How To Turn Your Customer Base Into New Revenue

This is an excerpt from our latest e-book, “How To Turn Your Customer Base Into New Revenue.” To download the full version, click here.

With word-of-mouth marketing driving billions of dollars in sales every year, it’s no surprise that it’s one of the most coveted sources of marketing. And when it comes to consumer relationships with brands, 74% of consumers identify word-of-mouth as a key influencer in their purchasing decision. In fact, the best source of new business is a referral from a satisfied customer. So how can brands turn their customers into one of the most powerful selling and marketing tools in their growth strategy?

Here are three ways brands can leverage their customer base to drive revenue:

ASK

According to the Wharton School of Business, 83% of satisfied customers are willing to refer products and services. But only 29% actually do. Don’t leak referrals that could lead to new business, make the ask! Import your contacts from email lists, CRM or marketing automation software to make sure that everyone who interacts with your brand is given an opportunity to participate as an ambassador in your referral program - without having to sign up.

REWARD

Make the sharing worth it - the reward you are offering should be incentivizing enough to make your customers participate. Whether it’s recurring monthly commission rewards or X amount in cash, a worthwhile reward will always create momentum around your referral program. The payout needs to match the effort it takes for one of your customers to garner a referral.

MEASURE

By continuously monitoring and measuring your referral programs, you can do more than just ensure that you’re rewarding brand ambassadors; you can improve your overall marketing strategy based on brand ambassadors’ activity. The process of turning customers into brand ambassadors never ends; you should always be improving and changing your referral marketing strategy.

The transition from customers to brand ambassadors is a huge step in your marketing strategy. Once you have successfully started a referral program, you have started a cycle that not only brings new, high-quality customers to your brand, but you have an extremely valuable source of information to continue growth and drive new revenue.