Business,
Marketing,
Brand Development

Recently, we were talking with a business owner who was looking for the next opportunity to grow. The conversation went in the direction you'd probably expect. Should we introduce something new? Expand into another market? Invest more in promotion? Find a different type of customer? All reasonable questions.

Then we asked something much simpler: "Who are your best customers today?" There was an answer.

Then we asked: "What makes them your best customers?"

That took a little longer.

And that's where the conversation became interesting. Because most businesses know how many customers they have. They know their sales. They know which invoices are the biggest. But surprisingly few have really studied the customers they would happily have ten more of.

And there can be an enormous amount of growth hiding in that answer.
 

Your biggest customer isn't always your best customer

This is an important distinction.

If we asked you to name your biggest customers, you could probably do it immediately. But your best customers?

That's a different question.

A great customer might not be the one who spends the most. It might be the one who buys consistently. Pays on time. Values your expertise. Is profitable to serve. Is enjoyable to work with for your team. Comes back. Introduces you to other good customers. And perhaps most importantly, has needs your business is exceptionally good at solving.

Now imagine you identified the ten customers who fit that description.

What could they teach you?

Quite a lot.
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Build your “10 More” customer list

This is a simple exercise, but it's worth doing with your leadership team. Choose 10 customers you'd genuinely love to have 10 more of.

Not necessarily your largest. Your best. 

How to identify your best customers:

1. Look at repeat purchases.
2. Consider profitability, not just revenue.
3. Identify customers who value your expertise.
4. Look at referrals they generate.
5. Consider how easy they are to serve.
6. Identify the problems your company solves particularly well for them.
7. Look for common triggers that caused them to buy.

And here's one we don't ask nearly enough: What happened in their business or life just before they realized they needed you?

That last question can be incredibly useful.

Because customers don't wake up thinking: "I'd really like to hire an accounting firm today." Or: "I think I'll find a delivery company this afternoon." Something happens first. They're expanding. Something stops working. They hire people. They enter a new market. Their old supplier disappoints them. They buy a property. They receive funding. Their priorities change.

There's usually a trigger.

Understand the trigger, and you begin to understand where your future customers may come from.
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Then call five of them

Not with a survey. Not with a sales pitch. Just have a conversation. Tell them: "We're looking at how we can make our business more valuable to our customers, and I'd really appreciate your perspective."

Then ask a few questions.

What made you originally decide to work with us?
What do we do that you value most?
What could we do better?

And then ask the question we particularly like:

"What are you working on right now that we might be able to help with, but haven't talked about?"

Don't immediately try to sell something.

Listen.

One customer may mention a problem. Another may mention the same thing. Then a third does too. Now you have something worth paying attention to. Because perhaps your next service, package, partnership or business opportunity shouldn't come from a brainstorming session.

Perhaps your customers are already asking for it.​
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Talk to your best customers

Now look at what your best customers don't buy from you.

This can be fascinating.

Maybe they know you for one service but have no idea you provide another. Maybe they buy something from another company that you could logically provide. Maybe there's a problem immediately before or after the work you currently do for them. Maybe there's an opportunity to connect two existing services into something more useful. Or perhaps there's nothing else you should sell them at all. That's useful information too.

The goal isn't to squeeze more revenue from every customer.

The goal is to understand them better.

Because better understanding tends to reveal better opportunities.​
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One number we'd start watching

Here's a simple question for your next management meeting:

What percentage of our customers buy from us only once?

You may already know. If you don't, find out. Then ask why. Was the service naturally one-time? Did they simply forget about you? Did nobody follow up? Did their needs change? Did they know what else you could help them with? Did you give them a reason to come back?

There may be absolutely nothing wrong.

But you won't know until you look.

Sometimes businesses spend thousands trying to get the attention of people who have never heard of them... while barely talking to people who already know them, trust them and have happily paid them before.

That's worth thinking about.​
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Use customer insights to find your next growth opportunity

Don't start with: "How can we get more customers?"

Start with your 10 More list.

Find the ten customers you'd happily clone. Study them. Talk to five. Look for patterns. Listen for problems. Pay attention to what changed just before they needed you. And ask what they're trying to accomplish next.

You may discover a new service. A better offer. A partnership opportunity. A new customer segment. A reason customers aren't returning. Or simply a much clearer picture of the type of customer your business should be trying to attract.

That's valuable.

Because sometimes growth isn't hiding in the next big idea. It's hiding in what your best customers have been trying to tell you all along.
 

Next week...

There's another number business builders should know. Not revenue. Not website traffic. Not followers. How much is a great customer actually worth to your business over the entire relationship?

Once you know that number, you may start making some very different decisions about sales, service and growth.

Until then, keep looking for what others miss!