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| understanding your customer is vital for growth. |
These know-how marketing tips can help retain a strong base
with your customers.
Unless you are very lucky and don't have competitor in your
line of business, you must keep in touch with your customers. If it happens that your competitors do this
before you, they are going to take your customers away from you. In this world
of uncertainty, you no longer count on customer loyalty.
You must keep your name in before your customers to prevent
them from being tempted to "try out" the services from your business competitor
that is trying to lure them in with amazing specials, convenience and fancy
offers.
For a shop, what is it that you must to remain vigilant?
Here, I have spelt out some suggestions to win your customer loyalty.
Appreciate Your
Customers - Really
Every shop owner realizes the value of their customers, but
do you really believe that your customers do?
Every shop owner should appreciate their customers and receive their
money with genuine appreciation. You should ensure that your frontline
employees understand the importance of each and every customer and that they
show sincere appreciation.
Don't Hide the
Technician
For auto car centers, whenever your customers come in to
pick up their vehicles, allow the technician a moment to greet the customer,
explain to them the work that was done and thank them for their business.
Pre-set Appointments
Pre-set your customer's next appointment. This is an easy
one to be done, just give the customer a small card with the next "service
due" appointment. Remember to call them ahead to be sure that the time is still convenient. This
starategy works for the dentist, so it should work for you!
Survey
Since you don’t know
how your shop measures up and is meeting the needs of your customers, you
should make a point f asking them since most of them wont tell you when they aren’t happy but they
will tell others. Know their feelings for your business and the services you
offer, by so doing, your customers know you appreciate and value their
business.
Direct Mail
You can decide to keep in touch by a quarterly newsletter,
where you explain to them about all the services you offer. You can also use the reminder card program since
it is also an excellent way of keeping in touch. Don’t forget a thank you card or telephone
call after a service has been performed.
Training the Staff
You can use a lot of money in advertising, maybe give your technician’s
certification training and still lose the customer because your lead staff doesn't
have a clue on customer relations. Help them by doing the following:
o
Enroll them in classes for help in this area of
customer relation. This will be worth your time and money.
o
Ensure that your employees understand the
shilling value of every customer and its reflection to the business and their
paychecks. Each employee should know that every customer has an exemplary
experience whenever they visit your shop. Don't just meet the customer's
expectation - exceed it!
o
You should set a good example then your employees
will follow your lead.
o
Let your employees know that customer loyalty
starts with genuine customer appreciation.
Telephone Skills
This concern and is the chief difference between you getting
and keeping business. Always have someone answer your telephone calls. If a prospective
customer sends mail and calls but gets
no answer, especially if it is someone who has never used you before, they will
go to your business competitor. It does not stir confidence when you get at a
business and always find a ringing phone during business hours.
You can also recommended an answering machine but as a last resort to state hours of
operation, that each call is important and that as soon as you are finished
helping another customer you will call back immediately. It is at least a
gesture of goodwill.
Some General
Guidelines on phone ethics:
Do answer the telephone this way:
"sparks technologies, this is Tim,
how can I help you." Or, "How can I help you sir/madam?"
- You can put the person on hold if necessary but don’t lay the telephone down.
- You should always, always - answer the telephone.
- Always - thank the customer for calling!
- Listen to the customer and if you can't help them, get them to a person that can.
- Use an on-hold message that states your services, hours of operation and specials.
- Take a message when the person the customer wishes to speak to is not available.
Customer Complaints
Customer complaints can put your staff on their defensive
due to guilt and this is just human. Help your staff get above this by
appreciating them as they take the time to complain. This means they still want
to do business with you. Occasionally customers don't complain to you, but to
others, and then quietly take their business elsewhere. Through customer
complains you have the opportunity to fix the situation and keep the customer's
loyalty.
In summery, you should treat others the way you want to be
treated, then exceed that. That is the best way to stay in touch and maintain
the business relationship with you.
