Customer Life Cycle Management in 5 Stages

How to manage customer life cycle

Have you ever had this type of experience? You’re boarding a flight to take your ultimate vacation in a few hours and you could not be more excited to leave behind all of your worries. Once arriving at the airport, you’re happier than a 6 year old on their way to Disney World. You arrive at the check in booth only to find out that your luggage is going to cost you an extra fee of $25. Okay, the fee is annoying but you will not let it ruin your pre-vacation high.

You go through security and now you’re waiting at your flight’s terminal, any minute now you should be boarding and on your way to a dreamy tropical paradise. That’s when you hear a voice over the intercom informing you there is a three hour delay on your flight. You look out the window to see a clear blue sky and an airplane waiting at your gate. What is the hold up? Out of curiosity, you go up to the woman at the desk who was just on the intercom to ask why the flight was delayed. She stares at you for a few seconds with a look of distaste on her face. “We’re experiencing delays and appreciate your patience, please take a seat.”

How are you feeling right now? Fuming with rage? Well, you should be. This airline has awful customer service and you’ve become a victim of a lack of customer life cycle management. Customer life cycle management is creating, cultivating, and constantly improving your company’s relationship with your clients. It is crucial to implement customer life cycle management in today’s marketplace where the competition is fierce for your customers.

Lucky for you, there are 5 stages of the customer life cycle that will help you understand and improve your customer service.

Stages of customer life cycle management:

1. Reach– Your content must be properly marketed in places where people/businesses in your market will find your information. This way they will become aware of your company’s existence.
2. Acquire– You have to understand your potential customers wants/needs so you can provide a product/service they will want to purchase. Contact them directly with personalized communication in order to convert them from potential leads to paying customers.
3. Develop– After the first purchase, keep in touch and build a relationship with your customer. Ensure they are fully satisfied with their purchase.
4. Retain– One time customers will become repeat customers as long as you are satisfying their needs. Care for them and continue to cultivate a relationship with them. Do not be afraid to ask for feedback. They will be happy you care about their opinion and you can use their comments to improve your product/services. Make them feel a part of the process.
5. Advocacy– If your customers are truly satisfied, they will become brand advocates. This will spread awareness within their social circles and the cycle will come full cycle when you reach potential new customers due to your existing customers.

If your company implements the perfect customer life cycle management you can improve your customer service and enhance your customer’s experience. Ultimately there will be an increase in your product/services usage and improved profit margins. It is a win-win and there will be no unsatisfied customers waiting at your proverbial terminal.

Read more:

• Why Customer Lifecycle Management is Important for Enterprise Organizations
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