Repeat Business: Why Your Clients Really Stick By You

Guest contributor Melissa Dittmann Tracey of REALTOR®Mag says:

The key to customer retention: Keep your clients satisfied with your services and they'll keep using you again and again. But satisfaction isn't always at the core of why customers return. Some customers may return for other reasons, and in some cases, those reasons can even backfire for your business.

Clients sometimes "lock in" to service relationships over the long term not because they're necessarily satisfied with the service provided but rather out of a feeling of obligation or even a perceived nuisance of having to find someone else, according to research by Mary P. Harrison, assistant professor of marketing at Birmingham Southern College, and Sharon E. Beatty, professor of marketing at University of Alabama. In the study, Harrison and Beatty conducted in-depth interviews with customers who felt locked in — both in positive and negative ways — to service relationships (real estate was among the industries analyzed).

Becoming aware of why clients may be sticking by you through transactions can help you foster more positive, loyal relationships with your repeat clients. The insight may even make you more competitive, too, by knowing why other clients may be latching onto your competitors and how you may be able to offer your services to those who are being loyal due to the perceived barriers of switching agents, the study suggests.

It's also important to become aware of those clients who may be locking in to you for the wrong reasons, Harrison says. After all, you may be assuming your repeat clients are among your most loyal and raving fans. But repeat clients who are with you because they feel obligated or because they think finding another real estate professional will be too difficult can be detrimental to your reputation around town.