Your Greatest Assets

It seems like there have been a few layoffs since those days. Mergers, acquisitions, reengineering, outsourcing and TQM (total quality management) have provided CEO’s with all of the justification they needed to do what accountants do with assets – depreciate them!

Small business owners have their own greatest asset, but it’s not their people. Their greatest asset is their existing customers. Unfortunately, far too often small business owners follow the lead of Corporate America as they too depreciate their greatest asset.

Think about it. How much of your are you investing in your current customers? You are probably allocating those precious pennies to attracting new customers and largely ignoring your greatest asset.

Your existing customers already know you. You don’t need to educate them on why to buy from you. Your current customers already like you – we hope! If they receive a letter, e-mail or phone call from you, they will respond because you already have an existing relationship.

But do they trust you? Have you demonstrated that you are interested in them? Have you communicated with them regularly to reinforce their decision to choose you?

Why do businesses lose customers? Many industry studies have shown that 68% of customer attrition is due to apathy on the part of the business. The business simply fails to stay in touch with the customer, so they eventually find one of your competitors to see if they actually care!

Why are your customers your greatest asset? They give you immediate leverage.

You can invite them back to purchase from you again – much more cost effectively than chasing a new prospect.

You can create incentives for them to buy more each time they visit – and to visit you more often - perhaps a customer loyalty program.

Best of all, you can teach them how to refer your business to others.

Guerrilla Marketing Guru Jay Conrad Levinson suggests small businesses spend 60 cents of every marketing dollar on their current customers. How much of your marketing budget are you investing in your existing relationships?

Maybe it’s time for you to break away from the lead of Corporate America. Don’t depreciate – appreciate your greatest assets!