7 Steps for Keeping Good Customers. As marketers, we all know the importance of loyal customers. The general rule of thumb is that it costs 5 to 10 times more (in actual marketing dollars) to acquire a new customer than it does to keep a good customer. So why isn't more attention given to customer retention programs? Especially when competition continues to become keener and the options available to customers become more numerous …

Senior Management Do Not Hear of 95% of Service Problems. Customer research surveys show that only 50 percent of all customers complain about service problems. Ninety percent of these complaints are made only to the frontline person serving them, or perhaps to their immediate supervisor. Only 10% of customer complaints are given directly (or indirectly) to senior management. As a result, top management typically hears only about 5% of all customer service issues! …

Finding Out the True Reasons for Customer Attrition What's the worst thing a customer can do when they stop doing business with you? Most audiences I ask respond: "tell others why they've left." That, of course, can be particularly troublesome. As noted in this week's Monday Morning Marketing Memo on The Unseen Costs of Lost Customers, research shows dissatisfied customers will tell up to 19 friends, colleagues and family members when they decide …

Reducing Customer Attrition Is Critical Many organizations place their highest emphasis on attracting and gaining new customers. While this is important, I feel it is more important to place a higher emphasis on retaining and keeping your good customers. This is particularly true in saturated markets and industries where customers have many, many alternatives available to them. Numerous research studies have shown that if you can reduce your attrition rate — that is …