Deliver your product or service on time and on budget without excuses. Yes, clients are understanding, sympathetic and sometimes lenient. But why put them in this position?I just picked up a client yesterday who was tired of waiting five months for his new website which should have taken one week to complete. This web company had used every excuse in the book to delay the deliver date, company reorganization, a key person had quit, technical issues and overloaded with other projects. Any day now my new client was expecting to hear that the current developer’s dog has eaten his code.

It may be an understatement to say, business is business, but that’s what it is.

If you can’t make a deadline, then don’t state it in the first place.

If you’re not sure of the budget, then don’t expect the customer to pay for your weak estimate.

Do what you say, charge what you say and deliver when you say. You’ll find clients are more willing to do business with you in the future.

Tags: Best Practice, Customer Care

Go out of your way to exceed your client’s or customers’ expectations. Let me give you an example from this morning. I met with a new prospect about designing their website. Let’s call him Ryan. The night before I made sure I put together a short, but concise, letter proposal spelling out everything I would do, the cost and delivery dates. I also went above and beyond the call of duty by creating a comp showing what Ryan’s new website main page might look like. (None of my competitors do this. I feel it’s one way our company stands out.) I then put the letter proposal and comp in a clear project file protector and attached two business cards to the front. I gave the proposal package to Ryan at the beginning of our meeting. During our discussion Ryan made mention that I had already given them (the written proposal) more than the other two companies I was competing against. At the end of our 30 minute meeting the opposition had been handed their heads and I had turned another prospect into a client.There are as many ways to exceed a person’s expectations as you can dream up. Ask yourself these two questions: How would I like to do business? And what is it that my competition is not doing? For instance, return phone calls or emails the same day, put all quotes in writing or continue to call your customers after the sale is over.

It doesn’t take a great deal of ingenuity, just effort on your part to go out of your way to satisfy your clients or customers more than the other guy.

Tags: Best Practice, Customer Care

This tactic may take more effort for some clients than others. A frequent phone call may be all one customer needs to know you still care about their business. Another patron may need a face-to-face visit to feel important.It’s you job to figure out what each client demands. I can tell you right now that one style will not work for all customers. A generic e-mail blasted out once a month will garner very few results. Especially if it’s a sales pitch.

If you are unaware of how your clients want you to stay in touch in - ask! Sounds pretty revolutionary huh?

It took me a long time to figure out if I wanted to know something from a particular customer all I had to do was ask. Customers are not shy about giving you their option. Besides, why wonder?

Tags: Best Practice, Customer Care

The best way to strengthen your customer care may be to just stop talking and listen. This sounds simplistic, most good ideas are, but would you rather talk or listen if you were the customer or client?

I’ve had salespeople call me on the phone, talk for 15 minutes and hang up. I’m sure they then recorded that I was a satisfied customer with no complaints. They were on to their next fantasy call while I was still wondering what the call was for in the first place. If they wanted to know how I liked the product, wanted to purchase more, or was having a problem, why didn’t they ask?

The best way to gather intelligence from a client is to ask open-ended questions. For instance, if you asked your customer if they liked the product, they might say, “yes.” But, what have you learned, nothing? What if you asked your question this way, “Is there anything the product is not doing that you would like it to do?” Now you’re guaranteed feedback that will be valuable.

If your client thinks you are not interested in knowing what your product is not doing for them, he or she is bound to tell your competition.

So stop talking and start listening more.

Being quick to respond is vitally important to the success of your business. It builds customer loyalty. Staying ahead of clients and customers is an even better position. If you think a client is going to ask for something, don’t make them ask. Send the quote, write the email, makes the phone call. Because one of the services our firm offers is web hosting, we send out the past months statistics without our customers having to make a call asking for them. Using this approach let’s them know that they, and their needs, are on your mind and “first-rate service” is one of the lynchpins of your business.Retailers have an even harder job calculating when to be responsive. Do I let the person who walked in the front door look around or approach them and ask a question? I have learned that a retailer should never ask, “Is this your first time in our store?”, or the old “May I help you?” Both questions usually beg “No”. People don’t like to feel new nor do they like being viewed as helpless. Long ago I learned that a retailer should ask opened questions that will start a conversation. Once the conversation is underway, you can find out about the customer and the shopper can find out about your store. For example, why not ask, “Did you know we have a new product line?” or “Did you know we’re featuring this brand of coffee today?” Questions like these give the customer information they may not know and solicit their input.

Why ask what the other stores are asking? Be different.

And don’t ask the same questions day-after-day and week-after-week. Get to know the people who pass through your shop.

Responsive also applies to what’s in stock on the store shelves. If people keep asking for a product or brand name, do your best to have it in stock. I’m not suggesting you warehouse everyone’s ideas. But, if you’re not going to stock the item, at least have a good reason why not the next time a customer asks.

Tags: Best Practice, Customer Care

There is a “who cares” attitude among some people running service and retail businesses. For instance, we live in a small mountain town in the Colorado Rockies. Some of the merchants have been in business for more than twenty years. When you’re the only store-of-a-kind in town you start thinking people have to do business with you, they owe you. Well things are starting to change in our small mountain town. More people are moving in and there are new shopping options springing up every month. We now have four coffee shops, two hardware stores, two supermarkets and a dozen other retail duplications. The store owners that give good customer service will survive. The others will fade into the town’s history.A monotone voice that answers the phone also gives off an air of “who cares”. Let people know you’re glad to hear from them. Be helpful.

A shop owner that is too involved in taking inventory during open hours and does not attend to a customer’s needs sends the wrong signal as well.

Tags: Best Practice, Customer Care

Most people end their email messages with their favorite movie-line, a funny quote, some wisdom from Confucious or their name, address and phone number. Ever thought of turning the end of your email message into a marketing tool?

The majority of email programs, or email clients as they are known, allow a person to end their communiqués with a signature. I have been using Microsoft Outlook for many years now and have found it very powerful on the one hand and quite easy to modify on the other. I change my email signature often depending upon what’s going on in my business.

If I have a new product or service to announce, I change my signature to reflect what’s occurring. For example, I might end my email with a statement that says, “Web site Hosting - $10.” The people that receive my emails today may not need web hosting. But my message will stick in their minds or they’ll come across my email some time in the future when they do need my service. Don’t make people have to call you for the information. Put the information up on your web site and just tell them to “click here” for the details. If you make it difficult people will be reluctant to work for your information.

If you are publishing a newsletter or an eZine (an electronic publication), alter your email signature to let people know the next issue is on the streets. Here’s an example I worked up for a financial planning buddy - “The Principled Investor - Save - Invest - Speculate.”

Always include a line in your signature that announces your services so people won’t forget what it is you do. As an example, mine declares, “Web sites - Design, Build, Maintain, Market”.

Another thing you can do with your signature is to add a “Forward this email to a friend” link. If they’re interested in what you have to say or sell perhaps they know a colleague that could use your information or service. Make it easy for people to help you market.

The least you should do with your email signature is to mention your web site. The more people that visit your web site the more likely they are to look around.

Here’s one final thought about using your email as a marketing tool. Think about putting a short paragraph, just a few sentences, at the end of every message you send out that talks about something exciting that is happening in your business. If you just won an important contract, tell your readers. If you’ll be running a big sale next month, give them the opportunity to mark it down on their calendar.

If you need to see an example of what I’m talking about send me an email and I’ll send back a sample signature along with the code so you can set up your own marketing signature.

A wise person once told me, “never stop marketing no matter how much business you have”. I have always tried to follow that advice.

Good luck using your email as a marketing tool.

Tags: email, Marketing

Perhaps it’s a foregone conclusion in many people’s minds that the person selling the product or delivering the service is experienced, knowledgeable and qualified. Am I the only one that traipses up and down the aisles of Home Depot looking for a seasoned salesperson who has owned a home longer than I have; one who has first-hand experience at setting the wax ring on a toilet or who has single-handedly converted a gas dryer to propane?Knowledge and experience are what people are really looking for when they enter a store or professional’s office these days. They’re willing to lay down their hard-earned cash for someone who can solve their problem or sell them exactly what it is they’re looking to purchase. I’m reminded of the time my wife and I went shopping for a new tent at Grand West. We walked up to a salesperson in the department and the first question I asked was, “Do you tent camp?” He said, “All the time.” I knew he was the right person who could give me sound advice on the best tent for us.

People who sell products or services need to realize that customers or clients are imparting their trust more than parting with their cash. Customers are buying the layout of the store; how the business is run, the knowledge and attentiveness they receive. They are not just buying what’s in the bag or box.

We all have to admit that the advances in technology have been both a blessing and a curse. I’ve been associated with technology these past 30 years, but I have to admit I know little about the best DVD player to buy. I want to feel like the person selling me the DVD player understands my personal viewing habits, asks about the kind of sound system I have and the type and size of my television screen. Knowledge is a very salable quantity these days and customers will go in search of just the business to spend their money in.

One last word about knowledge and experience, everyone has to start some place, but learning on someone else’s time, or dime, is not the way to go grow your business. Don’t make the mistake of selling a service you can’t provide. It doesn’t take long to figure out whether the person has done a job some before. Words of mistakes travel faster than praise. A job poorly done will drive customers away. And the smaller the town the quicker the word will travel.

Whether you’re selling a service, your skill or a product, you’ll take the time to really learn the ins-and-outs of what you’re providing. People tend to do business with operators they know, trust and can build a relationship with over time.

A person shouldn’t think they can just open the doors to a new business and the competition won’t take notice. Not knowing the competition is one of the biggest causes of failure for small business. Let’s put together some survey questions that will help us figure out what we need to know about the competition. For the sake of our discussion, let’s say we’re thinking about opening a printing shop in a town where there already is an existing business. Here are some questions that immediately come to mind:What services does the competition offer? Does the other printer offer color copying while our plan is to offer only black and white?

What do they do well and where are they weakest? Perhaps the printer does a great job and delivers a clean, professional product, but never finishes a project on time.

Can we offer a service they do not offer? Perhaps the printer down the street sets up business stationary but does not offer design services for a new logo or look-and-feel.

What is their pricing structure? We’ll need to know if our prices are in-line with the competition. Our customers will make it their business to know what the competition charges and if we’re higher, they may not be back.

Why are their customers loyal? Customers are loyal to a business for a variety of reasons. Perhaps the existing printer has been in town for many years. Customers may just be faithful to a business because of its proximity to other stores they shop at.

What would make their customers switch? People are always looking for a better deal. If we offered express pickup or delivery, would that attract more business? Could we produce the same product quicker or less expensive?

What is the other printer’s marketing strategy? We’ll need to know how the competition markets. Are they in the newspapers, belong to local organizations, offer their services at cut-rate prices to the other businesses in town or are they always seen as being active in the community? Are people talking?

Is their location a factor in their success? Location used to mean everything. Now days that’s not always true. People will go looking for a business that delivers good services at a reasonable price. If our competition has the best location then we’ll have to have a marketing strategy to combat that problem.

Are their customers dissatisfied with any part of their service or product line? Businesses that deliver a high level of customer service seem to be in the minority these days. Again that print shop down the street may deliver a good product at the cheapest rates, but have less than acceptable customer service skills. Sales may draw people in, but good, dependable products or services, expertise, good customer service and a friendly smile will be what keeps customers coming back.

Is our competition on the Internet? Does the other print shop have a web site? Can their customers email images and copy to get a faster turnaround? Can people check to see if they job is complete without picking up the phone or driving into town? One needs to be everywhere their competition is and where they are not.

Knowledge and experience are what people are looking for these days. In Part V we’ll look at the last Marketing Know, “Knowing Your Product or Service.”

I came across an interesting book last year. A business colleague referred it to me. It’s titled, Marketing Magic by Don Debelak. After owning a consulting business these past 17 years I had to ask myself, “Why haven’t I read this book?”, “Why hasn’t someone told me about it before this?”To give you a quick tour of the book, the author deals with six subjects: Discovering Where the Money Is, Being Better than Everyone Else, Finding Customers, Motivating Customers, Communicating with Customers and Making the Sale. I’d like to focus on Discovering Where the Money Is. In other words, know the market - know your niche.

One of the key ideas discussed in his book is: Finding “Under” Served Customers. Serving those customers who are under-served has been helpful in reshaping my marketing strategy over this past year. There are many ways to segment a market in order to identity those who need service. One can split a market by size, usage, benefits, lifestyles, occupation, predisposition, distribution channels, geography, process, company versus individual, income, social class, personality or family size. Let’s look at a few examples. Geography is an easy way to separate the market. The closer a person comes to the Arkansas River the more likely you are to find whitewater rafting companies. Some electricians and carpenters only like working for builders or large companies. While other trades people prefer to work for individuals. What the author is saying is “Why serve a market that may already be over served? For instance, no small town can use several florists. That market is already saturated so why jump in the water? The product could be great, the price quite reasonable, the customer service superior to none, but if there’s no market there’s no profit and no business.

Another idea he develops is: Determining Possible Products or Services. Let’s say we’re contemplating opening an outdoor shop. Wouldn’t it make sense to put together a short survey to find out what types of gear the people in the area are most likely to buy?

Sometimes people make a purchase based more on preference than price. For instance, many people drink coffee. Some people like buying whole bean coffee and grinding their own brew every morning. Now a person could buy their beans off of a shelf in a supermarket. Others prefer a gourmet coffee shop. The beans at the gourmet shop are priced slightly higher, but the store owner gives their customers the option of sitting and having a cup before deciding which flavor to buy. As you can see, price was not the overriding factor in this decision.

There are many questions that need answering before one can draw any conclusions about the market. Who will want to buy the product or service? What makes them buy? Is it timing? Price? Is it seasonal? At what rate will they return to purchase again? Are they buying out of impulse or necessity? Is it the attention to detail, the superior customer service, the store’s location or proximity to other businesses that make people shop in a particular shop?

By answering these questions a person will know a great deal about the people that walk in a shop’s front door or call on the office phone. Don’t leave the market to chance. Find out what make’s your customers buy and stimulate that desire.

Now you know how to know your market. Don Debelak’s book will be one of those that I read, reread and constantly refer to. Part IV of our series covers “Knowing Your Competition” while Part V deals with “Knowing Your Product or Service.”