name? Strange, isn’t’ it?
Start paying attention to actively acknowledging your clients by their first name, because it’s interesting to note how easy it is to avoid this.
Fact 5: It’s the cost that counts…
It is 6-7 times more expensive to acquire a new customer than it is to keep a current one.
Not only is your success rate higher when focusing on client retention, but it’s also much less costly. By looking at your current database, you can save marketing money and time by focusing on customer retention, rather than extending it out for new business. Some retention ideas include refinancing offers or yearly portfolio health check review reminders. Don’t leave your clients which have been hot leads before to go cold and somewhere else.
Fact 6: And if you do get an unhappy customer…
News of bad customer service reaches more than twice as many ears as praise for a good service experience.
Source: White House Office of Consumer Affairs
It’s impossible to keep every single client happy; in some cases, there can be misunderstandings or external issues that you have no control over, so how can you rectify this? Make sure you take the time to address any clients that are unhappy with the circumstance and do everything to fix it. It’s not only important to retain their business but it’s also a priority to help mitigate any chance of negative exposure.
Now with online reviews, it’s so easy to have your voice heard, which is a both a positive and a negative. If in the end you can’t sort the situation out with the client, and they do turn into a keyboard warrior, make sure you follow the best practice ways to deal with this.
And remember, one negative review out of 100 positive reviews isn’t all so bad, you’re only human after all. Really, one negative review isn’t so bad, because 10/10 five stars reviews are almost too good to be true anyway!
Take a long and hard look at these statistics and think about it, how often are you leaving business on the table?
Minimise your wasted opportunities and make the most of your clients, bringing them value and the best possible service out!
PS: I’m going to be taking over here at Top Broker for a little bit while Joshua focuses on a few big and exciting projects we are looking forward to bring you in the next few weeks. A quick background, I started broking in 2015 and using the techniques Joshua has given in the Top Broker Handbook I have grown my business in a very short time to writing some big numbers, and was fortunate enough to be awarded Broker Partner of the Year Rising Star in 2016.
Last week, I came across some interesting facts about customer retention and how you can maximise working with clients. Which got me thinking about how relevant these facts are to us. So I thought I’d compile six ways for brokers to determine if you’re leaving business on the table. Sometimes it’s general customer service that makes all of the difference and can often be the deciding factor between one broker and another. So let’s take a look at these facts and see for yourself how much you can relate.
Fact 1: Loyalty is irreplaceable
Loyal customers are worth up to 10 times as much as their first purchase. – White House Office of Consumer Affairs
This means that once you have managed to land a new lead and convert them, you have a world ahead of you. Building a solid relationship and showing your client undeniably good customer service and how effective you are to work with will help to bring you forward in their eyes in both trust and reliability, making you their first point of call for any financial needs in the future.
Fact 2: New clients verse old clients
5-20% – Probability of selling to a new prospect
60-70% – Probability of selling to an existing customer
Source: Marketing Metrics
Keeping the sales within the funnel is what it’s all about here. So if you’ve got 3+ times the chance of being able to sell to an existing customer, then what retention strategies have you got in place?
Think about regular email communication, blogs, or giving your clients free tools. We’ve covered this here before, but I’d love to know exactly what you’re doing to keep in touch with your clients and build a long lasting relationship?
Fact 3: It’s all about the feeling
70% of buying experiences are based on how the customer feels they are being treated.
Source: McKinsey
I don’t think there’s any other way to point out just how important customer service is and this fact sums it up pretty well. It’s all about how your clients feel in the process.
I know even when I go to the supermarket, if the cashier is having the worst day and not feeling good, it transfers onto me too.
The same goes for your clients.
When dealing with something as big as taking out a loan, offering them support and reliability are the key things they’re looking for. Which is just another reflection of how important the customer journey is….
Fact 4: It’s all in the detail…
Employees only ask for the customer’s name 21% of the time.
Source: ContactPoint Client Research
Well, if everyone has a name, what happens the other 79% of the time?
Think about it though, how often do you actually refer to your clients by their first name? Or let’s even bring it down to a smaller scale amongst your friends and colleagues too?
Our first names are the most pleasant sound that we can hear. Have you ever met someone that’s had your attention for some strange reason, then proceeded to realise that it’s due to them referring to you directly, by your first name? Strange, isn’t’ it?
Start paying attention to actively acknowledging your clients by their first name, because it’s interesting to note how easy it is to avoid this.
Fact 5: It’s the cost that counts…
It is 6-7 times more expensive to acquire a new customer than it is to keep a current one.
Not only is your success rate higher when focusing on client retention, but it’s also much less costly. By looking at your current database, you can save marketing money and time by focusing on customer retention, rather than extending it out for new business. Some retention ideas include refinancing offers or yearly portfolio health check review reminders. Don’t leave your clients which have been hot leads before to go cold and somewhere else.
Fact 6: And if you do get an unhappy customer…
News of bad customer service reaches more than twice as many ears as praise for a good service experience.
Source: White House Office of Consumer Affairs
It’s impossible to keep every single client happy; in some cases, there can be misunderstandings or external issues that you have no control over, so how can you rectify this? Make sure you take the time to address any clients that are unhappy with the circumstance and do everything to fix it. It’s not only important to retain their business but it’s also a priority to help mitigate any chance of negative exposure.
Now with online reviews, it’s so easy to have your voice heard, which is a both a positive and a negative. If in the end you can’t sort the situation out with the client, and they do turn into a keyboard warrior, make sure you follow the best practice ways to deal with this.
And remember, one negative review out of 100 positive reviews isn’t all so bad, you’re only human after all. Really, one negative review isn’t so bad, because 10/10 five stars reviews are almost too good to be true anyway!
Take a long and hard look at these statistics and think about it, how often are you leaving business on the table?
Minimise your wasted opportunities and make the most of your clients, bringing them value and the best possible service out!
PS: I’m going to be taking over here at Top Broker for a little bit while Joshua focuses on a few big and exciting projects we are looking forward to bring you in the next few weeks. A quick background, I started broking in 2015 and using the techniques Joshua has given in the Top Broker Handbook I have grown my business in a very short time to writing some big numbers, and was fortunate enough to be awarded Broker Partner of the Year Rising Star in 2016.
