Post #17 - Recognizing Significance

For my prompted post this week, I read an article that discusses why it's important to focus on existing customers in the marketing world, rather than always aiming for more. Of course it's a good thing to keep adding to the list of people you sell to, however, it's better to pay more attention to the ones you already have a relationship with. The article states 3 reasons as to why this is true:

1. If you focus too much attention on a trying to gain a customer, there is a possibility that you can lose an already existing one from ignoring them. Therefore, you're back to where you started and you're still at the same number of customers if this were to happen. Not only would you be stuck with the same number of customers, but you'd be at "lower margins", which means that it costs way more to gain than it does to keep someone you've already had as a customer.
2. By focusing on existing customers only, you can actually earn more money. This is because as competitors take in new customers, your sales will climb by you paying attention to the existing customers that you have.
3. Lastly, it's much easier to sell to customers whom of which you already know and have a relationship with. Because you already know how to sell to them and what they want, it's easier to build sales this way.

The article concludes by saying there are two main points: don't lose the customers you already have and when you already have those customers, make them the priority to sell new products to. (This leads to lower cost of sales and higher momentum, according to the article).

These points relate to my own discipline, mainly because I have had to deal with customers already in my life. Circumstances were probably different than those that this article pertains to, however, they are still similar. When I worked retail, I can remember how the same customers would come back, and I would strive to help them. This is because I already knew what they liked, and I also knew what techniques work on selling the products to them. If I were to let a coworker help a customer that I have already grown used to, then I have to take more time on building another relationship with a new customer. Thus, selling to them would still be likely, but not as easy. This article also reminds me of real life situations as well. It is inevitable that we as humans will meet new people and constantly build new relationships, but it's also very important to pay much attention to the ones you already have. If you don't and you're too busy trying to make new friends, then you will always be losing a friend and making one at the same time. This is similar to when the article discusses ignoring existing customers while trying to build relationships with new ones. It will always even out.

Work Cited:

Brown, Paul B. "Want To Increase Sales? Target Your Existing Customers." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 22 Jan. 2014. Web. 19 Mar. 2014.