Have you ever been surprised to find out that one of your vendors was just acquired? Sometimes you don’t even learn this from your contact, but through a third party, or through the media. This recently happened to me with a long-standing, reliable vendor, and the way I received the news was really disorienting and disappointing. Why didn’t they inform me themselves? How will my services change? Will I still be working with the same people and branches? So many questions were left unanswered.
As a customer, mergers and acquisitions can be very confusing. They inject a large amount of uncertainty into a customer relationship that may have been very solid and reliable. According to TheFinancialBrand.com, many companies across industries have found that customer loss during and after an acquisition is much higher than at other times. For this reason, it’s integral that you communicate with your customers clearly and effectively while you are being acquired. If you do it right, you can minimize the risk of client loss, and instead use the experience to strengthen the relationship.
Communicate, Communicate, Communicate
Customers hate being the last person to hear important news. Hearing the news from a competitor or on the news will make your customer wonder why you didn’t tell them directly. There are sometimes legal situations where you can’t tell your customers until the acquisition has been finalized, but whatever the case may be, once you are legally able to communicate, you should have a communication plan in place.
3 IMPORTANT BENEFITS TO COMMUNICATING DURING AN ACQUISITION
1) BUILD TRUST WITH CUSTOMERS: Simply communicating what is happening can significantly reassure a customer during the process. Have a clear communication plan in place, so that you and all your employees understand how best to explain what is happening and why. You will also want to explain to your customers what they can reasonably expect during the transition, so that they won’t be surprised by changes and delays. Don’t let them hear about it from someone else. Don’t hide the acquisition. Let them know, and let them know they can continue to count on you.
2) REMIND THEM THAT YOU VALUE THEIR BUSINESS: Acquisitions, the successful ones anyway, usually happen because there are strategic reasons, synergies, and advantages to combining two companies. When speaking with your customer, you want to communicate that you will be getting stronger after this. This acquisition will not only benefit the company, but will benefit the customer!
3) PROMOTE NEW SERVICES: Communicating this type of news with customers is a great way to get in front of them. Not only are you demonstrating your transparency and customer focus, you now have the opportunity to sell them on new services. What can you now offer them because of the acquisition? Are there new services or products that you now provide? Perhaps you can mention how your customer service will be expanding to 24 hours a day or you now offer nationwide service.
Ultimately, the most important thing is clear and consistent communication. Imagine the types of concerns your customer will have and address them immediately. Don’t let them wonder and worry about the process, because that will make them more open to switching to a competitor. Use the news as an opportunity to strengthen relations with customers!