How to Attract and Retain Clients: Strategies for Building Long-Lasting Business Relationships
Attracting and retaining clients is the lifeblood of any successful business. Whether you're an entrepreneur, a freelancer, or part of a larger company, understanding how to consistently bring in new clients and keep existing ones happy is crucial for sustained growth and profitability. But how can you effectively manage both sides of this coin—drawing in fresh business while maintaining a loyal customer base?
In this blog, we'll explore actionable strategies to attract clients and retain them for the long term, focusing on trust, value, and relationship-building. We will explore on some successful business models that were used by successful corporation such as Nike, Luckin Coffee, Apple and more to name a few.
How to Attract Clients
Define Your Target Audience
Before you can attract clients, you need to know who you're targeting. This means understanding your ideal customer’s pain points, needs, and preferences. Whether your business offers a product or service, you should craft a clear profile of the people who will benefit most from what you offer.
Examples of a target audience: Small businesses in Europe with fewer than 50 employees that have growth potential but need to improve their GDPR compliance and website security.
Smart Marketing Strategies
Understanding your ideal customer helps shape your business, messaging, products, services, sales, and support for that specific group. For instance, Nike, a leading athletic brand since 1964, offers a variety of comfortable shoes in diverse styles and colors for a broad audience, using the slogan "Just Do It" to resonate with professional athletes and beyond.
Nike, a global footwear and apparel brand since 1964, uses the slogan “Just Do It” to honor professional athletes. It also targets women and young athletes, maintaining separate Instagram accounts tailored to each audience- athletes, yogis, students, etc. This strategy reflects Nike’s strong grasp of marketing to diverse consumers.
Apple is another example, renowned for its sleek designs and innovative technology. Apple shows its genuine nature by prioritizing user experience and innovative design. Both Apple and Nike have earned trust by remaining true to their values and consistently offering products that connect with their customers.
Why is brand authenticity important?
In today's digital world, consumers face a flood of marketing messages, making it hard for brands to get and keep their attention. Many, especially Gen Z, want genuine connections with businesses at every interaction. Research from Social Media Today shows that 90% of consumers value authenticity when choosing brands to support. Additionally, a study by Sprout Social revealed that 84% of consumers prefer brands they feel emotionally connected to.
Luckin Coffee
Luckin Coffee’s UI UX Design- serving the Chinese market.
Luckin Coffee primarily uses online marketing for app and WeChat mini program development. Customers can easily locate the nearest store and place orders through the app or WeChat. This online buying enables Luckin to gather user data, allowing for tailored marketing and targeted services. The app remembers customers' usual orders, streamlining the process. Unlike Starbucks, Luckin offers a single cup size without options for medium or large. Their audience includes local students and professionals. Luckin ensures a delivery time of under 30 minutes, which enhances customer satisfaction. Beyond their app, they utilize TikTok for sales and promote on platforms like Xiaohongshu and Weibo. By January 2023, they had 2,555,000 TikTok followers and sold 6,237,000 products through the platform.
Luckin Coffee’s ads for example, in Beijing, if you've used the subway or entered an elevator in the third ring, you've likely seen blue-and-white ads with tier 1 celebrities like Zhang Zhen and Tang Wei promoting Luckin coffee.
In just 20 months since its 2017 launch, Luckin Coffee dominated the Chinese coffee market. Despite a mandatory delisting due to financial fraud, it returned with a strong marketing plan and achieved excellent sales.
Research shows that 91% of consumers are more likely to buy from brands that give relevant offers and recommendations, while 66% say they would avoid brands with non-personalized content.
2. Leverage Referrals and Word of Mouth
One of the most powerful ways to attract clients is through referrals. People trust recommendations from friends, family, and colleagues over traditional advertising. Encourage your satisfied clients to refer you to others.
Referral Programs: Consider offering incentives, such as discounts or bonuses, for every successful referral.
Client Testimonials: Ask happy clients to provide testimonials that you can feature on your website or social media channels.
Online Networking: Participate in relevant industry forums, LinkedIn groups, or Facebook communities to engage with your target audience. In China events applications such as Huodongxin, Yoopay, partnering with local companies can help you localize your brand more effectively.
Partnerships with High Value Businesses: Team up with other businesses that serve a similar target market but offer different services. For instance, a web designer could partner with a content writer or SEO specialist.
Never take any feedbacks as a personal attack, it allow you to identify what is missing and improve it as your business grow.
3. Feature user-generated content
User-generated content (UGC) is essential for your content strategy as it effectively builds an authentic brand.
UGC includes images, reels, reviews, blog posts, podcasts, and tweets. It can be a customer reel, an employee post about job satisfaction, or a paid influencer post. Although paid partnerships have their uses, consumers find genuine UGC more impactful when making purchasing decisions. UGC is crucial in social media marketing, influencing every stage of the buyer's journey and driving consumer purchases.
UGC Marketing Strategies That Drive Results
Engage With Your Customers
A basic UGC marketing strategy is to regularly interact with your customers’ content. Engage with them, share their posts, and nurture relationships with loyal fans of your brand. Building connections with customers who have more followers is especially helpful. This can result in paid partnerships or motivate them to share positive experiences with your brand.
Create a Branded Hashtag
A branded hashtag encourages consumers to create brand-related content. It connects to your brand, simplifies UGC discovery, and fosters community. Asking consumers to use your hashtag serves as a clear call to action that can be included on packaging, social media bios, product pages, and post-purchase emails.
Gamification
Many brands now use polls, quizzes, or contests to boost engagement with their content or marketing campaigns. These gamification strategies draw users in with rewards for participating. As a result, your brand gains user-generated content for your marketing efforts, thus further improving user experience as well.
Prove Your Value: Share data, reports, or case studies showing how your work has positively impacted the client's business.
Exceptional customer service is crucial for retention.
4. How to Retain Clients
Attracting clients is only half the battle. Retaining them for the long term is where many businesses fail. Client retention is a result of consistently providing value, building strong relationships, and ensuring a positive experience throughout the customer journey.
Provide Exceptional Customer Service
Client retention starts with great service. No matter what industry you're in, providing outstanding customer service is crucial to keeping clients happy.
Be Responsive: Respond to inquiries and concerns quickly. Clients value businesses that are accessible and proactive in communication.
Listen to Feedback: Encourage clients to provide feedback about your services, and act on it. This shows you care about their experience and are committed to continuous improvement.
Don’t Be Afraid to Ask Customers For What You Want. Many brands hesitate to ask for consumer content, but many customers are willing to use a branded hashtag, leave positive reviews, or create posts. 53% of consumers want guidance on creating or sharing user-generated content (UGC), and 42% want brands to show examples of desired content. Therefore, don't hesitate to encourage customers to share posts or tag your business.
Transparency with reviews. Leverage global reviews sites such as Trustpilot, Googlemybusienss reviews, Clutch, etc. When a business has a high number of positive reviews, it suggests that the company is transparent and open about its products or services. Customers are more likely to trust a company that openly shares feedback from past buyers.
Customer reviews boost confidence in your product. Positive feedback assures readiness to meet needs, while addressing negative reviews demonstrates commitment to improvement and customer service which overall gives a good impression of the business.
Follow-up: After completing a project or delivering a product, follow up to ensure the client is satisfied. A simple email or call to check in can go a long way in building long-term loyalty.
Getting reviews helps you to improve overall.
5. Offer Loyalty Programs or Exclusive Benefits
Incentivize long-term relationships with exclusive offers for returning clients. A loyalty program or VIP service can encourage clients to stay with your business.
Discounts for Repeat Business: Offering returning clients a special discount can motivate them to continue working with you.
Regular Check-ins: Continue monitoring the results and check in regularly to discuss any adjustments or improvements that can be made. This ensures you're always delivering on your promises.
Show Appreciation: Take the time to show clients that you value their business. A handwritten thank-you note or a personalized gesture can leave a lasting impression.
Final Thoughts
Attracting and retaining clients is an ongoing process that requires a combination of marketing skills, relationship-building, and exceptional customer service. By defining your target audience, delivering consistent value, and providing a personalized experience, you can attract the right clients and keep them loyal to your business.
In a competitive market, successful businesses build strong, lasting relationships with their clients. Let Bright Design Studio help you achieve your goals and keep your clients, no matter where you are.
Contact us for a quote: hello123@brightdesignstudio.net.