Don’t let the relationship end after the honeymoon period

29 May 2008

This is just one piece of advice for publishers coming from a variety of companies from outside the publishing industry who took part in a new research project ‘Beyond the Subscription: tracking the customer journey’ that looks at how to manage the customer relationship.

For the majority of the companies that took part in the research the honeymoon or nursery period – the first three months after a product is purchased – is one of the most crucial parts of the customer journey. Nurture the relationship in the right way during this time and you could be partners for life; get it wrong and the consumer could walk away after the initial contract period.

Another tip from the other industries was to make the most of the engagement opportunities that publishers have and to make every contact with the consumer count. The financial services company that took part in the study used an example of how they had increased their business in this way. They had noticed a high rate of customers not activating their new credit cards; after implementing the use of a welcome phone call from the company to new customers explaining the services available the activation rate increased dramatically.

The research was commissioned by PPA’s Customer Direct marketing group in conjunction with Royal Mail and was conducted by Wessenden Marketing. It was launched in full at the recent Magazines and Business Media 2008 conference.

For those wishing to learn more about the report PPA is hosting a workshop on 6 June that will take a look at the report as a whole and the customer journey in particular. The findings from the report will be put in to context to see their practical applications in the workplace.

To find out more about the course please click here or contact Emma Turner on 020 7400 7540.

Details from Emma Turner at PPA on 020 7400 7540.