a study of the Significance of Customer Loyalty to a Firms Profitability
Key Learning Outcomes
By the end of the case, students should be able to:
- Understand the concept of customer loyalty and its benefits to a firm, and also identify the key drivers of customer loyalty in an organization or business
- Evaluate the impact of customer loyalty on a firm's profitability and performance
- Apply various strategies and tools used by organizations to enhance customer loyalty and retention
1.0 INTRODUCTION
Customer loyalty refers to the extent to which customers are satisfied with an organization’s products or services and are willing and ready to purchase them again. In organizations, customer loyalty plays an important role to uplift the business as well as it focuses on establishing good relationships between consumers and suppliers. Loyal customers are the primary source of generating profits and bringing more new customers into the business. [Evanschitzky, H., Ramaseshan, B., Woisetschläger, D.M., Richelsen, V., Blut, M. and Backhaus, C., 2012. Consequences of customer loyalty to the loyalty program and to the company. Journal of the academy of marketing science, 40, pp.625-638.]
This assignment will examine the concept of customer loyalty and its significance in the business. It answers questions like; how important is customer loyalty to a firm's profitability? What is the significance of customer loyalty? How will customer loyalty affect the profitability of an organization?
Customers are very fundamental when it comes to operating an organization or business entity. A customer is defined as a party that purchases products or services and has the capability to decide on different products and those who supply them. Important to note is that customers can either be individuals or businesses that use their money on goods and services from companies that meet their needs and desires. Attracting customers is considered the primary goal of every business because they are the ones who create demand and spend money on manufactured goods and services. Customers who feel content with the companies’ goods and services are always anticipated to buy the products or services continuously. Therefore this means that satisfied customers are the companies’ loyal customers who repurchase the products again and again from the same company over time.
Customer loyalty has a number of benefits among which include;
⦁ It reduces customer acquisition costs: Acquiring new customers can be expensive, as it involves marketing, advertising, and sales efforts. Loyal customers are already familiar with the firm and its offerings and do not need to be persuaded or incentivized to buy.
⦁ It enhances customer advocacy: Loyal customers are not only buyers but they also promote the products and services of the firm. This is because they are most likely to recommend the firm's products or services to their friends, family, colleagues, and online communities, creating positive word-of-mouth and referrals. Customer advocacy also boosts the firm's reputation, brand awareness, and trust among potential customers, leading to more conversions and sales.