Companies that increase customer retention rates by 5% can increase profits by as much as 95% according to the following Sparked infographic.

Despite that fact, however, most companies don't focus on retention, instead relying on chance to keep their customers.

Businesses may be ignoring customer-retention efforts because of various fallacies—for example, that one or two poor experiences or episodes cause churn. "Churn more often results from a series of episodes over time," states Sparked. "Focus on the entire journey, the overall experience."

Another fallacy is that satisfying customers is good enough. Satisfied customers, however, are not necessarily passionate or loyal customers: "Earn customers' active advocacy by delighting them at key moments," suggests Sparked.