By Carl Taylor, VP Marketing, OKI Data
A strong relationship is built on three critical fundamentals: communication, trust and commitment. And no, this is not the beginning of a dating blog! I am referring to the relationships that customers have with brands and the phenomenon of customer loyalty.
You may recall that in 2009, the CEO of Domino’s Pizza made a public apology for its terrible-tasting new pizza recipe. Because of his humble request and a few product adjustments, Domino’s earned the largest single-quarter revenue boost in the history of the fast-food industry1. Customers appreciated Domino’s openness and honesty, and responded to them with overwhelming support – giving Dominos a chance to earn back both their trust and their business.
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But customer loyalty doesn’t just happen…it is built through a team effort that stems from a collaborative company culture. Each and every department should be involved when it comes to relationship-building, including sales, marketing, finance, engineering, and customer service to name a few. To illustrate this point, let’s look at how brands can gain customer loyalty by connecting to the three critical fundamentals of a strong relationship.
The first step is to establish an open line of communication and dialogue with your customers. Whether it’s through email, phone calls or social media, companies should be present and responsive. Using these forms of communication to encourage feedback will not only help to educate customers but also allow for businesses to learn and improve. Once there’s an open line of communication, brands must demonstrate their willingness to listen and adapt – they need to show that they should be trusted. When the Domino’s CEO publically apologized, customers realized that their opinions were having an impact leading them to identify with and trust the Domino’s brand. Finally, after communication and trust are established, the way to sustain a customer’s loyalty is through commitment. By offering long-term warranties, reward programs, benefits and offers, companies prove that they are committed and stand behind their products for the long-haul.
The bottom line is taking the time to invest in initiatives that boost customer loyalty can greatly benefit your business.
So, are you ready to commit? OKI Data Americas is ready with a new, industry-leading five-year customer warranty upgrade program called COREFIDO. To learn more, visit www.okidata.com/corefido.