Repeat clients are what allows a business to grow. Whether the brand is Holly Hunt, Uber, Coca-Cola, or Kravet, it is always more difficult to get first sales than repeat ones.
That is why major corporations spend between 15-30% of their total revenue on marketing- and much of it is devoted to getting existing customers purchasing more. This remarketing, or retargeting, gets you more bang for your marketing buck. They already know, like, and trust you, and this leads to easier sales, bigger sales, and regular referrals. (Regular clients refer friends at a significantly higher rate than one-time clients).
Let’s use Kravet as an example. You know and love them. And, still they have a hefty budget for marketing and advertising to you. They aren’t working to get the first sale. They are investing in the repeat sale.
Yet, small businesses, including design studios, too often think of marketing as an endeavor that only has the benefit of getting them new customers. This is a big mistake, and it prevents the business from pointing their marketing in the best direction as well as it decreases the accuracy of their Return on Investment (ROI) calculations.
Here are 3 ways to include targeting repeat clients in your digital marketing:
1. Newsletters
Regularly emailing your clientele is a fantastic way to keep your brand at the front of their thoughts. Best practices are to include a mix of content from new project images and your blogs, industry trends and local design events. Write them casually, be personable, be local. And, shall I add, drop all sense of perfectionism or you won’t get your first one off.
If you don’t know where to start, Mailchimp offers free newsletter templates and mailing services. (Disclaimer: they once bribed me to like their brand by giving me an afternoon of unfettered access to food trucks, live music, and an art gallery viewing. I even hung with the chimp).
2. Social Media Engagement
You’ll want to friend/follow/connect with your clients on all social channels. Then tune into where they are most active and join the conversation- when appropriate. You know the difference between the mom down the block and the hoity toity Palm Beachers, and thus you know when you are welcome to say hi and when you should stay in the background.
3. Social Media Advertising
Your clients will often become your social followers (hint, use the “invite” feature on Facebook to get them following you). It is easy to post regular content and then “boost” it so that they, as your followers, see it. You can also upload a list of emails to target on Facebook/Instagram. Paid promotion on social media to those who already know who you are is a winning strategy to stay remembered and it allows you to show off your latest and greatest work.
By using email newsletters as well as organic and paid social media, your brand is going to regularly be seen by your best clients which inevitably will lead to more work from them as well as more referrals.
The challenge then is attribution: discovering the set of “touchpoints” that contribute to the sale. If you don’t attribute marketing-related sales just because you had a pre-existing relationship with the client, then you won’t get a true sense of your ROI and might end up decreasing your marketing investment in a way that hurts your bottom line.
Found this blog useful? Then read all 7 ways, online and offline, to secure repeat clients.
If you have questions, feel free to ask here.
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