Customers are precious commodities, far more difficult to acquire than to keep.
Potential customers, those who have yet to purchase, can be skeptical of product and service claims, unsure of the return on investment, and anxious of the opportunity cost of the acquisition. Consequently, significant time, effort, and resources must be applied to secure each and every new customer. Further, once an individual or organization commits to a purchase, remorse sets in creating regret associated with the purchase.
Delighted and engaged customers, however, openly embrace repeat purchases, public product and/or service endorsements, and acquisition recommendations. These individuals and organizations overcame previously held objections and regrets; feeling greater degrees of comfort and satisfaction with previous decisions and willingness to make similar decisions in the future. Consequently, effective customer relationship management is crucially important to sustaining and growing an enterprise in both the near and long-terms.