5 Ways to Turn Your Customers Into Your Sales Team by Dave Kerpen. See details below.

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Word of mouth is one of the largest drivers of business. We trust our friends. We trust our family. In fact, 92% of people trust their friends' recommendations and less than 40% of people trust advertising. 

So how can a business leverage this marketing opportunity and turn its customers into ambassadors to spread the word? I interviewed Scott Moyer, president of DriveSavers, who shared five tips to gaining trust and converting customers into an active sales team. 


1. Make Them Fans 

Give your customers every reason to talk about you. In fact, give them such an amazing experience they can't help but talk about you. 

Everyone loves having something to offer. Sharing knowledge about a service or product that may be helpful to a friend, family member, colleague, etc. makes a person feel they have contributed something important to the conversation. Impress your clientele and they will be sure to tell potential customers and increase awareness of your company. 

But be sure your customers have only good experiences to share. Don't ever forget that they will also feel like they have contributed by telling everybody which company not to use. 

Be the best. Whatever you're selling, be aware of your niche and make your product or service unsurpassable in that area. For example, if your company makes dog toys, be sure to make the most durable dog toys available or, conversely, the safest and most digestible toys for a dog to eat. 

Ingrain customer service into your company culture. A customer's opinion of a company can change dramatically based on a customer service experience. 

Train your employees on your product or service. They should be able to confidently answer any question asked or provide a solution to any problem. 

Have a shareable, electronic note-taking system so your employees can record important details for the next person who speaks with a specific customer. If there's one thing everyone hates, it's having to repeat themselves. 

Teach your employees to be empathetic. Your customers need to feel that their concerns are taken seriously and addressed effectively. 


2. Referral Discounts 

Everyone loves saving money. Referral discounts are particularly useful for products and services that can be called upon over and over by the same customer. If someone knows they will save money the next time they use your company by getting other people to use it too, they'll likely do it. 

Just make sure the discount is substantial enough that the customer will care, but small enough that it won't affect your business negatively if used over and over. 


3. Give Them Free Stuff 

When a customer uses something with your name, logo or message printed on it around friends, coworkers or in public, they become a walking advertisement. 

Send inexpensive items, like pens, to all your customers. For repeat customers and customers who spend more than a predetermined amount of money with your company, send more expensive gifts. 

Make sure anything you give out is of good quality. The quality of your swag not only affects how often (or even if) it is used, it infers the quality of your product or service. 


4. Follow Up 

From time to time, remind your customers your company exists. This task can be tricky, so take the time to thoroughly evaluate the best way to conduct a follow-up campaign. The safest thing to do is to encourage your customers to join a monthly email newsletter list so they are reminded about you each month. 

Whatever you do, don't over-do it. Sometimes, there is a fine line between a helpful reminder and an annoying pest. If your customer asks not to be contacted again, then don't. Breaking a customer's trust or going against their wishes is worse than letting them forget about you. 


5. Constant Content 

Have a blog. Manage and monitor social media profiles. Post great content. 

Producing highly relevant and useful articles, infographics, etc. gives your customers something valuable to share. This is another example that people love to have something to offer.

This content doesn't need to be specific to your product and, in fact, generally shouldn't be. For example, if your company makes dog toys, great content for your customers that they will want to share may include canine health tips, do-it-yourself dog food recipes, training tips, etc. This is highly shareable content that will help spread the word about your company. 

As a marketer turned entrepreneur myself, I understand the value of great customer service and I encourage my team to provide exponential service daily.

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This article first appeared as 5 Ways to Turn Your Customers Into Your Sales Team by Dave Kerpen. Click on their names to follow them on the social networks!

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