Where’s Your Fanbase?

In keeping up with the sports theme on the affiliate blog, and my job in building stronger loyalty between customer and company, I had to wonder how being a sports season ticket holder is about being a customer rather than just a rabid fan.

Season ticket holders put anywhere from $200 to $2,000 towards the privilege of getting to go to as many games as they desire. However, something makes them want to buy these packages. Could it be the players who are always making (good) headlines? Or maybe it’s just the 10% merchandise discount. Whatever the reason, teams must market their product to ensure people are interested in buying it.

Once people have signed up for a full or partial season plan, they do not want to be forgotten about until it is time for renewals or payment deadlines. Teams often reward their season ticket holders (customers) by creating exclusive offers just for their use.

Account holders are often assigned a representative who they communicate with throughout the year if they have any concerns or need any additional tickets. The account holder will always have a phone number or e-mail to contact their account manager. By having a main contact person for all or a group of customers, it encourages stronger relationship building and a desire to want to work with them when the time for more business comes around.

However, sports teams are not always perfect. There are losing seasons, weather conditions that keep people from coming out, and players coming and going every season. Customers may choose not to accept these changes. Maybe their favorite player leaves and they lose interest in the whole team. Maybe prices have gone up and their current budget does not allow for such an amenity.

So to get to my analogy lesson for today, how does keeping customers for your e-commerce business compare to retaining loyal sports fans and season ticket holders? In a nuthsell, you should:

-Tell customers what sets your site apart from the others. What highly sought after product do you carry that your main competitors do not? (Sidney Crosby can only play on one team…Pittsburgh got him…means more revenue from Penguins fans to see him play.)

-Pay personal attention to your customers, and not just in terms of what they are buying. What kind of service do they expect? Can you not only give out your contact information, but prove yourself trustworthy of working with them?

-There will always be things you can’t control; such as vendor price changes, that will cause you to lose your customers. However, you can control things such as response time to phone calls and e-mails and improving your site’s design to make it more user friendly.

-Make sure your customers have options to earn rewards by signing up for an account on your site or joining the mailing list for exclusive coupons. You can also attract new business by offering such specials; so make sure at least one discount applies to everyone who visits your site.

Developing your customer base is the same thing as sports teams building up their fan base. Think of your customers as potential fans who will come back if you continue to deliver winning results. GO TEAM!