Firstly, what exactly is meant by customer acquisition management?
Well, the term refers to a set of techniques and systems to manage customer prospects and inquiries resulting from a variety of marketing methodologies. Marketing techniques such as customer referrals, customer loyalty programs, and participating in charitable events are quite effective at customer acquisition.
Customer acquisition management is the connectivity between advertising and CRM which hastens the acquisition of targeted customers in an effective manner. It is more of a closed-loop reporting system that allows the organization to quantify the effectiveness of outcomes of various promotional activities. It further includes the original response to a prospect’s inquiry, provided as soon as possible.
The basic steps to customer acquisition:
An efficient customer acquisition plan consists of the following steps:
i) Identify quality potential customers
ii) Reach out to potential customers through call centers or mailing lists
iii) Qualify the leads utilizing various research methods to determine the viability of the given lead
iv) In case of a favorable event, lead’s status is upgraded to that of prospect and assigned to a salesperson for further interaction.
v) Establish a relationship with prospects to identify their needs
Salespeople also attempt to identify unstated needs, based on data provided by conversations carried out during interactions with the prospects. They can further identify additional needs of prospects and offer additional products so as to convince the prospects that they will get a greater value from purchasing the products than they already are considering.
However, as customers and sales professionals begin to interact, the lead flow process can become enormously complicated. These various interactions and subsequent actions can create a variety of scenarios, either productive or counterproductive or both.
It’s not easy to convince people to part with their money. Today, when the entire world has grown digital, the process becomes more difficult than ever. Customer acquisition is a skill that one needs to master today if you want your business to grow. This calls for a killer customer acquisition strategy so as to stay ahead of your competitors and help your business thrive.