In 2019, it is not enough for the client to feel normal after purchasing services or goods. We all strive to get the highest scores of the work done.
According to New Voice Media, 59% of users share their experience in using services or various products on the Internet. This is a large part of the audience, which means you need to do everything possible and ensure your customer support is great to avoid negative feedback.
Why is this so important? Happy customers become permanent, loyal, which helps your business stay afloat. American Express even noted that one satisfied regular customer equates to 9 referrals.
And now let’s look at 7 main reasons why customer satisfaction is still an important indicator that you need to constantly monitor and improve.
1. Customer satisfaction – the leading indicator of customers’ intentions to buy and their loyalty
Customer satisfaction is the best indicator of how likely a customer will buy something in the future. Make a poll for your clients to rate their satisfaction on a scale of 1-10; this is a good way to see if they will become repetitive clients or even advocates.
Customers who give you a rating of 7 or higher can be considered satisfied, and you can hope that they will return and make repeated purchases. Clients who give you a score of 9 or 10 are your potential supporters (brand advocates). You can use this chance to make them evangelists for your company.
Points 6 and below are warning signs that the customer is unhappy and risks leaving you. Determine why their satisfaction is low and try to improve the situation.
See how much satisfaction level provides for understanding your customers? That is why it is one of the leading indicators of companies used to measure consumer sentiments and customer loyalty.
2. This is a point of limitation from competitors
In a competitive market where different enterprises and companies compete for customers, customer satisfaction is seen as the main differentiator. Enterprises that make customer satisfaction a key element of their business strategy succeed in such conditions.
How do you choose between two companies that offer the same products? If you had a recommendation for one of them, would it affect your opinion? Maybe yes. So how does this recommendation appear? More likely, they appear thanks to the good customer experience. Companies that offer excellent customer experience create an environment with a high proportion of satisfied customers.
This is an example that customer satisfaction is important throughout the whole cycle. It not only helps you keep your finger on the pulse of your existing customers, but it can also become a point of differentiation for new customers.
3. Customer satisfaction reduces customer loss
Today, customers can easily change their favorite brands. The only reason for this is poor customer service. Not many businesses realize that they cannot build customer satisfaction just in one day. It takes an average of 12 positive impressions to compensate for one unresolved negative experience.
Customer satisfaction is an indicator that can be used to retain customers. By measuring and tracking customer satisfaction, you have the opportunity to create new processes and improve the overall quality of service for your customers.
Focus on exceeding consumer expectations and the “desire” of customers at every opportunity. Do this for six months and then measure customer satisfaction again. See if your new initiatives have a positive or negative effect on satisfaction.
4. Customer satisfaction increases customer lifetime value
In a study conducted by InfoQuest, it was found that a “fully satisfied” customer brings 2.6 times more revenue than a “slightly satisfied” customer. In addition, a “fully satisfied” client allows you to get 14 times more income than a “somewhat dissatisfied” consumer.
Pleasure plays a significant role in how much revenue a customer generates for your business. Successful businesses recognize the importance of customer lifetime value. If you increase the customer lifetime value (CLV), you increase the return on each dollar invested in marketing.
For example, you may have the cost of a single purchase of 500 dollars and a CLV of 750 dollars. This is a 50% payback marketing investment. Now imagine that the CLV is 1000 dollars. This is a 100% return on investment!
High customer satisfaction increases customer lifetime value. What are you doing to retain your customers and earn more?
5. Degree of satisfaction reduces negative recommendations
McKinsey found that a disgruntled customer talks about their experience to 9-15 people. In fact, 13% of dissatisfied customers tell more than 20 people about their experiences. How will this affect your business and its reputation in your industry?
Customer satisfaction is closely related to income and repeated purchases. Entrepreneurs often forget how low customer satisfaction affects their business. It is one thing to lose one dissatisfied customer. Another thing is to lose 20 customers completely because of a bad review.
To eliminate the negative feedback it is necessary constantly to assess the level of customer satisfaction. Tracking changes in satisfaction will help you determine whether customers are truly satisfied with your product or service.
6. It is much cheaper to retain customers than to attract new ones
Attracting new customers costs 5-8 times more than retaining existing ones. You and your marketing team spend thousands of budgets to attract the attention of new consumers, raising them to potential customers and closing sales.
Imagine if you allocated one-sixth of your marketing budget to retain customers. Do you think this will help you improve customer satisfaction and retain customers? Below you can find a few customer retention strategies:
- Use customer satisfaction surveys;
- Use email to send special promotions;
- Increase customer satisfaction by offering a personalized experience.
7. Measure pleasure to see how sincere your customers are
Lee Resource Inc. found that for every customer complaint, there were still 26 dissatisfied customers who remained silent. This is a disturbing statistic. Most companies believe that they are the best, and they have no dissatisfied customers. The reality is that 96% of dissatisfied customers do not complain and… never return. What are you doing to measure customer satisfaction and identify dissatisfied customers?
Customer satisfaction plays an important role for your business prosperity. It is not only the leading indicator for measuring customer loyalty, identifying unmet customers and increasing revenue; it is also a key element of differentiation that helps you attract new customers in a competitive business environment.
Customer satisfaction is one of the most vital factors for the success of your business. If you focus on making customers happy and try to hear their wishes and needs, you will leave your competitors far behind!
