1. Commit to quality service
Everyone in your business company needs to be devoted to creating a positive experience
for the customer.
2. Know your products
Demonstrating confidence and knowledge about products and services will help you win a
customer’s trust and confidence. Know your company’s products, services and policies
inside out.
3. Know your customers
Try to learn everything you can about your customers. Sounds so obvious, but people don’t
do it.
4. Treat people with courtesy and respect
Every contact with a customer by email, phone, written correspondence or face-to-face
creates an impression.
5. Give comfort that you manage mistakes properly
Your company is run by humans – any one of whom could make a mistake that causes an
issue for the customer. Your client is taking a leap of faith by giving you business. Be
honest, you will make mistakes, but give comfort about how they will be managed.
6. Don’t leave your customers hanging
Call backs, complaints and emails need to be handled with a sense of urgency. Customers
want immediate resolution, and if you can give it to them, you will probably win their
repeat business. Research shows that 95 per cent of dissatisfied customers will do
business again if their complaint is resolved on the spot.
7. Always provide what you promise
Fail to do this and you will lose credibility and customers. If you guarantee a quote within
24 hours, get the quote out in a day or less. If you can’t make good on your promise –
Be honest and tell them!
8. Assume the customers are telling the truth
Even though it sometimes appears that the customers are lying or giving you a hard time,
always give them the benefit of the doubt. The majority of customers do not like to
complain; in fact they will go out of their way to avoid it.
9. Focus on keeping your customers
Research shows that it costs six times more to attract a new customer, than it does to keep
an existing one. Remember that keeping a customer’s business is as important as brining
in new ones.
10. Make it easy to buy
People buy from people and if you are easy to do business with and you are completely
honest about your capabilities to deliver, and about where you can’t help, you you will be
successful.
Last thoughts to leave you with:
You will never build a long-term relationship with a client without credibility....never ever.
So remember John Craig’s words and never mislead a customer by telling them what you
think they want to hear in order to give you an order.
NEVER lie – If you don’t lie, you don’t need a good memory!