THANKING YOUR CUSTOMERS WILL MAKE YOU STAND OUT

Can you recall the days when every sale was always followed up by a "Thank you"? You were probably in the early days of the business. Profitability or driving growth was probably far from your mind then. And customers reciprocated with "You're welcome" or "We'll be back". They were enough to keep you driven.

Mother Theresa once said, "Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless." That you are still in business, and perhaps growing stronger, can be attributed to a band of loyal customers who are the echoes reverberating from your "Thank you". Hopefully, you've not stopped expressing your gratitude consistently as the business grows. But if you have, this post is for you.

1. Stand-out from the competition

Generally, people dislike being taken for granted. Although they have a need for your product or service, they don't owe you anything. But people love to feel valued. Overtly demonstrating this is a point of differentiation businesses tend to overlook. Feeling valued is a dimension of emotional equity brands must have to stand out from the competition.

2. Nurturing trust

At a time when mistrust - thanks to the pervasiveness of online scams - dominates the brand-customer relationship, nurturing trust is as critical as ensuring your product or service works. The good news is nurturing trust can start with expressing gratitude. After all, trust is two-way traffic. Each time customers make a purchase, they've demonstrated their trust in your product or service. Hence, it's only right you reciprocate with something as simple as "Thank you".

3. Social currency

A great customer experience begs to be shared. Beyond being able to share their positive experience using your product or service, they've got something else to share with others - that you value their patronage. It becomes a talking point or social currency of your brand. All else held constant, it is this emotional equity that they can use to be advocates of your brand. Word-of-mouth is an extremely powerful sales technique, especially when it comes from customers. They are valued more than any other form of marketing communication.

4. Customers will reward you

When people feel appreciated and valued, it compels them to reciprocate accordingly. Everyone wants to feel good always. When you deliver this feel-good factor consistently, customers will keep coming back. Their loyalty is sowed. Above all, they will stand by you, especially during difficult times.

5. You care enough to listen

As mentioned above, expressing gratitude shows you appreciate and value customers. You do not take them for granted. To a large extent, you're also communicating to them you are listening. In the noisy and cluttered world of marketing communication, consumers are expected to be doing all the listening. On the contrary, the vice-versa is more important.

When was the last time you genuinely said "Thank you" to your customers? If it was a while back, do it now. And when customers share them, expect the rippling effect to add to your brand standing.