|
How much do
you know about your customers? Do you know what makes them
happy? Mad? Restless? Let's face it…you should! Businesses often
operate in ignorance of what their customers like or dislike,
ignore and abhor. To ensure retention, pay attention!
The Basics:
What Customers Love
·
When you
know them, remember them by name and remember their preferences.
·
To be
treated with respect
·
To feel
special
·
To know
you're accountable when problems arise
·
The ability
to reach a live voice or person when problems arise
·
To receive
lagniappe — a little something extra, for their money's
worth
The Basics:
What Customers Hate
·
The
runaround — and having to repeat one's predicament repeatedly
·
Labyrinthine
voice mail systems
·
Ignorant
salespeople
·
Apathetic
employees
·
Being put on
hold
·
Being left
on hold
·
Being
disconnected after holding
·
Poor routing
of their phone call to the incorrect person
·
Repeatedly
hearing how important their patronage is while on hold
indefinitely
·
Canned
e-mail responses that are unresponsive or miss the particulars
of the problem
·
Sales reps
with surly or superior attitudes who are condescending
·
Lack of
empathy
·
Taking
customers for granted
·
Being nickel
and dimed!
·
Adhering to
the letter of the law as opposed to the spirit of the
law
How We Can
Win Points With Customers
·
Exceed their
expectations!
·
Anticipate
client needs even before they do
·
Proactively
head off problems before they occur
·
Advocate for
your customers with management
·
Provide full
service — offering one-stop shopping for myriad client needs
·
Make doing
business with you fun and easy
·
Don't make
charge-backs, returns and problems problematic to address
·
Grow with
your customers
·
Treat them
like royalty and employ a touch of class in your interactions
Your Next
Steps
·
Audit your
sales and customer service process; look for ways to streamline
both for your customers' convenience.
·
Make sure
your sales reps know your product lines inside and out.
·
Poll your
customers to uncover new ways to better serve them.
·
Create a
marketing plan for keeping in front of your customers: e-zines,
ads, invites, demos, sales and courtesy calls, focus groups and
other mechanisms.
·
Review your
returns; look for patterns and trends. Fix systemic flaws in
your systems.
·
Seek to
reward devoted, long-term customers for their loyalty.
·
To the
extent possible, meet and better acquaint yourself with your
customers so they're more than a customer number or account
name.
Don't treat
customers like dreaded in-laws. Treat them like beloved family!
With these words I thee wed.
Book Craig to train your sales and service teams to deliver
great service:
www.ExpressionsOfExcellence.com
San Francisco Bay Area-based
Professional speaker
Craig Harrison's Expressions of Excellence!™ provides sales
and service solutions through speaking. For information on
keynotes, training, coaching, curriculum for licensing and more,
call (888) 450-0664, visit www.ExpressionsOfExcellence.com or
E-mail excellence@craigspeaks.com for inquiries.
|
