Retain your Customers in the face of rising Club Attrition Rates
Posted by Carole Loomis on April 15th, 2008With the economy in the dumper, consumers are cutting the fat. Unfortunately for the wine industry, one of the first things to be cut is wine club memberships. At our Club workshop last week, most wineries reported a higher-than-average attrition rate. With this in mind, we discussed steps that wineries can take now to mitigate a drop in membership.
1. Be good to the members you still have.
The members that you do have are worth more to you now - what are you doing to take care of them? Throw in some extra goodies with their wine club shipment, a tee shirt, an aroma wheel, or some wine glass charms. Let loyal members try top level club benefits for a prescribed amount of time - for free. Throw a party for your club members just to thank them for being a part of the family.
2. Take advantage of your repurchase program.
If you are not following up your Club “sample program” with an opportunity to repurchase, you are missing out on sales that could make up the difference in a time when attrition rates are higher. Offering your member the opportunity to buy the wines they just sampled is another way of taking care of their needs.
3. Give exiting members another reason to stay.
Create a new, entry-level Club and offer them a “step down” in membership as another way to stay involved with the winery. These, entry level, clubs may ship only once or twice a year and may include only one or two bottles but are a great way to keep members involved.
4. Offer to put them on hold indefinitely.
If all else fails, ask a member who’s thinking about leaving if you can put them on hold until their finances get better. On hold members can still use their club discount for that occasional purchase, will still receive news, and invitations for winery events.5. Keep a list.
If members absolutely must leave, don’t delete them from your database. Keep past members on a list so that you can follow up with them later - they may want to rejoin when the economy picks up.
Think of times like these as opportunities - to be creative, to touch your customers, and to offer exemplary customer service.
April 15th, 2008 at 11:25 am
Being a member of, at last count, 8 winery wine clubs, and at one time having been up to about 17 clubs, I can tell you that as a long distance member (i.e., not in CA) I appreciate more than anything the clubs that allow me to have them ship more bottles only once or twice a year and are willing to work with me to make that happen. Shipping to the East Coast is expensive, and having a two bottle shipment every other month adds up quickly at $25 a pop (approximately), when a half case twice a year will save significantly (usually around $35) so over the course of a year I spend $70 on shipping rather than $150 when it’s $25 six times a year.
April 15th, 2008 at 11:58 am
Great tips!
Kathleen Lisson
April 15th, 2008 at 12:49 pm
Sonadora, Thank you - that is another great way to take care of existing customers. Consolidate shipments to cut down on shipping costs.
April 15th, 2008 at 6:21 pm
Hey, I know you! You’re that famous Suenarita from Wine Giques! Very smart, you are.