Making the most of your customer database when you are just starting out

Customer feedback and customer databases aren't just tools for well-established companies. Instead, using a customer database from the outset of your business can be useful as you build your company; making the most of your customer database when you are just starting out can be extremely beneficial.Why Have a Customer Database? A customer database provides vital information for future marketing and development. It can contain information such as the customer’s:

• Email address
• City of residence
• Home address
• Home number
• Past purchases

Knowing who your customers are can help you to shape certain aspects of your company as it grows and becomes more rooted. For example, if you find that the majority of your customers are lower-income, you may not want to start a luxury line. In short, a customer database gives you the opportunity to pander to your base. In addition, if you have customers' contact information, you can use it to send out occasional feedback surveys.Know What's Available You might have more data for your customer database available than you think you do. For making the most of your customer database when you are just starting out, make sure that you're building your customer database from all the resources available (while still following your own privacy policy, of course!).Play it CoolIt can be tempting to overuse your customer database, but doing so can be bad PR. Customers can feel uncertain about giving their information away; they don't want to receive a lot of spam, and they may be worried about their information getting into the wrong hands. Avoid contacting customers too often, and guard their information closely. On the other hand, remember that a limited amount of updates and surveys are par for the course in today's business world.Make it AccessibleYour customer database shouldn't be exceedingly complex, especially since when you're just starting out you might not have someone who can devote a lot of time to drawing inferences from your database. The database should be orderly, intuitive to use, and updated frequently (with duplicates removed) so that it stays up-to-date and accurate.There is no resource quite like a customer service database. It allows you to stay in touch with your customers, get feedback from them, observe how your business evolves over time, and simply know who's using your products. Of course, like any resource, a database can be used or misused, which is why making the most of your customer database when you are just starting out is so important.