Brands form customer loyalty even after they purchase an item

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Building customer loyalty extends beyond the actual purchase, and brands and retailers should focus on how to continue relationships with customers afterwards.

Particularly, consumers in the UK feel closest to a brand after they've already bought something from them, according to a report from OLIVER cited by Forbes. This means that for all of the time and money spent on brand advertising to influence a purchase, the most influential time to actually build customer loyalty is after they have already bought something.

• 38% of UK consumers feel most engaged with a brand when they are already using one of its products. This was the highest-rated option, which highlights how important it is for brands to keep up the relationship after a purchase has been made.
• However, brands and retailers need to be careful about the kind of follow-ups they employ — 76% of consumers are concerned about the frequency of communications between the brand and themselves. Specifically, 51% are worried about being sent follow-up campaigns too frequently and a further 17% are concerned about ones that are not sufficiently tailored to them.

Brands and retailers can use things like email campaigns and social media interactions to help post-purchase engagement. However, another aspect that should also be of concern is in the customer service experience.

It's likely that many post-purchase interactions with brands will be requiring assistance from the retailer — especially considering the fact that online shoppers are regularly buying products they have not seen in person, which leaves room for purchasing errors and buyer's remorse.

Providing good customer service is a key way to drive loyalty and influence future sales post-purchase. One-third of all online purchases are returned, according to The Wall Street Journal. How retailers handle the customer service aspect of the return process is vital to future brand engagement. 

In the US, about two-thirds of consumers are willing to spend more money with a company they believe has provided them with excellent customer service, according to a report from Microsoft. 

Meanwhile, even a single negative customer service experience can deter potential customers from spending money with a company, as 60% of US consumers have not completed an intended purchase based on a poor customer service experience, according to an American Express report.

As consumers increasingly buy products online that they haven't seen in person — leaving room for purchasing errors and buyer's remorse — it's now more important than ever to provide customers with positive customer service experiences.

Nancee Halpin, research associate for BI Intelligence, Business Insider's premium research service, has compiled a detailed report on customer service that looks at why customer service matters, which stalwart channels are still top performers, and which new channels have the most potential. It also takes a look at why luxury retailers, or even just retailers with high-income consumers, need to be especially attuned to providing solid customer service help.

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Here are some key takeaways from the report:

• Even a single negative customer service experience can deter potential customers from spending money with a company. 60% of US consumers have not completed an intended purchase based on a poor customer service experience. That translates into an estimated $83 billion in lost sales for US retailers.
• Negative customer service experiences loom larger than positive ones. It takes 12 positive customer experiences to negate the poor impression left behind from one unresolved, bad experience.
• Lack of effective customer service on social media seems to be spilling over into users' willingness to interact with brands at all on the channel. Just over half of consumers plan on either not contacting or reducing their contact with brands through social media this year.
• Providing the best-quality customer service is especially important to luxury retailers, whose customers expect a personalized experience to enhance the exclusivity that comes with luxury retail. Nearly half of all luxury consumers demand an apology, refund, or incentives following a poor customer service experience.
• Traditional channels like phone and email are still preferred by consumers, but new technologies — like messaging apps and live chat — are beginning to take off.

In full, the report:

• Examines why customer service matters more for e-commerce retailers.
• Explains the consequences of both positive and negative customer service experiences for retailers.
• Compares various channels for customer service and discusses which ones perform best.
• Assesses the future of customer service for a digitally native consumer audience.
• Discusses which retailers and industries are affected most by customer service experiences.

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The choice is yours. But however you decide to acquire this report, you’ve given yourself a powerful advantage in your understanding of the importance of customer service.