Have you ever wondered why some brands have fiercely loyal customers? People who not only buy stuff but actively endorse the stuff they love?
The secret to this enviable loyalty is often not just a top-notch product (although that certainly helps), but a well-thought-out customer marketing method.
In my 10+ years of SaaS marketing experience, I’ve had the privilege of developing and executing customer marketing plans from scratch three times. In my role at G2, I talk to other client marketers almost every day. I’ve seen firsthand the huge impact a well-oiled customer marketing machine can have on a company’s bottom line.
In this quick guide, I’ll share insights on why customer marketing should be at the core of your business strategy. We’ll explore its important role in customer retention and introduce some strategies to help your company stand out from your competitors. Finally, we’ll look to the future and emerging trends that will redefine how we cultivate and leverage customer relationships.
Learn about customer marketing
Each account marketer’s role looks slightly different depending on the needs of the business and client and the structure of the team. Nonetheless, at its core, it usually includes marketing to current customers: plans to support adoption, engagement, and promotional activities, as well as marketing campaigns targeting current customers. Up-sell and cross-sell Give a few examples.
Speaking of upselling and cross-selling, these are the perfect way to continue building relationships with existing customers, which is another key part of your job. Customer retention involves strategies and tactics designed to meet their needs and preferences, with the ultimate goal of supporting satisfaction, loyalty and advocacy always being top of mind. This is a shift from a purely transactional exchange to a meaningful interaction that brings value to the customer beyond the purchase.
Why is customer marketing important?
In an era, when customer acquisition Costs are skyrocketing and we’re all trying to do more with less, and companies can’t just focus on the top of the sales funnel. In order to thrive, or in some cases, stay afloat, you must prioritize customer marketing for a number of reasons.
- Customer retention rate: Acquiring a new customer can cost 5 times more than retaining an existing customer. By investing in customer marketing, companies can save significant costs and achieve more fruitful growth.
- Branding: Satisfied customers turn into brand advocates who praise the brand without asking. This type of word-of-mouth marketing is both valuable and impactful.
- Competitive advantages: In a crowded market, a loyal customer base can be the deciding factor that sets your brand apart from your competitors.
How does customer marketing impact retention?
If done well, customer-focused marketing can increase Customer Loyalty and lower churn risk. Approaches vary from business to business, but customer marketing programs that focus on adoption and engagement directly impact customer retention. The more your customers use your products and interact with your company, the more likely they are to become repeat customers.
For G2, we have a few initiatives that help improve our retention rates (more on how to measure this later).
- G2 University, Our on-demand online learning platform includes subject certifications that contribute to the success of our products.
- Monthly office hours meeting Cover a specific pain point or opportunity we know our customers face.
- monthly newsletter Providing exclusive content to G2 customers through a collection of resources and product announcements.
- Customer Guide and Action Plan Help customers explore new use cases for our products.
- Always-on lifecycle communications Our success team introduces new content to clients and reminds them of best practices for getting more ROI from G2.
We know that clients who take one or more courses in our learning program, G2U, are 3 times more likely to renew.Exceed 95% of the Engaged customers we track renew every quarter.
How to measure the impact of customer marketing
When you’re up and running, measure the success of your customer marketing efforts and the impact you’re having on your business.
Some of my favorite ways to measure the success of your customer marketing programs are:
- Customer engagement rate: What percentage of my customer base participates in one or more of my marketing programs?
- Impact on pipelines: Will my customer marketing efforts help upsell or expand leads?
- Adoption rate/monthly active users: Are my customers actually using my product?
- Customer retention rate: What percentage of my customers renew? Do customers who interact more with my program have higher renewal rates?
I find it’s also important to track your marketing efforts at a program level to ensure you’re investing your time and resources into the right campaigns. If you attend webinars, ask yourself if they will lead to higher adoption or retention rates. For example, determine whether customers who participate in your adoption program use your product more. Are customers enrolled in any of the programs you offer?
As you’re honest with yourself about what these strategies might look like at your company, be aware of potential roadblocks. In the past, this has presented challenges for me in terms of data management and accuracy.
Customer marketing is more effective when you can do it accurately part And provide personalized messaging to customers, especially now that everyone expects personalization.
The future of customer marketing
I’m excited about the future of customer marketing. I think, overall, it will continue to grow as a popular marketing function, and customer marketers who tie their initiatives to bottom-line revenue will be the CMOs of the future.
The marketing industry continues to evolve, and with advances in artificial intelligence and machine learning, I think we will see this impact continue to grow. We will move toward hyper-personalized experiences, where artificial intelligence can help predict customer needs and automate timely, relevant communications at scale. This reduces existing processes and gives us the opportunity for a more personal approach than ever before.
As we speak, customer marketers are reimagining the traditional pipeline, and customer data is more valuable than ever. We will soon see marketing shift to a more authentic focus on building real, value-driven connections with customers. Customer marketing data insights will inspire creativity and allow companies to customize their messaging to resonate with different target audiences.
Put customers first
Effective customer marketing is more than just a strategy; This mentality puts the customer at the center of everything the company does. As you develop or refine your customer marketing strategy, remember that your ultimate goal is to build lasting relationships with your customers by giving them your time, respect, and value.
If you want to keep your customers, you have to make them want more!Learn how to level up your game customer engagement Strategy.
