Customer retention and university alumni

I believe that any company interested in maintaining a profitable business should be interested in customer retention marketing. Customer retention and customer retention marketing are crucial for converting one-time customers into long-term brand advocates.

I am looking at customer retention purely from a university alumni angle (more so alumni associations). It seems that very few Australian associations have got it right in terms of retention. Most of them spend huge amounts for initial alumni acquisition but it seems alumni retention is not taken as a priority. It’s a real pity to see them acquire members, service them, and leave them unchecked for future sales/purchases and word of mouth marketing.

One of the most simple, yet most effective ways to help improve retention is to listen to alumni members. If alumni feel like their concerns are addressed and questions answered in a timely and appropriate manner, they are more likely to continue to be associated with the university. Alumni loyalty retention becomes a major concern if and when universities fail to respond to alumni inquiries and/or fail to address problems within the university.