I want to start this chapter with a question. What do you think: How much more expensive is it to acquire a new customer versus retaining an existing one?

1. 2-3 times
2. 5-10 times or
3. 5-25 times

According to numerous studies, acquiring a new customer is anywhere from 5 to 25 times more expensive than retaining an existing one. So if you guessed c) you chose the correct answer.

“Acquiring a new customer is anywhere from five to 25 times more expensive than retaining an existing one.”

And still, we as marketers behave in quite an unorthodox way. Most of us (including myself) have the natural tendency to focus on acquiring new customers and making new sales, instead of nurturing existing ones and focusing deeply on the customer journey of existing clients.

Based on studies, our behavior is simply a mistake, a trick that our mind is playing on us. This chapter is aimed at convincing you that it pays off disproportionately. We need to break this wrong mindset and to focus on “post sales phases” instead. I invite you to follow me on a journey, an adventure to “Post Sales Magic Land”.

“Post Sales Magic Land” is a place that is filled with happy clients. They have crossed the border by paying their entry fee and realized after entering that they not only got what was promised, but even more than that. Their expectations have not only been fulfilled, they have been excelled. And now as clients are feeling happy, they are starting to make the new land their own. They start exploring for further opportunities. They prepare themselves for a long stay. They start shopping around and spreading the word about their great experience by calling their friends. And as long as they are not disappointed, they will stay happy customers of Post Sales Magic Land.

Wouldn’t it be great to be the mayor of PSML?

I bet it would. PSML is full of “post sales magic.” Let’s explore further. Post Sales Magic is about making a fundamental shift: a shift in thinking. The shift away from the focus on “making the sale” to “starting with the sale.” It is all about acknowledging that making a book sale is just a start or a stopover in the relationship with the reader, always embedded in a bigger process. It’s about realizing that our job as authors and publishers has not been completed when we have sold a book; it has just started, instead.

In this chapter, you’ll not only learn why focusing on the post-sale phase is so beneficial. Even more importantly, you’ll learn how to create reader experiences that celebrate “post sales magic” in a way that not only makes your readers happy, but which is also financially profitable. So Stay with me.

Let’s explore the question of why investing in an amazing post-sales phase is so beneficial. We already talked about the high costs of acquiring new customers vs. selling more to existing ones, but there is way more than that.

In fact, by focusing on the post-sales phase, you are able to create happy customers who, in turn, will help you to sell more books and grow your business. Think about yourself! What do you do when you find a product that not only fulfills your expectations, but is even over-delivered? You will likely use the product, share it with others, maybe give feedback or provide a review, and want to buy more of the same brand. You will not complain to customer service, cause negative experiences with company reps, or make the product designers unhappy.

A happy customer (in our case a happy reader) will bring you the results you are striving for. Focusing on the customer experience and designing an amazing “post sales experience” is one of the best things that you can do as a publisher or author.

I now invite you to take a look at the following checklist, which shows you 15 proven tactics to create “post sales magic” for your readers. Most of these tactics below are used by my clients and other publishers with success.

Once you have achieved a high level of customer satisfaction, it gets far easier to earn more by offering related or upsell products. Take a look at the following list of possible related and upsell products that you can use to earn more from the readers and clients that you already have.

Post sales magic creates true win-win situations. Readers win because they get product experiences they truly love. And publishers win because they receive positive feedback, reviews, and more sales down the line.

In order to make things easy, I boiled Secret #9 down to a simple formula: the post sales magic formula. Apply the formula and be rewarded.

One of the most important questions that you should ask yourself is: “What should my readers do after they have purchased and read my book?”

Take a break for a second, get a pen and paper, and do the following exercise:

Once you have done the exercise, you will have concrete action steps for getting closer to creating “post sales magic.” Act on them and increase reader satisfaction bit by bit.

I want to finish Chapter 9 with a quote by management professor Michael LeBoeuf :

“A satisfied customer is the best business strategy of all.” -Michael LeBoeuf

A satisfied customer is the best business strategy of all. It should come as no surprise when I tell you that without satisfied, loyal customers, you will never have a successful business.

I couldn’t agree more with Michael LeBoeuf, and this is certainly true for books as well. Do not fall for the mistake a lot of authors make of focusing on the sale and missing the big opportunity of “post sales magic.” Act like a skilled book marketer instead.

Understand that your job and the real opportunity for book wealth has just started with a book sale. Change your focus towards reader satisfaction and stop seeing the book sale as the end point. Always see it as a starting point or interstation before receiving feedback, getting a reader on your email-list, making another book sale, selling an upsell product or spreading word of mouth.

Change your mindset and increase your odds of success substantially.