What is the customer lifecycle and how to manage it

Customer experience is more than just generating sales or gaining new consumers for organizations. To boost client lifetime value, the top firms establish effective communication with their consumers. This contact is built on a mutually beneficial foundation. That’s why businesses are always trying to build client loyalty by managing customer lifecycle.

What exactly is the customer lifecycle?

The customer lifecycle focuses on your customer’s relationship with your company. Customer journey is determined by the time it takes from your customer’s first interaction with your company to becoming a loyal customer.

The terms “customer lifecycle” and “customer journey” might sometimes be used interchangeably. However, these two concepts represent different times in your customer’s relationship with your company. The stages of your client’s relationship with your company are represented by the customer journey. This involves how your customer engages with your company via various channels. The customer lifecycle, on the other hand, is a model that allows us to better comprehend the stages that a customer will go through.

It is possible to study customers’ habits at five points in the lifecycle. Now, let’s take a closer look at these stages.

Stages of the Customer Lifecycle

The five stages of the customer lifecycle are awareness, engagement, conversion, retention, and loyalty. It’s comparable to the customer journey, however, the lifecycle emphasizes the customer experience. It also concentrates on what a customer feels long after they make a purchase. We’ve outlined each of these steps one by one below.

1. Awareness

The customer identifies the problem they need to solve at this stage. They begin to evaluate similar products in order to choose which product to use. This is why this stage is referred to as awareness. Because you have the opportunity to reach your customer when they’re looking for a product.

Your customer assesses the products and picks out the best for them. They do this by searching online, using product comparison platforms, and reading user reviews. All of your sales and marketing efforts should be tailored to catch the customer’s attention. The client’s interested and wants to know more now, you can consider this stage complete.

2. Engagement

A customer contacts you for more information about your offering. So, you have entered the engagement stage. They either do this by using the chatbox on your website or calling you.

A customer’s communication channel may influence what information is presented to them at this point. For example, you can answer the customer’s questions to give information over the phone. You can propose several solutions to their problems. Then, you can organize a call to go over the product in depth. This will convey that you aim to better grasp the customer’s requirements. On the other hand, once a customer visits your website, you should present a website with informative and rich material to influence them to purchase. Content like as features, blogs, and pricing should provide the customer with basic information.

You can create pop-up material on some of these pages to collect the customer’s contact information. Additionally, your live support line should always be available. After all, every interaction is an opportunity for great customer service.

3. Conversion

At this point, your customer, who is fully informed about your products, makes a purchase. The potential customer is now a current customer of yours. It is critical at this moment to make your customers feel appreciated. Remember that customers are now in a business relationship with you, so it’s not just a purchase. But, you should not limit yourself to client lifecycle stages. Your current goal should be to retain the consumer. This ensures that the customer will keep using your product in the future.

4. Retention

You can gather feedback by asking your customers about their experiences with you. This is the first step toward retaining them. Ask whether they are happy with the product or service you provide. Develop customer support surveys to gauge your level of client satisfaction. This lets you pinpoint how to improve your product and customer experience in response to incoming feedback.

To keep your clients, you can only provide special incentives to those who have already made a purchase. 24/7 one-on-one support, coupon codes, refer-a-friend and other promotional incentives can help you develop a loyal relationship with the customer. When a customer recommends you to friends and colleagues, it’s a win-win situation.

5. Loyalty

Customers that continue to purchase your products or utilize additional services are now considered loyal customers. At this point, users can post their impressions of your product on social media. They can also publish reviews about you on product comparison websites. As a business, the most vital element you should go for is brand loyalty.

These are the five stages in the customer lifecycle that every customer goes through. A post on social media or a visit to your website is the first point of contact. From then on, you can boost customer loyalty and expand your organization by managing these stages and working with every customer individually. No potential customers slip through the cracks with Desk360’s multi-brand management and omnichannel solutions. Work from the very beginning of a customer relationship with Desk360, all the way through their lifecycle. For further details, please see our website.