What is customer marketing?

Marketing to the people who already bought from you: understanding why they stay or leave, helping them succeed, and turning them into loyal advocates who give you proof and referrals. Emails are one tool. Listening is the job.

Are you an email marketer?

No. The work is finding out what customers need and why they stay or drift. Sometimes the fix is a message, but it comes after the listening.

We don't have much customer data yet. Where do we start?

Start collecting it now, so you have something real to dig into in six months. Start Listening (£495) agrees what to measure and which questions to ask. You put it in place.

Can you run a full Voice of the Customer programme?

Yes, but not at a fixed price, because every business's data is different. We start with a short look at what you have, then agree the scope.

We're small. Is customer marketing worth it yet?

Especially when you're small. Keeping a customer is far cheaper than finding a new one, and early customers tell you exactly what to build and say next.

What I help with

Customer marketing

Help turning the customers you have into loyal fans

Customers say they love it and never pay. Or they stay, but you've no idea why. Customer marketing is finding out what's really going on with the people who already chose you, acting on it, and turning happy customers into loyal advocates who stay, buy more and recommend you. It's not just sending emails.

Sound familiar?

"Why do customers choose us over someone else?"
"Everyone says they love our product. Why won't they pay?"
"How do I get customers to give us feedback?"
"What is a Voice of the Customer programme?"
"How do I find out why customers leave?"
"How do I turn happy customers into advocates who recommend us?"

What it is, in plain English

Customer marketing is everything that happens after someone buys. It means listening to customers properly (Voice of the Customer), understanding why they stay, turning happy ones into loyal advocates and stories that sell, and feeding what they say back into product and marketing decisions.

Job ads call this: Customer marketing consultant / Voice of the Customer lead.

Why me

I was Customer Marketing Lead at YouGov. I built their Voice of the Customer programme by joining up different data sets, from surveys to support to sales notes. It lifted NPS by 5 points and shaped product decisions. I write about it on my Substack, The Customer Marketer.

Fixed-price ways I can help

If this sounds like you

“Clients love working with us. We're not sure what made them choose us”

The fixWhy They Buy

Customer interviews & messaging

Hear what customers value, then use it to sharpen the way you talk about your business.

Done this before20 years of asking customers what they think, and working out what they mean, for Kantar, Toluna and YouGov.

4 customer interviews of up to 30 minutes
What made them buy, what they value and what nearly put them off
A message summary of up to 3 pages, plus up to 8 customer quotes you can use (with their permission)
A 45-minute readout and one round of changes

You'll need: Four customers willing to talk. You make the introductions.

What's not included

Finding or paying interviewees

Takes: 3 weeks
Your time: About 1 hour, plus the introductions

“We'd like useful feedback. We haven't got a system”

The fixStart Listening

Customer feedback planning

A small, practical feedback plan you can actually keep using, so in six months you have real answers instead of hunches.

One 60-minute session to agree up to 5 things worth measuring
A short set of feedback questions (up to 10), and when and where to ask them
A one-page plan for what to look at in 3 and 6 months' time

You'll need: Someone on your side to put the plan in place and ask the questions.

What's not included

Setting up survey tools
Collecting or analysing the answers

Takes: 1 to 2 weeks
Your time: About 90 minutes

Bigger jobs, scoped together

These depend too much on your data and your customers to price up front. We agree a written scope and price before anything starts.

“People sign up, then disappear”
The Leaky Bucket
Find out why people drift, don't come back or never pay, then fix the first few weeks. We agree the journey, the evidence and the interviews first.
Done this before: Did this for Toluna's behavioural panel app, and for a new stylist marketplace getting its first 30 stylists on board.
Smaller first step: Start Listening
“We only hear from customers when they leave”
The Listening Loop
A Voice of the Customer programme built from what customers already tell you: reviews, support, surveys and sales calls. We start with a short diagnostic, then scope it.
Done this before: Built YouGov's Voice of the Customer programme from scattered data sets. NPS up 5.
Smaller first step: Start Listening

Questions people ask

What is customer marketing?: Marketing to the people who already bought from you: understanding why they stay or leave, helping them succeed, and turning them into loyal advocates who give you proof and referrals. Emails are one tool. Listening is the job.
Are you an email marketer?: No. The work is finding out what customers need and why they stay or drift. Sometimes the fix is a message, but it comes after the listening.
We don't have much customer data yet. Where do we start?: Start collecting it now, so you have something real to dig into in six months. Start Listening (£495) agrees what to measure and which questions to ask. You put it in place.
Can you run a full Voice of the Customer programme?: Yes, but not at a fixed price, because every business's data is different. We start with a short look at what you have, then agree the scope.
We're small. Is customer marketing worth it yet?: Especially when you're small. Keeping a customer is far cheaper than finding a new one, and early customers tell you exactly what to build and say next.

Not sure this is the right fix?

15 minutes, and I'll tell you straight.

Book a 15-min fit call

Other things I help with

Ongoing support Product marketing Product strategy Report writing & insight LinkedIn & writing AI for marketing & product