Why Your After-Sales Service is Just as Important as the Sale Itself

I often find businesses putting all of their effort into and focus on the sales process. They perfect their pitch, refine their closing techniques, and spend a lot of time mastering the all-important first impression. And rightly so, because without a sale, there's no business.

However, a sale is never truly "done" when the transaction is complete. In fact, what happens after the sale is just as, if not more, important to your long-term success, profitability and ability to create raving fans.

What Drives Customers to Buy?

People buy from you because they might need something, a decision that is largely logical in nature. This could mean needing a new appliance when the old one breaks or a specific software solution to fix an operational bottleneck.

On the other hand, they might simply want something, a decision often driven largely by emotion. Perhaps they want that new gadget, a luxury item or an experience that promises excitement or status. Your understanding of these drivers is the first step, but what happens after the payment truly defines their experience.

How Can You Overcome Buyer's Remorse?

Let’s take a closer look at the customer who buys logically. While the purchase was necessary, they might secretly begrudge the expense later, seeing it as a mandatory cost that they come to resent rather than an exciting acquisition that makes them feel incredible.

On the other hand, the emotionally driven buyer, swept up in the heat of the moment, can easily fall prey to "buyer's remorse" the very next day, too, or that sinking feeling after a spontaneous purchase.

This is why exceptional after-sales service becomes your secret weapon. A timely and thoughtful follow-up, whether it's a personal phone call, a quick, reassuring text message or a well-crafted email, can perform a powerful psychological role.

In both scenarios of the begrudging logical buyer and the regretting emotional one, your proactive reach-out will help to reassure the customer. By reinforcing the Unique Selling Propositions and benefits of the product over the phone or email, you will reinforce that their decision was a great one. You will build an emotional bond that significantly increases the chances of them repurchasing from you in the future.

What Does After-Sales Service Help Your Business Achieve?

After-sales efforts are powerful because, quite simply, they show the customer that you care. You’ve already been paid, already boosted your revenue, but now, you’re taking a moment to reach out to the customer and talk them through usage tips, troubleshooting or even to simply give them a discount for a future service or purchase.

Transactions have been growing more and more impersonal, especially with online shopping and booking, which is why a genuine follow-up stands out to your customer and helps them remember you.

When you put a little effort into what happens post-sale, you’re showing your customer that your relationship extends beyond the sale and that you value their satisfaction and loyalty, not just their money. This is what turns a one-time buyer into a repeat customer, and a repeat customer into a lifelong brand fan.

What After-Sales Service Ideas Can I Include In My Strategy?

This commitment to after-sales service cannot be an afterthought. Rather, it must be an ingrained, foundational part of your overall business strategy that you develop from the get-go.

I recommend that when you are building out your customer journey, you add ‘After-Sales Support’ following the ‘Action’ phase, when the client has made the purchase. I also recommend that you plan out every detail, like who makes the follow-up contact, what specific message or value is conveyed, and when exactly it happens.

For example, maybe your marketing hire sends out an after-sales email 2 days after the purchase, giving them helpful tips for using the product and a bonus voucher for their next purchase.

For a high-value purchase, you might want to make the after-sales journey multi-layered. A personal check-in call is always a nice touch, which could be followed by an email with valuable tips and tricks for getting the most out of their new product or service. A few days later, your business could send out an exclusive offer for their next service or related product to incentivise them to take action again.

Some other personalised and high-impact ideas that I’ve seen success with through my clients are thank-you videos, surveys to gather feedback, or invitations to a customer-only event.

You've already invested time, effort and resources into attracting and converting your customers. Now, the smart play is to maximise that investment by nurturing those relationships post-sale. When you do this, you reduce customer churn, increase lifetime value and create word-of-mouth referrals that don't cost you a cent in advertising.

If you're ready to build a bigger business fuelled by a loyal base of raving fans, then let's talk. I help companies like yours identify and implement these strategies by making your after-sales service as powerful, if not more powerful, than the initial sale itself.