I saw this chart from eMarketer that seems to define customer retention, or loyalty, as “up-sell, encourage repeat purchase.” Is that really what retention and loyalty is all about, getting existing customers to buy more? The answer: maybe.

I believe that a clear objective for any marketer is to grow business with existing customers. As they say, your cheapest marketing is what you direct at existing relationships. So selling more to them makes complete sense. What this article doesn’t tease out is how marketers are *engaging* with their existing customers, regardless of whether or not they are directly up-selling or capturing repeat purchases.

There needs to be a healthy tension between keeping customers buying—and buying more—and keeping them engaged. Higher engagement, which can lead to greater trust, will lead to more buying, or at least consistent buying. A retention strategy needs to be one that clearly articulates how the use of different channels will encourage prolonged engagement so that when the time is right, your customer thinks of you first.

Striking a balance is key. If you can find that perfect mix of engaging and up-selling to those who are likely to buy more and keeping those who are likely to continue purchasing from you engaged, then you may just have a winning formula.