CSM Guide to Building Customer Loyalty and Improving Retention
Customer loyalty and retention feed each other. Learn how CSMs build both by asking for feedback, saying thank you, and consistently delivering on promises.
TL;DR
- Customer loyalty and retention reinforce each other: loyal customers stay longer, and the longer a customer stays the more they get to know your team and product and build loyalty — you can't have one without the other.
- Three tactics help CSMs build both: ask customers for feedback so they feel their opinion is valued, say thank you through gifts, notes, or shout-outs, and consistently deliver on promises.
- Delivering on promises is a company-wide responsibility that extends beyond customer success to product, sales, marketing, and the executive team.
As a CSM, you know that the holy grail of any customer relationship is strong loyalty and, ultimately, long-term retention. But how do you get to this level with a customer? While it may take years for some customer partnerships to get to this desired mutually beneficial place, there are a few steps CSMs can take on the back end to move things along faster.
Customer loyalty and retention: a match made in heaven
Asking if customer loyalty or retention comes first is like asking the chicken or the egg question. The short answer is that customer loyalty and retention inform and influence the other. The long answer can be a bit more complicated. Of course, the more loyal customers are to you, your company, and your product, the longer they will stick around in a partnership. But, the longer a customer is in a partnership with an organization, the more likely they will get to know your team, product, and company and build a loyal relationship.
Simply put, you cannot have customer loyalty without customer retention and improve customer retention without loyal customer relationships. Here are some tips and tricks to get started:
- **Ask for customer feedback. **
Sure, customers probably feel like valued customers of your company’s product, but do they feel you value their opinion? Asking for customer feedback on new products, features, or ideas can show your customers that you’re looking to them to help inform the direction of your organization, which can prompt them to stick around longer.
- **Say thank you. **
Regardless of how long a customer has been with your organization, they still need to be treated as number one. Saying thank you to your customers through gifts, cards, notes, shout-outs, or even a simple thank you during a meeting can work wonders in building strong, lasting customer relationships.
- **Deliver on promises. **
This is a company-wide goal that extends far beyond the customer success department. If your team does what they say they’re going to do, customers will loyally stick around to see what is next. This goes for your product, sales, marketing, executive team members, and customer success department.
Ready to go above and beyond?
You're not alone if building customer loyalty and improving retention is on your CSM to-do list this year. Deliver the ultimate experience to your customers with ClientSuccess. You can learn more about building customer loyalty and improving retention with these additional resources and solutions:
- Webinar: The Customer Success Trust Framework
- eBook: 3 Steps To Putting Your Customer First This Year
- Toolkit: How To Build Customer Loyalty
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Frequently Asked Questions
How can CSMs build customer loyalty and improve retention?
What comes first, customer loyalty or retention?
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