How to retain—and expand your customer base

For a brand to make its mark, marketing managers must continually work to improve customer retention rates.

You cannot rely on one-time shoppers if you wish to achieve your long-term business goals.

For your business to be sustainable, you must encourage brand loyalty.

Understanding how to efficiently retain customers is especially important for an online business.

Attracting new customers will cost you up to five time more than it would to retain an existing one. If you seek to build an online business and expand your brand, adopt these approaches:

Price your products competitively.

Online retailers often lose customers because of incorrect product pricing. If consumers can get a cheaper product elsewhere, they will switch brands.

Learn to profit without running the risk of losing a customer. Conduct a thorough search to know how much similar products cost—and how various brands are marketing their goods online. RELATED: Tell better brand stories on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat and your blog.