Business 101: Repeat After Me: “Repeat Customers Are a Must!” – How to Develop Repeat Business

According to direct sales industry insiders, the average customer makes a purchase 1.1 times. That means for every 10 customers in your direct sales business, only one will make a repeat purchase – and only once after the initial purchase.

There’s something incredibly wrong with that scenario. Imagine a “big box” brick and mortar store setting up shop in a new town every other week because they’ve already made a sale to every inhabitant in the community once. Brick and mortar stores would quickly go out of business if this were their model for generating business.

Yet this is exactly what we face as direct sellers. We’ve been beaten with the “see more people” mantra for so long that we’re neglecting the very customers that already want to do business with us now and in the future: our existing customers.

In fact, the #1 complaint I hear from direct sellers is that there are not enough hours in the day to do follow-up. Instead, follow-up becomes one of those things you know you “should do”, but it doesn’t get done at all.

No wonder your clients are looking elsewhere to purchase your products and services! If you’re not willing to nurture your client relationships, how can you expect your clients to continue to do business with you? That said, you can’t spend countless hours every day trying to reach people that won’t return your calls.

Assuming you’re developing a book of business with clients you love, you need to implement ideas that will minimize your time investment, and still stay “top of mind” when your clients are ready to make a repeat purchase.

6 Ways to Make Generating Repeat Business a Cinch!

#1: Get help – Whether it’s setting up the initial database and doing data entry, or putting stamps on thank-you post cards, you need to realize that you simply can’t do all the follow-up work yourself. Nor should you.

A business owner needs to spend time building the business, not doing a bunch of paperwork. That said, follow-up still needs to be done – just not by you. So hire a responsible teenager, a neighbor, trade hours with your new consultants – whatever it takes to make sure that follow-up is happening in a timely manner.

#2: Develop systems – and stick to them – An effective host coaching system, client follow-up system, customer care system, and recruit lead follow-up system are minimal requirements for an effective direct sales business today.

There are too many “moving parts” in an organization to have to manually keep track of everything. A simple system will allow you to delegate the routine activities to a trusted helper (or assistant as your organization grows) so that you can focus on income-producing activities.

#3: Get permission – A simple check box on your order form can give you permission to send a periodic email update to your existing clients. Give them advance notice of upcoming specials, share tips and resources related to your product and don’t forget to invite them to connect with you in social media.

#4: Leverage social media – If you have a Facebook page, invite your clients to participate. Post pictures from your events and tag your clients (with permission, of course). Let them re-live the event with their online circle of friends. Not only will this deepen your relationships with your existing clients, it can also generate new leads.

#5: Ask for the business – All this relationship building is for naught if you fail to ask for the order. Telling them about great deals, and new products isn’t the same as inviting them to “buy now” or “call to book a show”. Be sure that in your marketing, you remember to ask for the repeat business.

People take advantage of coupons when they’re in the market for the product being offered. They’re also more likely to say yes if you invite them to shop with you. Instead of saying “great deals today”, try “shop our site for great deals today”. That small distinction resulted in a 29% increase in sales during a client marketing makeover. The difference was asking for the sale.

#6: Train them on how you’d like to be treated – While we don’t want to think of our clients like Pavlov’s dogs, it is true that our clients will continue to behave as we have trained them to behave.

If you always give away free products, they will come to expect that you will always give away free products. If you incentivize them to become a repeat client, you encourage them to continue buying from you.

Loyalty cards and rewards programs work because they train the buyer to keep doing business with the same company. Find a way to incorporate a loyalty program into your own business, and watch your repeat business soar.

When you’re building a solid book of business, repeat clients are the stabilizing factor for generating a consistent income. The more you do to encourage repeat buying behaviors, the better your success at building a solid book of repeat business.

In addition to founding #dstips on Twitter, Lisa also publishes the popular and highly recommendedPartyOn! A weekly ezine for direct sales professionals. Get your free business building tips at Home Party Solution.com.