Customer Acquisition Objectives Misdirected

Two of the biggest customer acquisition objectives I've seen misguided, lost, even abused, are cultivating top ten percent customers, and not having a clear measure of profits. First, what are the two biggest customer acquisition objectives, and what happens when you don't observe them?

1. Cultivate Your Top Ten Percent Customer

There is no customer like your most profitable customer, so an objective for your customer acquisition is to find more like him or her. Use a "Profitable Customer Profile" to determine which characteristics identify a profitable customer. Look to develop a sequential approach for cultivating your "top ten percent" customers.

Not all customers are equal, as you'll learn soon why, you want to focus on the customer who generates the most profits. Characteristics of profitable customers include issues of customer service, dollar profit generated, frequency of interaction, referrals generated each year, and an above average customer lifetime value. If you are not observing, documenting, and taking action on these traits then you are losing ground instead of gaining it.

2. Have A Clear Measure Of Profits

Before you zero in on your more profitable customers, your customer acquisition strategy must have a clear definition of profit. Do you measure profit against transactional gain, customer lifetime value, or even revenue generated over a fixed period? Each of these measures means something different, so before you get started, establish a clear and meaningful measure of profits that everyone on your sales team follows.

Most business-to-business organizations fail to know what account types are profitable and which are not, and this causes them to chase prospects that even if they did do business with wouldn't pay for the effort. Most sales people don't care, a sale is a sale, and they get paid commission all the same. However, are you digging your company into debt doing unprofitable business?

Is your business suffering just because you make these mistakes with two of the most important customer acquisition objectives? Instead, focus on profitable customer retention marketing. For more on this topic read, "Customer Acquisition Objectives For Attracting Profitable Business-To-Business Customers" and get a copy of the popular report, "How to Cultivate Your 'Top Ten Percent' Customers for Greater Profits"