After-Sales service is an example of a sales promotion activity. By definition, it includes all business activities geared toward customer satisfaction beyond the point of sales.
The Purposes and Benefits of After-Sales Service
Below are the six major purposes and corresponding benefits of after-sales services:
• To build and maintain a relationship with the customers: After-sales services such as customer support, mailing list inclusion, and loyalty program can help in maintaining communication or interaction with customers. Thus, a benefit of after-sales services is that they can foster customer loyalty through beneficial marketing communications.
• To encourage repeat sales from the customers: Because after-sales services play a role in maintaining customer relationship and loyalty, it can also help in building trust and thereby, encourage these people to buy products from the same business again.
• To enhance the image of the business or its brand: Another purpose of after-sale services is to improve the reliability of the business. Through warrantees and customer support, customers will perceive the business as entities that put premium in customer satisfaction.
• To enhance the sales value of a product: After-sales services can enhance the attractiveness of a product, thus improving its sales values. Customers can be attracted by the mere fact that they are paying for a product with beneficial inclusions such as warranties and freebies, thus getting more from what they have paid for.
• To provide a unique selling proposition: Similar to adding sales value to a product, businesses can include after-sale services to their core products as an additional unique selling proposition or product differentiation. Hence, one benefit of after-sales services is that they can make a product standout from the competition.
• To encourage customers to referral: Another purpose of after-sales services is to stimulate word-of-mouth marketing via customer testimonials. Remember that these services build customer loyalty and trust, and brand reputation Customers can trust a business enough to recommend it or its products to their family or friends.