best customer marketing (BCM) - definition
ICLP - the global loyalty marketing agency - is an expert practitioner of best customer marketing (BCM).
Best Customer Marketing (BCM), as the name implies, is all about identifying and maintaining the yield from your best customers (e.g. most valuable; those who bring you the most profit) and identifying and growing those customers who have the propensity or characteristics to become best customers. To many, the principle may sound obvious (even, perhaps, too obvious to discuss), but very few companies direct a significant part of their marketing budget and efforts towards their best customers. But why do so few companies actually practise Best Customer Marketing (BCM) effectively, when it is plain common sense, and proven best practice?
Best Customer Marketing (BCM) is hardly a new concept - it has been around as long as people have been 'selling'. In the last century, it was practised by all the local shop keepers - they knew they had to look after their best customers properly, as these were the ones that generated the most profits; the staff knew all the customers personally, knew what they bought regularly, could anticipate their needs, and could reward those who generated the most profit. But today, in a more impersonal, higher-volume, competitive world, to practise Best Customer Marketing (BCM), you need high quality customer data in order to identify your best customers, and then you need to market to them in a relevant, motivating and personalised way.
Essentially, Best Customer Marketing (BCM) is a sub-section of 'loyalty marketing' - whose raison d'être is to maximise customer lifetime value through influencing profitable behaviour and engendering customer loyalty.