How to Get Your Customers to Fall in Love With Your Products and Services

by Dan Lok

Published on this site: August 1st, 2006 - See more articles from this month

My hair grows so damn fast. I have to get a hair cut every 3 weeks. Every time I need a haircut I go to Peter in downtown, Vancouver.

You know... Peter actually worked in New York 10 years ago. I guess you could say he earned his chops in New York. And he's cut hair for many celebrities, including Jim Carrey, etc.

Then he moved to Vancouver and opened his own salon. Well, if Pete is good enough for Jim Carrey then he's good enough for Dan Lok.

I've been going there for 8 years now.

Talk about customer loyalty!

Yeah... so I'm sure you are asking why am I so damn loyal? Right?

What makes Pete different than the other hairdressers? Why do I go back to him again and again?

Well I'll tell you. Pete works at it. He builds loyal customers in each interaction and builds them into every haircut he produces. He didn't attract the stars simply because he cuts hair well (though he does). He also offers exceptional customer service.

And I have to tell you, even if Pete's haircutting ability wasn't 110%, I'd probably still go back. Why? Customer service. Commitment. Quality.

So ask yourself, how do YOU build loyal customers? The best way to build loyal customers is by using the loyalty ladder concept. I want you to picture an ordinary ladder.

Now consider each rung of the ladder. Each "rung" is a "stage" of loyalty a customer may have. There are many different stages of loyalty customers demonstrate at each rung of the ladder:

Raving Fan
Devotee
Member
Customer
Shopper
Prospect
Suspect

Let's describe each of these in more detail:

• Suspect
  
  The suspect is the lowest rung on your ladder, when a customer starts out on your loyalty ladder. This is when customer's are at the very bottom of your ladder. These are people who may or may not want or need what it is you sell. They may not have any money. They are simply people who are not buying.
  
  
• Prospect
  
  Prospects are suspects who have taken some sort of action like subscribing to your newsletter, giving you their email addresses or those who have asked you for some sort of free information. They are people who may turn into active customers, but aren't there yet.
  
  
• Customer
  
  A customer is anyone who has actually spent money with you. You have to differentiate between your prospects and your customers. This is one of the reasons it is so damn important you segment your lists. You don't want to have everyone on ONE BIG list. At the very least, you should have a prospect list and customer list. You should treat your prospects and ustomers very differently. You should always give your customers more attention. Give them a better deal than everyone else. Why? They are already paying you for your products and services. Prospects are important, but customers are even more important.
  
  
• Member
  A member is someone who buys from you more than once. These are customers that now trust you. They feel they belong with you in some way. Now listen up. Customers who make two purchases are 10 times more likely to make more than someone who makes only one purchase with you. So anyone who is a member deserves special attention, because if they buy twice, they are likely to buy again.
  
  
• Devotee
  
  What's the difference between a devotee and a member? A devotee is someone who not only buys from you, but tells other people about you. They send you referrals. They promote you actively. They are happy to be your free sales force because they get so much value from you.
  
  
• Raving Fan
  
  The next stage in the ladder is Raving Fans. Usually only 1% to 5% of your customers become Raving Fans. They're one of your most valuable assets. They pretty much own everything you have. And, whatever new products and service you come up with, they will buy without blinking an eye.

The Raving Fan will stick with you for years as long as you don't screw up in a major way.

There's a very strong trust and bond with you and the Raving Fans. They trust you 100%. They want to see you succeed. They want to see you do well. If a devotee is someone who sells for you, a Raving Fan is someone who can't STOP selling for you. Raving Fans tell everyone about how fantastic you are. They talk about your company. They love you.

These days it's more expensive than ever to get a new customer. Most businesses in fact are acquiring their customers at a loss or break-even point. That means you have to get your customers to come back to you and buy again and again.

Why? That customer isn't simply profitable to you. They are your most important resource. What you want, what you need is as many raving fans as you can get.

You will succeed when you sort your prospects from suspects, move people up from prospects to customers, from customers to raving fans.

You need to have a marketing system that automatically moves people up the loyalty ladder as quickly as humanly possible.

Very soon, it'll be like me and Pete. I am one of Pete's RavingFans. I send him clients. I sell for him WITHOUT him asking me to it. I write about him in my article! I only go to him and nobody else. And I am thrilled to show up every month, 12 times a year to give him money. And I'll keep going to him unless he retires from the business. That could be another 10 to 20 years.

You see how much a Raving Fan like me is worth to Pete's business?

Sincerely,

Dan Lok

Dan Lok transformed himself from a grocery bagger in a local supermarket to a multi-millionaire. Today, Dan is one of the most sought-after business mentors on the Web, as well as a best-selling author. His reputation includes his title as the World's no.1 Website Conversion Expert. To find out what Dan is up to now, visit him at: http://www.WebsiteConversionExpert.com