Today is call a client day

There is a school of through that says you need to be in regular communication with your clients to ensure that you remain at the top of their list when they are ready to make a purchase. Harvvard Business School actually put a time structure on this - the magical figure appears to be 12 weeks.

When was the last time your customers heard from you? Did you send them a “thanks for purchasing” note? Did you ask for a referral to a friend if they were happy with your service? Do they know that you've just introduced or launched X or Y product and that is perfectly complements the widgit they bought 5 months ago?

Customers you have a good rapport with and keep satisfied will refer you to others. As we all know, word of mouth is the best and cheapest form of promotion.

Remember:

• 80% of sales comes from 20% of your customers
• It costs one-third more to sell an item to a new customer than to sell it to an existing one
• Repeat customers spend one-third more than new customers per year
• It’s five times more profitable to sell to an existing customer than to a new one
• Repeat customers are more than twice as likely to refer you to someone else.

And how about your potential customers? Those ones who phoned to enquire or sent you an email or contact form off your website? Have you been back in contact with them even if they did not make a purchase this time around? You might be surprised by just how many businesses don't follow up, and how much a simple contact can make you stand out from the crowd.

Surprise them. Send some information about your business, an article on your field that they may find interesting or valuable, thank them for their enquiry. Let them know you are looking forward to the opportunity to serve them in the future. This opens the door to building a relationship with them and seeing them transform into a client.

Once you have built up a list of clients and potential clients, what is the best was to keep in touch? Options include:

• email newsletters
• Facebook fan page
• Twitter

And best of all the old fashioned telephone! Why not make that you next action today? Choose a client you haven’t spoken with in awhile, then just pick up the phone and give the a call. Who knows where the conversation might go?