There seems to be such a big focus on getting new business that many forget that is is probably cheaper, easier and more sensible to focus on getting existing customers to keep buying and buying more. I once read that it is very usual for 20% of customers to account for 80% of profits.This issue really struck me over the last few days with the experience of car insurance, and now has made me challenge the the point of being loyal to a brand and a business. As things have been getting tougher economically, it is seems amazing how businesses (especially financial) are focused on getting new business - but they seem to care little about existing ones.
Like many I am sure, I have always assumed that my current provider of insurance for my car (Direct Line) who I have been with for many years valued the business and were giving a fair deal. I just got a renewal and it seemed a lot. So inspired by the almost avalanche of price comparison sites advertising on TV, I decided to try them out. I tried out confused.com and comparethemarket.com
I was gob smacked to see just how badly my existing provider was "looking after me" (a loyal customer). The prices ranged from half my current (for the same benefits) to around 15% less. On calling my supplier they then offered me £120 less from the renewal they had sent. This was an even bigger insult as meant that they really taking advantage of being loyal, as one call and they were saying their "best" was not.
This has now got me thinking and am going to go through all my bills and do comparison online.
Despite saving money and seeing the power of price comaprison sites, it does raise a bigger question for everyone in marketing: what are you doing to make sure your current and loyal consumers feel valued and are getting the best deal to reward that loyalty? As once trust is lost never to return..
Below are the ads that got me to try out the price comparison sites in the first place:
(1) The strange but memorable ad that helped me remember the site name: Compare The Meerkat.
(2) And the Confused.com ad the really annoying but clear ad that spoke about the product upgrade and news to drive traffic
2 comments:
Really interesting things about both of these ads Gary.
Are confused.com the first people to actually advertise their website usability as a key selling point? There's something thoroughly post-modern about seeing a TV ad filming a website!
And did you know that the compare the market ad has led to a massive increase in people buying meerkats as pets?! I think that must be an unanticipated side effect...
Thanks for this share!
Post a Comment