Building better long-term relationships is the cornerstone of a sustainable business. The most successful business post customer retention rates of 25% or more, but 20% is considered the gold standard. Why? Because a 5% increase in customer retention can drive profit increase of between 25-95%.
Even small gains and a few improved customer experiences can drive long-term business success. So, the question for the modern business is, "How can this company improve retention?" That all comes back to customer engagement.
Engaged customers are brand ambassadors, success stories, and testimonials that deliver more revenue. Engagement starts with communication and the right set of tools can make communication a streamlined and automated part of the customer journey.
Defining Customer Engagement..Find Out
- Customer engagement and retention are not the same things, but they do go hand-in-hand. A returning customer has more opportunities for engagement. That means more chances to build loyalty, interact, and create a relationship. Engagement is all about the relationship between a business and its customers.
- Customers that keep coming back may not be particularly engaged with a brand. That means that a competitor offering a similar product has the opportunity to sweep in and woo them away. When customers are engaged, they take problems to the company, expect solutions and start conversations before switching their service provider.
Building Better Customer Relationships
- Getting customers to the point where they feel comfortable starting a conversation is a process. And, it's a process that starts with the company.
- Asking for feedback is one of the most valuable activities a company can do when seeking to drive engagement. By asking customers to provide insights from the user end, companies get the opportunity to make adjustments and add more value. They also get the chance to show customers their feedback is valued and under consideration.
- Quick customer services is another avenue to improve customer engagement. The longer a customer waits before they get the answer to a question, the more intolerant they become. Rapid access to information is the cornerstone of good customer service.
- Customized interactions are a must. Today's consumer and businesses expect conversations to start with basic knowledge of their history.
- That means a customer at a bank expects the bank to know the types of accounts they have and to provide information that is relevant to their situation.
- So, how do companies address the challenge of providing relevant, rapid, and proactive communication? The answer is APIs.
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APIs add speed to the communication challenge
- Automation is the key to speeding up any business process, including communication. There is a reason the telecom API industry is expected to be valued at $465B by 2024, and that is the value that APIs deliver to communication.
- Fast, accurate, and relevant information can go out to customers in seconds, not days. That means more satisfied customers, higher customer retention, and the chance to improve engagement.
- Automated communication also means that companies can more readily send out notifications, re-engagement messages, sale information, and other types of communications designed to be liked, shared, tweeted, or spread through word of mouth.
- With cellphone adoption projected to reach 69% of the population by 2025 across the entire MEA region, businesses need to communicate using the avenues most acceptable to consumers - mobile. APIs handle mass SMS messages with ease and enable more complex messages for those who have left the feature phone behind and purchased a smartphone. Messaging is the new engagement tool, and API software makes it affordable, scalable and customizable.
Read Now: Why WhatsApp Makes Sense for Businesses in MEA
Looking for a messaging solution that improves your customer engagement?
Cequens has the answer, click here to find out more.
Business Partner | 
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