Ensuring you have a healthy pipeline of prospects that you are able to convert to active finance customers is of course critical to the growth of any mortgage business – but look behind the scenes of any successful mortgage broker and you’ll find that client retention is treated with the same importance as client acquisition.
In fact, many argue that the retention of clients is more important than acquisition given great customers who experience great post-sales care from you are the ones most likely to promote your services for you, often becoming your best referral source as they become true evangelists for your brand.
We’re here to tell you why client retention is so important, and just how to go about it.
The basics when it comes to client retention
The visual or analogy that is often used when talking about client retention is the leaking bucket. There is no point focusing on filling the bucket faster and faster if the leaks at the bottom keep growing. Focus on patching up the holes through which clients are escaping and your bucket will start to fill faster.
The secret behind client retention and retention marketing is to keep your clients engaged and close to your business and the services you offer. In mortgage broker speak, client retention strategies are designed to reduce customer churn, improve the customer lifetime value whilst protecting your trail, all whilst nurturing customers who are so loyal they become valuable advocates for your business, spruiking what you do on your behalf.
There’s nothing new when it comes to the importance of client retention, but what is new and consistently evolving is the landscape your clients find themselves in. Finance markets are dynamic, technology is constantly offering up new tools and new ways of doing things, choice within the Australian mortgage markets is seemingly endless, and customer attention spans are low. What all this means is that client expectations have shifted dramatically in recent times, and will continue to do so. They expect more from you, they expect you to know more about them and each client expects to be treated differently than the next. It’s imperative to keep one step ahead of changing client expectations and refine your tactics accordingly. If you don’t then you can bet your bottom dollar your competitors will.
A quick google search on the value an existing client represents vs a new client, the returns on profitability a lift in retention rates may mean for your business, or the costs associated with acquiring v retaining a client all differ slightly but the same message is clear.
A small lift in retention can do a great deal for your bottom line. The cost in acquiring a new customer are traditionally far higher than the costs in retaining an existing client and the value of a happy customer can be measured by how much longer they stay with you and how many others they refer your way.
Being front and centre is key with the right message at the right time, as is over-servicing and over-delivering. There are smart ways of doing this that won’t eat into your diary and distract you from what you do best, smart ways that deliver strong results.