Word-of-mouth / referral is arguably the best source for leads. It’s essentially free and has built-in trust. So how do you get people talking?

Think like this: Online pet product retailer Chewy.com is internet-famous for their heartfelt approach during the death of a pet. Hear how they retain customers through offering full refunds on returned pet food and sending flowers and a condolence card when a pet passes away.

Est. $30 investment once per customer pays lifelong dividends for the brand and LTV (customer lifetime value).

Tangible, heartfelt actions that are timely and on-brand can make a significant impact on retention and brand perception.

Brand ethos: “At Chewy, our pets are the center of our universe.”

This is key because the marketing aligns with the brand. I’ve discussed many times that inconsistency is the #1 killer of trust in a brand (like the famous early 2000s Tiffany necklace blunder), but consistency and alignment across brand, product, and marketing is the #1 builder of trust.

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Brand is a feeling.

People may forget what you did, but they remember how you made them feel. This applies to personal relationships AND marketing. Brand is not a logo—it’s a feeling. And brand is your business’s greatest (and most vulnerable) asset.

I cite these two stats often because they’re so key:

1. 95% of purchase decisions are emotional. (Watch clip)
2. It costs 10x more to acquire a new customer/client than to retain an existing one. (Watch clip)

Brand is your business’s most valuable (and vulnerable) asset.