What you’ll read: Employees from all sectors are quitting their jobs. If the following is familiar, read on for how you can stop the cycle with your employees and your customers:
- Constant work dealbreakers
- Employee underappreciation
- Burnout
- A desire to work remotely
- Personal goals reevaluation
Reduced hours due to limited staff, “Help wanted” signs plastered on businesses —these have become the new normal since the pandemic arrived in the United States. People wanted to quit their jobs since 2020, however, most didn’t actually follow through until 2021. Many were unsure how the pandemic would affect them, so they held off on resigning until they felt better about what it meant for them.
Become the best CRMer you can:
CRM Hack: Monitoring the User’s Heartbeat
What Does It Mean to Treat a Customer’s Email With Respect?
To Lock or Not to Lock Customers (into CRM Journeys)
What the Efforts to Promote Responsible Gaming Look Like Form the Inside
A staggering 1 in 4 U.S. employees quit their jobs in 2021, according to a report from Viser.
Here are some of their other findings:
- The resignation rate in 2021 of employees with a 5- to 10-year tenure is 57%
higher than in 2020. For employees with a 10- to 15-year tenure, the resignation rate is 55%higher in 2021 than the previous year.
- Employees who are 20 to 25-years-old have the highest resignation rate, which is 47% higher than the previous year.
- The resignation rate for women is 17% higher than that for men.
It looks like this trend will continue beyond the pandemic. But why? We’ll cover five of the top reasons workers across industries are handing in their notice by the masses—and what insight marketers can take from those resignations to keep them from also quitting their brands.
Check out PostFunnel’s CRM Job Board >>
Refuse to accept the unacceptable
There have been unhappy employees since the beginning of time. The difference now is that many are no longer willing to accept their current work situations, now viewing them as dealbreakers. Maybe it’s inflexible work schedules (a big con with many having to stay home with children) or never seeing a pay raise. Employee tolerance for negatives in the workplace has definitely lowered.
To keep from losing customers due to their non-negotiables, you first need to know what those things are. Start by looking at who makes up the largest portion of your churn group—is it women, millennials, people from a certain region, or customers who have been with you for years? Put together a profile for who is leaving so you know who to target from your current customers.
Next, figure out why customers are moving on. You can send them an exit survey, similar to what you’d give an employee. Ask why they stopped using your brand/engaging and what you could have done differently to keep them. You should also send surveys to current customers to see what they value and what will keep them active so you can ensure you offer them those things.
Not feeling recognized or appreciated
A simple “thanks” or “good job” can go a long way. Employees who don’t at least hear a little recognition in the office are much more likely to quit and take their talents elsewhere.
To combat these feelings of unappreciation, marketers can show they value customers every step of the way. Here are just a few examples of how to do that:
- Loyalty program: Make sure your loyalty program gives customers rewards they actually want and value. Do they have to spend $100 to get $1 in rewards? If so, that probably won’t make them feel very happy or appreciated.
- Thank you emails: Be sure to not only thank them for their purchases, but also tell them you appreciate them being your customer throughout the year.
- Unexpected treats: Send them a discount or reward just for being your customer.
- Holiday/Birthday messages: Set up automated emails for holidays, anniversaries, birthdays, and other special occasions.
- Social shoutouts: Do you have a long-time customer or one who regularly engages with your brand? Give them a shoutout on social media—and be sure to tag them if you have their profile information. Not only will that tell the customer they’re pretty special, but it will also show your whole audience you view them as individuals and not simply a source of revenue. You can also feature a customer in an email campaign using their testimonial or something special the brand did for them.
Reach limit with burnout
Everyone felt the strain when COVID hit—whether that was financially, emotionally, or physically. But, employees with jobs in retail, hospitality, health care, and the food industry were especially hit hard. They became our front-line workers that we all relied on to get through these unprecedented times. Late nights, limited support, and less-than-ideal working conditions only pushed these workers toward burnout faster.
It wasn’t only workers in these industries that reached their limits, though. Anytime employees are asked to take on more work (especially with no raise or benefits), complete work faster, or are in a toxic workplace culture, they are more likely to experience burnout and leave.
You might be surprised, but your customers can also experience a similar burnout when it comes to your brand. For example, are you only emailing them when you want them to make a purchase—instead of also sending them discounts or updates when the company does something special? They want to know they aren’t just a dollar sign.
Remote working > returning to the office
Several employers have taken the changes brought on by the pandemic in stride, altering their business models to better suit their teams’ needs. That includes moving to a remote model, instead of requiring employees to come into the office.
For companies that aren’t offering remote options—instead requiring employees to return to in-office work—they’re finding many of those workers aren’t willing to give up their remote offices and will quit if forced to return.
Marketers can capitalize on this new way of thinking by letting customers know they offer different options for making orders and pickups. Not everyone wants to head in-store to do that, so include any purchase/delivery options in your email campaigns and on your site.
Reevaluate their lives
When someone goes through a difficult time (i.e. the pandemic), they may think more about their purpose, passions, and the bigger picture of their life. And for many, their job doesn’t fit into those new goals. This past year, one reason people quit was to pursue new careers completely different from their current roles—or start their own businesses. This cause has even garnered its own term: pandemic epiphanies.
As customers reevaluate their priorities, be sure your brand is still part of them. Create campaigns that showcase ways the company has given back to the community or an employee in need.
Also, be sure to keep your brand’s values front and center with campaigns and products. Especially now, people want to know they’re doing business with brands that care about the things they’re passionate about.
Stop customers from quitting your brand
The way consumers work and make purchases is changing. Make sure your brand keeps up with those trends and proactively addresses issues that could lead to customers saying goodbye to you.