5 Simple Sales Strategies to Grow Revenue from Existing Customers

One of best ways to throw away money is to neglect existing customers.  A key part of the sales process is interacting with current customers every once in a while to ensure continued satisfaction. If you don’t, they tend to leave you for your competitors, and it takes a lot of money and effort to market to new people to replace them.

Not only that, but these existing customers are a gold mine for cross-selling and upselling opportunities, meaning you can make a lot more money than that initial sale.

Here are five sales strategies you can use throughout the year in order to keep revenue flowing in from customers you already have.

1. Personalization

Your goal is to keep your business at the forefront of your prospects’ thoughts. A great way to do this is with personalized touches. You’ve no doubt experienced these yourself, and thought how professional and classy they are. Providing “thank you” notes on sales made, personally signed birthday cards, and anniversary congratulations are all great sales strategies that will all help you keep in touch. Let your CRM software keep track of what and when to send.

2. Annual Reviews

Give your customer the option of holding an annual review through a personal meeting, phone call, or video conference. Consider it a customer service call, allowing you to address any issues while also showing you exactly how they’re using your product. These interactions, in addition to making you look good to the client, also give you an opportunity to make another sale based on any new needs revealed during the conversation. Depending on your business, you may be able to hold these reviews quarterly or twice a year.

3. Referrals

Another great strategy for keeping in touch with customers is to provide them with referrals to help them build their businesses. You do this by staying alert while networking or dealing with your customers, and spotting referral opportunities. Referral sales strategies are great ways of generating communication that otherwise wouldn’t be there, and can be used to make customers feel like a loyal member of the family instead of just a buyer. Help them make money, and they won’t forget it.

4. Newsletters

If done electronically, newsletters can be tailored to a customer’s specific needs. Don’t waste a customer’s time and energy by forcing them to read information better suited to someone else. Use customer profiling in order to determine a customer’s buying habits and send updated information every once in a while to keep them advised of specials or new products. In addition, this is a chance to discover their thoughts on these products through surveys, testimonials, and reviews that they have provided themselves. Make them feel as if they’re a part of your growth, and they will call you when they have a need to buy.

5. Keeping Current

Don’t forget that the lives of your customers are apt to change over time, and this affects your business. Monitor trade papers and journals to keep informed of staff promotions, location moves, and expansion plans, or even use LinkedIn to ensure that your customers aren’t searching elsewhere for products that you provide. Sometimes, you may find that they may be in need of more products and services. Don’t risk them jumping over to one of your competitors; surprise them by being there to make the sale when buying signals appear.

It is estimated that it costs six times as much to obtain a new customer as opposed to retaining an existing one. Use the above sales strategies to make more money using the “farm” of customers you have already worked hard to develop!