5 Customer Lifecycle Mistakes to Avoid at All Costs

“Our jobs as marketers are to understand how the customer wants to buy and help them to do so” Bryan Eisenberg

As a marketer, it's your duty to develop strategies, initiatives and content to capture consumers at all stages of the sales funnel.

By focusing on every single element of the customer lifecycle, you will ensure that you engage your prospects from start to finish, encouraging conversions, brand loyalty, repeat custom, brand advocacy, and... more conversions.

But, despite the importance of nurturing each and every stage of the customer lifecycle, you'd be amazed at just how many mistakes people make.

These blunders are not only detrimental to brand reputation but they're also costly in terms of time and money, stunting progress while wasting valuable resources. That said, you should steer clear of them at all costs.

To help you avoid making potentially devastating lifecycle marketing mistakes and succeed on the promotional battlefield, here are five customer lifecycle marketing blunders you should avoid.

1. Do Not Lean on a Single Source of Traffic

One of the most critical elements of the customer lifecycle is enticing new custom and generating traffic to your site. But, don’t sell yourself short by relying on a single traffic source.

In our hyper-connected digital age, there are a seemingly endless number of touchpoints for creating engaging content and connecting with consumers on a personal level. As such, there are a number of traffic sources you should use to generate traffic.

For instance, your sole traffic-boosting strategy might be search engine optimization (SEO). But, if Google suddenly shifts their algorithm or you’re penalized for any reason, your authority, and (as a direct result) the volume of traffic to your site, will dwindle, significantly.

If you have additional active traffic sources in place, you will remain fortified against any unforeseen shifts or changes while considerably expanding your promotional reach.

Here is a list of effective traffic sources that you should keep handy:

• Social media advertising and social media marketing.
• Pay-per-click (PPC) advertising and paid advertising through the likes of Amazon Ads.
• Posting guest content via relevant industry blogs and publications.
• Direct marketing and targeted print-based promotions.
• Influencer marketing

2. Do Not Fail to Capture Fresh Leads

When it comes to lifecycle marketing, failing to capture leads is a cardinal sin.

We have become a species of digital natives which means that if you're generating traffic, a plethora of leads will visit your website, online store, or one of your many other consumer touchpoints every day.

In many instances, these potential leads may get distracted or decide not to buy right away, and bounce off your website. If you haven’t developed a strategy to capture their data in the first instance, you won’t be able to follow up with a valuable offering that may entice them to convert.

By offering whitepapers, testimonials, case studies, short courses, new subscriber deals or anything else you deem to hold value, you’ll be able to capture your leads and develop long-term relationships that will result in brand loyalty which, in turn, will translate to repeat custom - which brings us onto our next point...

3. Do Not Forget to Nurture your Prospects

Once you’ve captured your leads, if you neglect them, you will not encourage them to invest in your brand. It’s that simple.

But, despite being a relatively straightforward concept, you’d be amazed at many people overlook the lead nurturing phase of their marketing strategies.

Studies suggest that half of all business leads will buy from a brand within 18 months. But, 85% of these potential purchases will commit to buying between three and 18 months after expressing an initial interest.

That said, if you fail to take measures to nurture your customers strategically through tailored offers and personalized content, you're likely to miss out on 85% of potential sales. Naturally, this will prove detrimental to the growth of the business.

To help you formulate strategies that will yield results, read our guide to nurturing leads at every stage of the sales funnel.

4. Do Not Underestimate the Power of Over-delivering

Once your prospects have committed to investing in your product or service, it’s important that you go above and beyond to not only deliver on your promises but to demonstrate why you are worthy of brand loyalty.

Today’s consumers value transparency and the opinions of their peers above all else and if you fail to exceed, or at least meet, expectations, it’s unlikely that a converting customer will ever return. Hence the importance of over-delivering.

The vast majority of marketers overlook the power of over-delivering, giving their competitors the opportunity to drive your consumers into their arms.

So, never underestimate the power of delivering too much.

Aside from ensuring that your product or service meet all expectations and everything is fulfilled seamlessly, your over-delivery efforts will come from your aftercare.

In addition to employing a mix of lead-nurturing techniques, you should aim to go above and beyond with personalized content tailored to the purchasing decisions of your customer - or by saying thank you with an exclusive gift, deal or offer.

Here, you should aim to be as creative and innovative as possible, but the key point is: make sure your post-purchase communications are outstanding, rather than generic. You’ll reap great rewards in the long term.

5. Do Not Neglect Opportunities to Get Referrals

Last but certainly not least: you should always aim to get referrals from your converting customers.

Referral marketing - or word of mouth - is a powerful tool and while this may not be a particularly technical term, the phrase, 'if you don't ask, you don't get' applies here.

92% of consumers trust referrals from people they know. That said, if you’ve built a genuine rapport through your initial marketing communications, your lead nurturing and conversion initiatives, and by over-delivering on your post-purchase care, converting your happy customers into brand advocates should be a fairly natural task.

By asking if your consumers will recommend you to their friends, families or colleagues and giving them an incentive to do so (such as a discount or referral bonus), you’re likely to boost brand awareness and entice new people to the customer lifecycle. And once you do, prepare to start the entire process again - the right way.

By focusing on all areas of the customer lifecycle rather than drilling down into just one or two, you’ll catalyze the growth of your brand and boost the power of your marketing efforts, exponentially, one customer at a time.

Related

• Understanding the Online Sales Funnel
• How Email Marketing Can Turn Leads Into Sales
• How to Manage your Online Reputation
• Fyre Festival - Authenticity in Marketing: The Vital Importance of Delivering on Your Promises