We all know about OTT platforms, but the one that immediately sparks our interest is NETFLIX. How did NETFLIX grow from a DVD rental media to 272 billion USD now? Though people talk about their aggressive marketing strategies, they also invest a lot in retaining their customers. Netflix’s approach to building customer loyalty revolves around understanding and anticipating customer needs, delivering high-quality content, exceptional user experience, and customer support. With a growing audience, building a comprehensive online self-service is important in building a strong customer support team to cater to a global audience. Netflix's success isn’t a shot in the dark. In fact, any business can replicate its success to crack such a loyal customer base. However, the secret lies in the right strategy.

Curious about Netflix’s marketing strategy? We’ve Decoded Netflix for you!

This blog uncovers customer loyalty strategies so you can focus on the right resources to build and improve customer loyalty to accelerate your business growth.

What makes Customer Loyalty so important?

Say you moved to a new city and want a cozy little coffee shop for your morning caffeine fix. You ask your new neighbors, and one of them enthusiastically shares how a nearby place serves the best coffee and also has the friendliest staff. This recommendation will at least get you to check the place out. And that is the power of customer loyalty that makes it so important.

You don’t just want your customers to be happy. You want to turn them into enthusiastic brand ambassadors who will eagerly share their positive experiences and be your walking billboards, fetching new customers.

Plus, let’s not forget that loyal customers will freely spend on your brand – almost 67% more than new ones, and that too repeatedly!

So, how could you miss out on that? - let’s better not!

Top 6 Strategies to Improve Customer Loyalty

To build a solid business, you must focus on delivering experiences to your customers that will keep them returning. We’ve got six tried and tested customer loyalty strategies to help you do that and improve customer loyalty.

1. Gamification in the User Journey

Don’t you love it when you earn those little stars on your Starbucks app every time you order a beverage using your account?

Each star gets you a step closer to a free drink, and it’s quite exciting that your purchase adds a credit to a reward.

And that rewards program soon becomes why you keep returning to Starbucks even though coffee is more expensive than other cafes.

You can add this exciting little component to your customers’ journey, too, with gamification. Introduce a point system for every dollar they spend or create a leaderboard on the game system to introduce some healthy competition.

2. Provide Customer Self-Service Options

Say you’re facing an issue with your order on Amazon or some other marketplace. You’re not going to call customer service right away, are you? You’ll probably head to the self-service knowledge base and look through:

FAQs addressing common shipping problems
The step-by-step guide for order tracking orders
The video tutorials for initiating returns.

This approach lets you resolve your issue much quicker than waiting on the phone to connect with a person. This is a normal approach for all customers these days. A study from Dimension Data showed that 73% of customers prefer support over the company’s website.

Additionally, 40% of consumers would rather find a solution to their problem online through self-service options than interact with their customer support team.

Platforms like Document360 help you set up an online self-service knowledge base for your website where you can post step-by-step guides, FAQ Pages, help documentation, and provide similar resources to solve customer queries on their own. This setup not only supports self-service but also functions as a hub of help center articles to streamline your support.

These platforms let you support international customers through localization and a multilingual knowledge base. The self-service options are also easy to navigate, as customers can search for their answers with specific keywords or browse through categories.

3. Personalise Every Customer Interaction

Retail purchase experiences are always simple and sleek, isn’t it? - You have a representative to understand exactly what you want and like and suggest personalized recommendations.

Customer loyalty in retail relies on building customer relationships through personal customer engagement.

Even for online businesses, personalized experience is the most effective way to get your customers to notice and remember you. You may use customer data to understand your customer's needs and preferences and personalize their experiences to improve customer loyalty.

You can use data like:

Purchase habits
Transaction histories
Major milestones
Customer service records

and more.

A CRM such as Knock CRM can create a centralized repository of all customer data and detailed profiles for each customer. You can use it to tailor your email marketing strategies, personalized product recommendations, and promotional offers relevant to the customer’s needs and interests. Here’s an example of an email campaign from Spotify that leverages customer data to offer personalized content!

4. Implement a Loyalty Program for Existing Customers

Loyalty programs or rewards programs are a great way to keep consumers returning to your business instead of your rivals.

You can introduce different types of loyalty programs to improve customer loyalty. However, the goal will remain the same: encourage your customers to continuously engage with your brand by making them feel a part of an exclusive community.

Here are some loyalty programs with famous examples to get inspired from:

#1 Points System

Customers earn points for each purchase and can redeem them as a credit in their next purchase to get discounts or freebies, just like how you can with H&M.

#2 Tiered System

A tiered program starts with a points system that incentivizes consumers to purchase. After paying a certain amount, you may unlock a new level with greater benefits. You’ve probably come across this kind of loyalty program if you shop at Sephora. For businesses relying on customer service outsourcing, integrating such programs can provide outsourced teams with clear structures to address tier-specific inquiries effectively, ensuring a seamless customer experience.

#3 Subscription Model

Make your loyal customers feel special with a subscription model. In this model, subscribers pay less for your product or service than others who pay full price. One of the most well-known companies that use this kind of loyalty program is Amazon Prime.

#4 Referral Programs

Make your loyal customers into brand champions by incentivizing recommendations with the referral program. Look at this example from Hiver!

#5 Cashback Programs

Another best way to incentivize loyalty is by offering them cash in return. Look at how Samsung gets its customers to buy certain products with this program!

5. Strategically Collect and Act on Customer Feedback

When you demonstrate your dedication to continuously improve your service to clients and ask for their input, they feel cared for. This makes a big difference in their consumer experience, and you can improve customer loyalty and get them to stick with you.

There are many methods for asking for customer feedback, such as sending surveys, asking for reviews, and using social media. However, the best way is to do it right after a customer interaction.

Have you noticed how Amazon sends a product feedback form after each purchase? They also ask for feedback after returning a product, raising a query, or requesting support.

6. Ensure Excellent Customer Support

Your customer support team members are your business's first line and shape the customer experience every day. Even if a consumer has a negative encounter with your brand, great customer service can turn that around by being proactive in giving memorable service.

Avoid losing consumers by failing to meet their expectations. Instead, improve customer loyalty by ensuring customers return for more outstanding service.

Some ways to improve customer loyalty through better support can look like:

Quick responses to a query
Take feedback and act on it
Interacting with empathy
Offering different lines of support, such as email, phone, and live chat

Wrapping up

A customer’s loyalty is a privilege that needs to be earned, but once you get them hooked on your brand, they come bearing incomparable gifts. If you want to grow your business, in addition to customer acquisition, you should also aim to improve customer loyalty. These six customer loyalty strategies will help you win new and old customers over, vouching for your brand.

In 2024 and beyond, personalization will be the name of the game for better customer engagement and experiences, which will improve customer loyalty. Be it through gamification, loyalty programs, or content distribution, aim to give customers what they want to satisfy them.

Author Bio

Gowri Ramkumar is the Vice President of Sales and Customer Success at Document360, a leading SaaS knowledge base platform, with over fifteen years of experience in the technology industry. She is known for her expertise in sales, customer onboarding, customer success, and knowledge management. Gowri also hosts the popular podcast "Knowledge Base Ninjas," and her thoughts have been featured in several authoritative publications.

Guest Post: Top 6 Customer Loyalty Strategies for 2024

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