Time is precious.  Especially when you are running a business and especially when you are growing sales.  Where do you spend it?  What activities will yield the returns you desire?   And who should you be focusing on that will tangibly grow both your revenue...but also grow your profits.   All questions that require attention.   All to often we default to the traditional activities and expense of hustling to find new prospects...and convert new customers.  A very, very cost intensive process with often high client acquisition costs (CAC).   

As mentioned in an article by Alex McEachern, "What is a repeat customer and why are they profitable?"...Believe it or not, one of the most sustainable ways to improve your customer acquisition cost is through customer retention. The reality is that the customers you already have are the most profitable, and it’s worth your time and effort to keep them around!   

This article is general in its industry focus giving examples of retail, ecommerce and other types of domains and businesses.  But the lessons learned are the same across the board and absolutely applies to the mortgage industry and very applicable to the day to day operations of a mortgage advisor.  Very often, in our journey at Stikkum, to support the growth of the mortgage advisor industry...we hear and see the same thing.   Great effort hustling and grinding every day, fighting tooth and nail for the next deal...the next transaction.    This is necessary no doubt, but it is very labor intensive and very exhausting.   At the very same time and unfortunately all too often out of sight of the original mortgage advisor...is that their current and past already acquired customer relationships and also in the market for the very same services and products that the mortgage advisor helped them with last time.    The difference here....the customers has forgotten about the original mortgage advisor, and likewise the mortgage advisor has forgotten about that customer.   Each now victim to the same risks and expense of last time to find a new relationship, trust in a new person...to support the mortgage need of the moment.   

What would happen if both past client and original mortgage advisor could reunite?   Not only on initial repeat business...but ongoing for each additional repeat business going forward throughout the lifetime of that customer???    What would it mean to your business if ALL your clients and you had this opportunity?   Each client now is not just "one transaction".....but instead is a lifetime of value consisting of numerous mortgage transactions and no doubt numerous extending relationships...we will call REFERRALS!  Just imagine if you could establish this??

Repeat customers are extremely profitable!   Here are 5 reasons why (again information taken across a number of industries but lessons that fully apply to mortgage advisors):

• A repeat customer is more likely to shop with you again and again.
  • This is momentum.  Each interaction is a like a "building block of trust".   Putting yourself into a position to provide over and over again to the same customers....just makes you their "default" provider going forward.  Not only to come to first in theirs search...but building such loyalty that you are always their "last" right of refusal.  
• A repeat customer is easier to sell.
  • Repeat customers are 9 times more likely to convert than a first time customer!   This is huge when you are talking about return on your time and investment in the marketplace.  Wouldn't you want to be working "closeable" deals with the most "closeable" prospects??  Well...studies have shown, that those are with your repeat customers.  
• Repeat customers spend more on each purchase
  • This is more evident in retail or ecommerce examples.  But absolutely applies here to the mortgage industry.   The more times you support and service a customer, the more trust you build with them.  The more open they will be to creative solutions (thus less reactive to market driven scare tactics of others).  Price is a factor...but not the only and definitely not the last factor as your relationship and trust now means more.  
• Repeat customers spend more at key times
  • You now had flip the script on the prospecting cycle.  Having a good base of repeat customers will allow you to "proactively" engage your customers.  Perhaps even when they may not be thinking of a mortgage transaction...but perhaps when they "should be".   Their mind will be open to you...and more strategic on their actions, and not reactive.   This now puts you more in the driver seat to drive your business. 
• Repeat customers share your store more
  • Not only are repeat customers more valuable when shopping, they also provide you with some massive marketing potential. A repeat customer gives your store increased word-of-mouth advertising, which is almost always regarded as the best kind.  Referrals are a huge difference maker in the mortgage advisor business world.  There is no one better to tell the story than one of your customers...and the best story tellers will be those that have used you over, and over again.   Talk about building your own sales force!!!

Increasing your business’s profitability starts with the customers you already have. Repeat customers are not only going to want to work with you more often, but they’ll also help market to new customers making them a powerful customer acquisition tool. Focusing on customer retention is a key step in getting the most out of your repeat customers.

To compliment your efforts and strategies to drive repeat customer business, arm yourself with the industry's top customer retention and communication platform Stikkum.  Stikkum provides the necessary tools to not only keep a mortgage advisor fully aware of their at risk customers...but the Stikkum engine takes it a step further in automating the execution of communication and reach out to those customers with its automated response and communication engine.  Connecting both mortgage advisor with their customers via automated emails, personal video integration, and SMS text.   Additionally mortgage advisors are utilizing Stikkum for its built in mass marketing and communication capabilities to stay fully in front of, continuously advising and providing value to not only past customers but their network of referral partners.   Because of Stikkum...a mortgage advisor now has the ability to realize a full ecosystem of customers,and referral partners...to drive their business to new levels.   

Contact Stikkum here to set up a time to further explore how we are helping so many mortgage advisors today with their repeat customer business and how we can help you too! Click on the button below to reach out...we're looking forward to hearing from you and connecting soon!

To read more insight and gain from some valuable provided statistics provided in the article by Alex McEachern of Smile.io...Click link here to view the article: What is a repeat customer and why are they profitable?