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GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
Attracting & RetainingCustomers
Building Customer Loyalty inLocal Agri-marketing
Greg FranklinMarch 21, 2009
2009 MAINE FARMERSMARKET CONVENTION
GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
Why should we focus on this?• It’s your most important business function• Your customers have a choice…
– If not you… someone else• Cost of acquiring a new customer is 6X - 7X the
cost of retaining an existing one• Businesses seeing 5% increase in customer
retention have reported increases in profits5% – 95%
• Customer Service implements WOMM– Word-of-Mouth-Marketing
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GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
So let’s break this topic down…• Attracting and retaining customers has three key
elements… a practical understanding andapplication of:
– Marketing… Word-of-Mouth
– Customer Service
– Customer Loyalty
GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
Marketing is…
well told.a good story…
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GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
Marketing is everything……and everything is marketing.
GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
Your Story is your marketing• Selling commodity products…
• Give your consumers a reason to talkabout your products and services– Differentiate yourself… your story– provide venues for these conversations
to take place
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GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
Word of Mouth Marketing…• WOMM techniques… based on common
sense concepts– Customer satisfaction– Two-way dialogue– Effective listening– Transparent communications
www.womma.org
GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
Word of Mouth Marketing…Basic elements
– Educating people about your products andservices
– Identifying people most likely to share theiropinions
– Providing tools that make it easier to shareinformation
– Studying how, where, and when opinions arebeing shared
– Listening and responding to supporters,detractors, and neutrals
www.womma.org
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GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
1. Educating your customers
• Know your story (vs. commodity)…know what makes you different
– People– Place– Products
GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
Know your story…• People…Place…Product
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GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
Know your story…• People…Place…Product
GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
2. Know your story…• People…Place…Product Characteristics of place
“Another NH product… brought to you when we’re good and ready.”
“Made with pure New Hampshire cussedness.”
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GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
Know your story…• People…Place…Product
GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
3. Identify people most likely to share their opinion
• Know your customers– Repeat customers– Complainers
• Know your community– Opinion leaders– Community leaders– Media
• Make it a practice to know everyone else• Hi tech… hi touch
– Lead management/CRM systems
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GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
4. Provide tools that make it easier to share information
• Bag stuffers– Simple desktop published information
• 4 out of 8.5” x 11” sheet - use colored paper– Tell your story - people, place, product– Put multiples in each bag– Ask people to share them
• Bag labels– Avery labels– Tell your story - people, place, product
• Media - good PR
GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
5. Identify all possible places where conversation can occur and use them
• At your facility…• Farm, farm stand, store• Picnic tables - linger problem
• At their home• Recipes - reduce risk• Packaging• Cards in bags
• Social Media• E-newsletters/market research• www.constantcontact.com
• Toll free number during season - recording• Update daily
• Events - make people realize you are special - make them realize they are special to you
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GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
6. MBWA… Marketing By Walking Around
• My job… learn how, where and when opinionsare being shared
• Mix with your customers• Talk with them… learn what they do… learn
where they congregate• Listen• Carry items to cars• Park cars… my job• Ask for their input
GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
Customer Service… our second topic this morning
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GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
Customer Service is…… the best hands on, practical, day-to-day marketing.
GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
Customer service is…• Your real product…
– It’s what you deliver from your customers’ perspective
• It occurs before, during and after the purchase
• It occurs in person, in town, in your booth, on the farm, onthe phone/chat/email, in each ad, sign, on the truck
• It is Food, Attitudes, Actions• A bundle of actions and items aimed at meeting or
exceeding expectations• Or the lack thereof…
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GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
Food, Attitudes, Actions…• Which one sets us apart the most?
– Why?
• Which one is the easiest to deliver?– Why?
• On which one do we spend most of our timeand effort?
GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
Stated another way……everything is customer service… every contact… every action… every interaction… every communication
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GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
Your simplest yardstick…
• Treating customers the way you wantto be treated!
GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
9 Ways to Deliver ExcellentCustomer Service… and retainyour customers! - at the farm - at the farmers’ market
• From my experience…• Good Customer Service
– By Susan Ward, About.com: Small Business/Canada
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GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
1. Be responsive… be available• Don’t hide…• Meet your customers where they gather…
don’t expect them to come to you• Respond now… not later• Answer phone, email, questions now• No tolerance for information float
GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
2. Deliver the goods…• Be reliable…• Deliver what’s expected… or manage it• Show up… or manage it• Get back in touch… or manage it• Know your customers’ expectations…
and manage them
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GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
3. Listen to your customers…• No… really listen to your customers• Find out what they think• Respond to what they need• Know their expectations• Exceed their expectations
GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
4. Seek complaints…• Seek complaints… solve problems
– We create advocates– Complainers are your most loyal advocates
• A dissatisfied customer who complainsis 2x as loyal…– if their problem is solved… 6x as loyal– if their problem is solved quickly… 9x as loyal
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GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
4. Seek complaints… cont’d
• People whose problems are solved tell anaverage of 5 people
• People who have a problem but do not tellyou, talk to 10 people (2x impact)
• For each unhappy customer you hear, thereare 6 others you don’t, 25-50 others withminor complaints
• If unhappy customers do not have theopportunity to complain, first they will switchbrands…then tell 10-12 others
GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
5. Manage unhappy customers…7 proven steps to managing the unhappycustomer– 1. Listen– 2. Determine if it is perception/opinion or error– 3. Summarize/feedback their concern– 4. Never agree with an incorrect proposition– 5. Propose a course of action… what you can do– 6. Summarize and gain agreement– 7. Follow up… thank them now… thank them later
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GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
6. Be helpful…even if there is no immediate profit in it
• Invest for tomorrow…• Solve problems…• Treat others as you want to be treated…• Create reasons for people to talk about you
GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
7. ALWAYS be helpful, courteous and knowledgeable
• Train yourself… and your staff• Don’t hide… reach out• Share your knowledge… bounty• Share your story… connection• Share your passion… engagement• Give people opportunities to talk about you
– Basis for WOMM
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GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
8. Create Connections…• Be personable, visible, approachable…• People don’t trust your farm…
they trust you• They trust people they know
– People whom they seek out
• They buy from people they trust…
GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
9. Exceed expectations…• Know your customers expectations
– Ask, listen, note, respond
• Throw in something extra… somethingunexpected– Food, attitudes, actions– Go the extra mile…– Don’t ask for anything in return
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GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
Customer Loyalty… our third topic this morning
GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
The 6 “C’s” of Converting CustomerService into Customer Loyalty…
• Not fancy… just practical
• Not hard… what you already know
• Not expensive…“What do you have in the house?”
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GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
1st “C”: Connect with your customers…
• Reach out…• Listen and learn…• Know your customers
– Know them personally– Know their needs…– Know their expectations
• Put yourself in their shoes…
GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
2nd “C”: Create Advocates…• Get beyond selling commodity
products…create conversation• Give your consumers positive reasons to talk
about your products and services– Differentiate yourself… your story– provide venues for these conversations
to take place• Get people to go out of their way to share an
opinion, an experience, or passion about yourproduct– To invest of themselves in you
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GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
The power of advocacy…
10x Ability to Predict Loyalty
GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
Create ownership…basis of advocacy• Feeling of connection… belonging
“this is my place”• Safety… connection to food• Community… an extension of how, why
and where they live• Recognition… “I belong here”
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GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
Advocacy…person-to-person power
GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
3rd “C”: Convert Complaints…• Seek complaints• Understand the power of complaints• Train yourself and your staff how to handle
unhappy customers• Always follow up on complaints and
complainers
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GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
4th “C”: Constantly Communicate• Create a dialogue with your customers• Keep yourself and your business appropriately
“top of mind”• Use technology… “hi tech hi touch”
– ConstantContact.com• Be seen as knowledgeable about your
business and profession– Share that knowledge– Create connections
GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
5th “C”: Think Comprehensively…• Effective Customer Service happens before, during
and after a purchase
• Creatively identify and analyze every way a customersees, hears and interacts with you– Look at the information shared– Look at how it is packaged– Look at how it is delivered
• Look at your product comprehensively…– Food, attitudes, actions
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GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
5th “C”: Think Comprehensively…• Look at your marketing comprehensively…
– 9 Ps of Agri-marketing- Product- Place- Pricing- Promotion- Packaging- Production- Presentation- Positioning- Partnerships
GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
6th “C”: Be Creative…• Look at what you have in the house…• Use it - “Make do… do without
Use it up… wear it out.”
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GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
“Art in the Barn”
GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
“Art in the Barn”
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GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
Your finished product…… is just your customer’s raw material.
Summary…
GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
What you have…… is what they want.
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GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
It’s not just food, it’s…
…security!…safety!
…connection!…community!
…comfort!…belonging!
GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
Deliver this at every point!
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GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009
Thank you.
GSFACONSULTINGAttracting &Retaining Customers
© GSFA Consulting 2009