SmallBusinessNewz

The pursuit of something can, depending on the circumstances, be fun.  At the same time, a sure thing's a beautiful thing, and focusing on customers you already have may be much more rewarding than chasing down folks who traditionally empty their wallets elsewhere.

Want a little evidence?  A recent Microsoft white paper stated, "According to the Harvard Business Review, it costs six-to-seven times as much to recruit a new customer, as it does to pull more business from an existing one."

So try to come up with ways to intrigue your clients.  Maybe a loyalty discount here or buy-so-much-get-something-free deal there.  And figure out which are your best customers, too, because you might get more out of interactions with certain individuals.  Think of folks who purchase expensive stuff and pay on time, for starters.  You could extend these safe bets a line of credit as a nice gesture.

Microsoft offers some software for sorting through various statistics, of course, but a small business can no doubt get by without it.

We'd just suggest keeping this piece of the white paper's advice in mind: "today's £50 job can lead to tomorrow's £10,000 job.  Similarly, taking existing customers for granted, and skimping on the experience you give them, is a great way to send them off to the competition."