Why customer retention marketing is so important
In the realm of service-based businesses, a significant portion of revenue and growth often comes from repeat customers. This came to life in an extraordinary way during our latest client success story.
I have made this mistake myself while running a Branch for an HVAC company back in 2017/2018. We chased new leads “Relentlessly”.
Our Technicians drove all over town trying to find new customers.
We were still profitable, but we had no system to follow-up with these customers when we left an estimate or signed them up for a membership plan.
That meant we didn’t have a lot of work left when temperatures were mild and seasons changed.
How did we setup this outbound campaign strategy?
Our client came to us with a need.
It’s a need most Heating, Air Conditioning, Plumbing, and Electrical companies feel at various points in the year.
More calls, but no weather or industry-related demand like the Holidays.
Our team created a multi-sept outbound text and voicemail drip campaign for a client, reaching out to 5,000 of their past customers.
The results were nothing short of phenomenal, demonstrating the immense potential in reactivating old customer relationships.
We launched the campaign in the month of April, a traditionally slow month clients that focus on Heating and Air Conditioning.
Despite a complete lack of demand-driven weather, the campaign managed to exceed our initial expectations.
Impressive Results
We were able to help book an astounding 283 jobs over the course of the month.
This comes out to a booking rate of 5.6% from one simple campaign.
This flurry of renewed engagement didn’t just signify an uptick in client interactions; it translated into substantial growth for our client.
The 283 jobs booked during the campaign brought in an additional $295,778 in revenue for the month of April.
To put this into perspective, that’s a 47% increase year over year for the same time period.
The Power of Personalized Outreach
It’s clear from these numbers that reaching out to past customers is not just a good business strategy, but an essential one.
These results demonstrate the powerful impact of personalized, direct outreach. A well-crafted, considerate text message or voicemail can remind customers of positive past experiences and nudge them towards revisiting those services.
Moreover, it reaffirms the incredible value lying dormant within your existing customer base. It’s easy to be so focused on acquiring new customers that we forget the value of those we’ve already served.
This campaign serves as a potent reminder that investment in nurturing existing relationships can yield significant returns.
Future of Outreach
Looking ahead, our client is energized by these results and eager to explore other innovative ways to connect with their customer base.
Other campaigns that will grow their revenue and keep their existing customers happy include, but are not limited to:
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- Estimate follow-up
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- Job Cancelation follow-up
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- End-of-season open estimate follow-up with discount
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- End-of-season outbound review campaign to drive growth on Maps
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- Discounted tune-ups
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- Discounted refrigerant checks
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- Missed call text-back
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- Form Submission text-back
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- Text widget instead of website chat, so customers can keep chatting with you after leaving the site
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- Facebook and Instagram automated text backs
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- Google Business message text-back
Conclusion
The key to dramatic growth isn’t in seeking out new frontiers, fancy tools, or shiny objects, but in doing the simple things REALLY, really well.
In this era of rapid digitization and increasing customer expectations, personal connection and a touch of nostalgia can make all the difference.
This successful campaign demonstrates the power of reaching out, reminding past customers of your presence, and the value you bring to their lives.
If this story inspires you, and you’re thinking about how to reconnect with your customers, we’d love to hear from you. Get in touch with us by booking a strategy session.
