Repeat business is key, especially for small businesses, because returning clients have a lower cost of acquisition than a new customer, and typically spend more as well.
But the reality is, many entrepreneurs and their teams are too busy to reach out consistently to past clients.
Use the power of business and workflow automation software to automatically send check-ins to your satisfied customers, and you’ll never again have to worry about being “too busy” to follow up and ask for repeat business.
Increase repeat customers…automatically!
Can you relate to any of these common challenges that small businesses like you experience?
- You have served a lot of clients but don’t have many repeat customers.
- New leads are expensive, and you know it’s less costly to sell to a past client, but you don’t have the time to follow up with everyone the way you’d like to.
- You find out that a past client used someone else to do work that you could have done, and wish you’d known about their need earlier.
The good news is, you won’t have those problems much longer! We’ll walk you through how to create a past-client check-in series that helps you capitalize on the relationships you’ve built and the results you’ve achieved with your clients, without having to manually follow up with every person multiple times.
As a result, you should see these success metrics improve:
- Increased number of repeat clients
- Lower cost-per-win
How to get repeat customers with automation
The messages listed below give some suggestions to start with, but feel free to create your own series based on your business and the kinds of needs that are most likely to come up after people have worked with you.
Because you only have to set it up once and then can sit back and let it run, it’s worthwhile to set aside some time to figure out your ideal post-client experience. Nailing this can make a big difference in bringing in additional business that doesn’t cost a lot to acquire.
How to set up the automation
For this automation, you’ll need to create these copy assets:
- Text Message: Checking in – A quick text check-in to see how they’re doing.
- Email: How are you holding up? – An email version of the check-in message.
- Email: What else might you need? – Ask about their current and future needs.
- Email: Success is a journey – Open with a short quote or a helpful tip, then ask if they’re still making progress and if there’s anything more you can do for them.
- Email: Need additional help? – Let them know you have other services available and ask what they want to accomplish next.
- Email: Who do you know? (optional) – Ask them to refer others who might also benefit from working with you.
How to run the automation
- Segment your past-client list by selecting and tagging those contacts you want this follow-up outreach to go to. Focus on clients you know had a good experience with you and who may need more services in the future.
- Build the emails and texts into an automation and test it to make sure everything is working correctly.
- Kick off the automation for the contacts you identified in step 1.
- Set up an ongoing automation to send the series to any new clients going forward a certain amount of time after they’re done working with you. You may need to apply a tag at the end of every client engagement that will trigger the automation later on.
The best technology for increasing repeat customers
For this automation, you’ll need an all-in-one solution like Keap that combines several features that all work seamlessly together, including:
- A CRM to manage all your contacts
- Email and text messaging to handle all your communications
- Automations that are easy to set up
- Appointments feature to automate bookings
- Sales pipeline feature to easily track leads, prospects, clients, and repeat customers
It’s easy to get started on your automation with a 14-day free trial of Keap so you can keep customers coming back. Keap is user-friendly software designed specifically for growing small businesses and the entrepreneurial teams who run them.
More ways to re-engage past clients
In addition to following up with clients and directly asking them for more business, there are other ways to reach out to past clients to ask for their input, testimonials, and referrals. You can also wow them with surprise gifts that boost customer loyalty. Check out these guides to learn how:
Get more game-changing automations
Automation is a powerful way to level up your business, and increasing repeat customers is just the beginning. Get our free eBook with , including:
- Networking nurture
- Lead magnet campaign
- Scheduling a free consult appointment
- Post-consult follow-up with a sales offer
- Sales pipeline automation
If you have a growing business, the key to success is increasing repeat customers. Put your client re-engagement on autopilot right away using a 14-day free trial of Keap. Your bottom line will thank you!
