When times get tough and people are asked to alter their lifestyle to tackle such events as a pandemic or financial crisis, it’s important that businesses are there to support their clients.
The Growth Series exists to provide that added support to help businesses grow in an evolving digital world while focusing on what matters most to their customers: delivering an excellent experience.
Here are a few links to content from the Growth Series which we hope may be useful during the next few days and weeks that cover the topic of looking after your clients.
Our Customer Retention Guide explores how you can engage your existing customers, how to use customer data management to enhance retention, how to create a retention culture across your business, and how you can take advantage of the remortgage opportunity.
Taj Kang, Compliance Director at CMME Mortgages, told us: ‘Amidst all of the uncertainty, brokers need to ensure their business models are resilient. My advice would be to stay close to existing clients, give some thought on how to keep them engaged. There’s considerable threat from existing lenders who pay brokers a pittance for retention business whilst contacting existing borrowers earlier around product expiry. Our bread and butter is our existing clients, so cherish them and be on your guard!’
Listen to Taj here: How brokers can find their niche
Diving deeper into why brokers need a customer retention strategy, this blog explores why brokers need to be ready with the right tools to make the most of every opportunity.
While the traditional acquisition model is a surefire way of generating new business, it’s customer retention that offers the greatest profitability.
From personalised marketing to tips on building relationships with customers, we’ve put together a list of tactics you can apply to your marketing to turbocharge your business.
One key tactic is that of building relationships. Accord’s own Director of Intermediary Distribution, Jeremy Duncombe, spoke about this last year:
‘Let’s not forget that being in a position to offer face to face advice when things are uncertain is a great opportunity for brokers to differentiate and really demonstrate the value of their service. Think about what you can do to stand apart and combine that with utilising technology to generate leads through social media and online reviews; this will mean that more people will come to you for the human contact they require when making such important financial decisions.
‘Intermediaries should ensure they offer the best advice and support and by remaining open to change, keeping abreast of industry changes and knowing who your customer is, will result in a very successful year.’
While business growth will come from generating new leads, your existing clients can be a valuable resource. From simply asking for a referral to getting online reviews, being active on social and taking the time to nurture relationships, you’ll find that your existing client base is a gold mine of opportunity.
Now is the time to demonstrate the value of advice. Looking after your existing client base is going to be crucial, so make sure you are checking in with clients, finding out how they are managing and asking if they need additional support/advice. Whether it’s reviewing their current deal, planning any changes for a pending remortgage or product transfer, or simply ensuring they have the right levels of protection, this is definitely the time to focus your efforts on retention.
For more advice on growing your business, visit the Growth Series.