CRM ARTICLE
How to build customer loyalty in the style of Zig Ziglar
Article by SmallBizCRM Staff – 31 January 2023
Zig Ziglar was a master salesman, motivator, and author who believed that customer loyalty was the cornerstone of any successful business. He believed that if you treat people with respect, show them that you genuinely care about them, and focus on meeting their needs, then they will be loyal customers for life. Building customer loyalty requires a commitment to excellence, attention to detail, and an understanding of the customer’s needs. It also requires a willingness to go the extra mile to ensure customer satisfaction. By following the principles that Zig Ziglar outlined, businesses can build customer loyalty that will last a lifetime. With these tips, you can learn how to build customer loyalty in the style of Zig Ziglar.
Principles of customer loyalty according to Zig Ziglar
Zig Ziglar believed that if businesses provide their customers with five simple things, they will build customer loyalty and profit. These five principles are:
Tips for building customer loyalty
A strong customer loyalty program is essential to any business that wants to grow. To build customer loyalty, follow these six tips:
a. Treat every customer with respect
Treat all customers with respect, regardless of how much or how little they buy. Respect is key to building customer loyalty. If you are rude to a customer, even if they are rude back, you are losing customers. Zig Ziglar said, “The most important aspect of any sale is the lasting impression you make on the customer.” Treat all customers with respect, and you will win their loyalty and their business for life.
b. Genuinely care about customers
Customers can sense when you don’t care about them. They know when you are in sales just for the money. Zig Ziglar said, “The customer isn’t interested in you or your company, he’s interested in solving his problem.” If you genuinely care about your customers, they will know it. They will feel it. They will trust you because they know that you have their best interests in mind, not just your bottom line. Customers know when you don’t care about them, and they are quick to move on.
c. Focus on meeting customer needs
Zig Ziglar said, “If you try to sell somebody something they don’t want, you won’t sell anybody anything.” If you focus on meeting the needs of your customers, you will create customers for life. However, if you focus on selling to customers, even if you give them what they want, they will not stay customers. Zig Ziglar said, “People don’t buy goods or services, they buy results.” What results does your business produce? What needs does it meet? If your customers sense that you are focusing on their needs, they will be loyal customers for life.
d. Commit to excellence
Zig Ziglar said, “Excellence is not an act, it’s a habit.” Customers expect excellence from businesses that want to build customer loyalty. If they don’t receive excellence, they will go someplace else. Zig Ziglar said, “Customers buy commodities. They buy goods and services. But they buy companies. They buy reputations. They buy trust and confidence.” By committing to excellence in all aspects of your business, you will create customers for life who will buy from you and only you.
e. Pay attention to detail
Customers know when you are cutting corners. If your business is a corner-cutting business, customers will not be loyal to you. If your customers notice that you are paying attention to detail in all aspects of your business, they will be loyal to you for life. Zig Ziglar said, “The most overlooked opportunity for creating lasting impressions and increasing sales is in the details of your presentation.” The details are in the details. If your business is sloppy, if your employees are unprofessional, if your paperwork is a mess, your customers will know it. They will know that you don’t care about them.
f. Go the extra mile
Go the extra mile for your customers by going above and beyond the expected. Zig Ziglar said, “If you do more than you are paid to do, you will get more than you are paid for.” When your customers know that you are willing to go the extra mile for them, they will be loyal customers for life. Zig Ziglar said, “People don’t expect you to fly around the world for them. They don’t expect you to give them a kidney. But they do expect you to go the extra mile.” When you go the extra mile for your customers, they will be loyal customers for life.
Examples of how businesses have applied Zig Ziglar’s principles
Zig Ziglar’s principles of customer loyalty have been applied successfully by thousands of
businesses. Here are a few examples:
- An airline company that trains its employees to pay attention to details.
- A bank that genuinely cares about its customers and meets their financial needs by offering them loans and other services.
- A technology company that commits to excellence by delivering quality products and putting in extra effort to satisfy customers.
- A real estate agency that treats every customer with respect and helps them find a home that meets their needs.
- A restaurant that pays attention to detail by offering excellent food and service.
Conclusion
Zig Ziglar’s principles of customer loyalty will help you to grow your business and build customer loyalty. If you want your customers to stay loyal to you, you need to respect them, genuinely care about them, focus on meeting their needs, commit to excellence, pay attention to detail, and go the extra mile for them. If you follow these principles, your customers will be loyal to you for life.