How can hardware stores increase customer retention

Jun 28, 2022 | Ecommerce, EPoS

customer retention loyalty fanboi

Apple has its fanbois. Tesla has its evangelical customers. They are ultra-loyal customers who take every opportunity to extol the brand’s virtues. 

How do they get that level of loyalty and customer retention? 

And can a humble hardware business achieve anything resembling this kind of loyalty?

Maybe, but the route is different. 

Apple and Tesla use innovation and products to catch media attention, giving them an aura. In the early days, customers had to make difficult decisions about the challenges of early adoption, creating a sense of togetherness with similar pioneers and providing valuable social proof.

What does this mean for someone in the DIY/hardware space? You could invent a different way to, let’s say, put a radiator up, which is much better, although a bit of a challenge. 

The more suitable analogy for those businesses without an unlimited research budget is Marks & Spencer in the 70s and 80s. Product quality and excellent customer service rather than stop-and-stare innovation built Marks’ reputation. Before social media, you won’t see a TikTok video of an M&S lambswool jumper going through a thousand washing cycles without fading or shrinkage. The day’s social media was word-of-mouth marketing, and Marks’ benefited greatly from it. People were evangelists. If you went to the Subcontinent (India, Pakistan, Bangladesh) even 20 years ago and handed a Marks&Spencer product as a gift, it would light up their eyes. This is despite there never being an M&S store locally. 

Lessons

What’s the lesson? Yes, innovate but sell quality products and give excellent customer service. Use a great e-commerce package. If you need to, use an ePoS which has a loyalty card option. Use the data garnered to understand your customers’ needs and strive to offer them what they want. Offer them discount codes for coming back, send tips and advice and make you indispensable. 

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