Customer Acquisition vs. Retention: What Is the Difference?

Customer acquisition vs. retention are terms that are often thrown around in the customer service industry, but what do they actually mean? Is there a difference between customer acquisition and customer retention? The answer is yes, and it’s important to note their differences when figuring out which concept you should turn your attention to. Wondering whether your business should be spending time acquiring or retaining customers? We’ve detailed the differences between these two concepts, so you can decide which should be your priority. Keep on reading to find out about customer acquisition and retention.

What Is Customer Acquisition?

To put it simply, customer acquisition refers to attracting new customers. When it comes to increasing revenues, bringing in new clients is one of the most obvious ways to go about it. The cost of acquiring new customers can add up quickly, especially considering the fact that much of the customer acquisition process consists of marketing initiatives. While many companies use marketing strategies like commercials or online ads to bring in new customers, others depend on direct marketing to increase the flow of first-time customers. The typical steps in acquiring news customers usually include: identifying potential customers; designing marketing strategies to attract them to your business; putting those practices into place; following up with potential sales; and then measuring the success of your marketing initiatives. Since customer acquisition tends to cost quite a bit, companies should try their best to hold onto the customers they’ve already won over, and make them loyal to their brand.

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What Is Customer Retention?

Customer retention refers to the percentage of customers that companies are able to hold on to, and ensure they make repeat purchases. The concept is simple—when you attract new customers and they’re satisfied with your product and/or service and your customer support, they’ll stick around and make repeat purchases. Since the market can be pretty competitive, some companies offer incentives to customers to increase their chances of retaining them, and to reward those who’ve proven their loyalty. In addition to providing quality products and services, incentive and loyalty programs never hurt when it comes to retaining customers, and ensuring they make repeat purchases, and even bring their friends and family along.

Customer Acquisition vs. Customer Retention

While customer acquisition is an important aspect in growing your business, customer retention is just as important, if not more so. Your retention rate can be seen as a measure of how well your company is performing, and how effective your customer support services are. The cost of retaining customers vs. new customers is much lower; in fact, is costs nearly seven times as much to acquire new customers than it does to retain ones you already have. In addition, companies find it much easier to sell to existing customers that are familiar with their brand compared to new prospects. New customers vs. existing customers also have varying buying patterns; current customers are also more likely to try new products, while new ones are more hesitant and overall much harder to upsell to.

Think of it like this: if you have a bottle of sand and there’s a hole in the bottom, it’s easier and more efficient to patch up the hole than to keep throwing sand in to make up for the sand you’re losing out the bottom. In the same regard, it’s much more feasible to identify and fix issues in your business model that’s causing you to lose current customers, rather than to just keep spending money on acquiring new ones. If you notice your retention rate is low, it’s worth your while to assess your business model and investigate the quality of your products and services, and make the necessary adjustment to try to increase the percent of customers you’re able to retain.

How Contact Centers Will Help Your Business in Customer Acquisition and Retention

One way you can tackle both customer acquisition and retention is to hire a customer retention call center. Call centers can use their expertise to heighten customer acquisition, improve service and interaction, as well as maximize the number of upsells and overall sales. The number one reason for losing current customers are unsolved complaints, followed by competitive pricing, better offers from competitors, and lack of customer care. While contact centers can’t necessarily help with the pricing, they can help significantly with making sure customers are always taken care of, and that their complaints are always addressed. The representatives working in contact centers are trained professionals, and taking care of customers is what they do all day—you won’t have to worry about them not being qualified enough to take care of your clients. Customer service jobs can be completely exhausting, which is why it’s ideal to outsource these jobs to professionals who have made a career out of customer care, and know how to handle each and every situation—especially those who have complex problems and are seemingly impossible to please. Contact centers are a two in one when it comes to handling customer acquisition and retention.

If you’re looking for a contact center that can help you with both customer acquisition and retention, then 3C Contact Services is the ideal option. Our wide array of customer relations services will help you attract new clientele, as well as keep those you already have happy and satisfied. We know what assets lifetime customers can be, so when you choose us to handle your retention service you can rest assured we’ll do everything we can to inspire loyalty in your clients. We also provide exceptional outbound call center solutions to help you grow your business, and continue to expand your client base. So, whether you’re looking to keep your current customers content or to attract new ones, 3C Contact Services is the only choice. Contact us today to learn more about our call center services.