There’s an old saying, “Happy wife, happy life.” This same relationship exists between your subscribers and ISP. The happier the customers, the longer they stick around, pay their fees and the longer you can keep the doors open. Know your customers to figure out how to make them happy.
Some experts say outstanding customer service pays big. True, but they miss the real point – the real payoff comes from knowing your customers.
Success-minded ISPs model marketing and retention efforts on the traits of their best subscribers because they are the customers who are willing to pay their subscription fees, stay the longest and complain the least. You don’t have to work as hard to get them on-board or to retain them.
This article helps you find out who your best customers are so you can get more of them. But, before discussing who your ideal customers are, let’s figure out who you are to them.
Which ISP are You to Your Customers?
None of us can be all things to all people. Your customers are usually looking to you to provide one of three things:
- A bargain
- High-quality or exclusive product offering
- VIP-level customer service/convenience
It’s fortunate subscribers only want one or two of these characteristics because it’s just about impossible for an ISP to provide a premium package at a cut-rate price without sacrificing essentials, like customer support, operational and field staff. You might argue that online vendors do it using automation. Although this may be true, keep in mind automation, cheap fees and good quality don’t always add up to loyalty.
If most of your subscribers stick around because your bandwidth is consistent, jitter-free and they pay a premium price for it – that’s who you shape your service and marketing to fit (VIP service and quality product). Now, how do you figure out who your ideal customers are?
Get to Know Your Customers
Who drives the decision making in the household? Figure out whether they are male or female, know their approximate age and whether they have kids. This tells you the type of customer to target — but, how do you get this information?
Ask general questions when you onboard so you get to know customers; traits. As you gather and organize the information, watch for similarities that tell you which customer demographic prefers your service.
Discover more as you send out periodic surveys to gauge customer satisfaction. After a service call, send a two-question survey and ask whether they would recommend your ISP, then ask why.
When you get the answers, it’s time to focus the sales and marketing effort on relevant triggers (solutions to their pain points). If you follow the proven steps, you’ll reel in sales faster and could maintain these subscribers longer because they’ll be happier with your service.
Find Your Ideal Subscribers
Knowing customers allows you to identify the type of person who wants your service and why they want it. Position your marketing to attract those subscribers. If most of your customers are female, head-of-household with 2 kids and a mid-level management job – they’ll probably require a high-speed package.
She may be bringing work home with her and probably has one kid who’s a gamer, which means more broadband. What kind of package can you sell her?
But, if most of your customers are older middle-aged couples, they may be content to spend Friday nights with Netflix – your high-speed package may not have the same appeal to these types of customers.
Why is this information important? Because an email has less than three seconds(2) to get a prospective customer’s attention. If they don’t see or hear something they’re interested in within three seconds, they are onto the next shiny, bouncing ball.
Promote the services that your best customers want.
Lead with the Benefit That Means the Most
To get the best result – start with what’s most important to your targeted audience. A busy 36-year old mid-manager mom with two kids? Tell them about your best value in a high-speed package.
The email to the 55+ community might just be about the reliability and affordable price of your basic package.
Small business owners may want to know that you’ve been around for a while and are in good standing with your community and peers.
Your subscribers aren’t your spouse – thank goodness. But, you want to attract subscribers that are compatible with your service because it means fewer complaints, less churn and more moolah. Doesn’t that sound like paradise? To get to paradise, put together a plan to know who your subscribers are and target them in your next marketing campaign.
1- Smith, K.; The Hidden Reason Why Customers Buy Your Products; Inc. Magazine, 2017; online: https://www.inc.com/katlin-smith/what-the-amazon-era-gets-wrong-about-consumer-shoppers.html
2- You Have 2.7 Seconds to Grab Someone’s Attention, No Pressure; Create and Cultivate; 2020; online: https://www.createcultivate.com/blog/2016/2/16/wtf-you-have-27-seconds-to-grab-someones-attention#:~:text=You%20Have%202.7%20Seconds%20to%20Grab%20Someone’s%20Attention%2C%20No%20Pressure&text=Forget%20go
