All Customers Should Hear From You Regularly

Business.

10 customer service tips to build loyal customers - it costs about 3 times more to find a new customer than it does to retain an existing customer. For most businesses, your best investment can and should be in keeping your existing customers happy, rather than always chasing new customers. But what does that mean?

Many businesses I work with have functioning client acquisition strategies, but have nothing put in place to keep their existing customers satisfied. - say thank you. Here are 10 tips to build loyal customers( and most cost nothing to put in place) . Customers have chosen to invest time and money with you. This can range from a simple verbal thank you, to a handwritten note on an invoice or a postcard, through to a bunch of flowers or corporate gift. Being grateful for their investment and saying thank you is one of the simplest and easiest ways to build customer relations. Whatever you choose to do to say thank you - do it from the heart and think about what you are doing.

The most magical word a person can hear is their own name. - learn names. Learn the names of your clients and use them in conversation. Many businesses get caught in the bind of promising too much to try and attract a customer and then not being able to deliver on their promises. Under promise and over deliver. This leaves the customer feeling less than happy with your service.

If a job is scheduled to take 3 days, allow for 4 just in case. - life gets in the middle of things at times, so it is better to factor this into your business up front. Give that little bit of extra service. With your customers, little gestures and touches make a difference. Little things mean a lot. If you are delivering a piece of furniture - wipe it over for the customer when you deliver it into their home. Always leave a property/ vehicle cleaner than you found it.

When visiting a client and the garbage bin people have just been, wheel the bin in for them. - if your business has kids as clients, put stickers or colourful stamps on your mail. Keep in touch. It is the little touches that make the difference. If you only contact your customers once a year( and that contact is an invoice) , expect little customer loyalty in return. Your" A" clients - the ones you love to work with, pay on time and generate the most income, should hear from you at a minimum every 1 - 2 months.

Find ways to keep in touch with your customers. - again it doesn' t have to be big - an email hoping things are going well for them, a quick phone call, a bag of biscuits dropped in while you were passing or a copy of a newspaper clipping they may be interested in all do the job. Find a way to automate things as much as possible for you - a newsletter or an autoresponder email can make your life easier, while still reminding people that you are thinking of them. All customers should hear from you regularly. Remember significant events. Some businesses I know have a concertina file for each month of the year. If your client is getting married, having a birthday or other special event, or are celebrating a holiday such as Christmas - all of these are opportunities to drop a line to say" thinking of you" .

At the start of the year they buy a stack of birthday cards and fill them in, wishing their client a happy birthday. - they fill in the name of client, but leave the address blank to check just before it is mailed. Where the stamp goes they pencil in the date of the birthday. At the start of each month they simply pull out all the cards for the month, check the addresses and then post out the cards. Complaints are an opportunity to show how can you respond and fix problems. Solve problems first time.

In my experience complaints only ever go bad if the person is ignored, not treated with, not listened to respect or palmed off. - work out whether or not losing a customer is worth you being right if you feel the customer is in the wrong. With any complaints, listen carefully without interruptions. Solve the problem or review your procedures so the problem does not recur. Communicate. Tell the customer what you will do/ have done and most importantly - apologise( and mean it) .

Lots of problems come from businesses that don' t communicate with their customers. - if you are going to be early - contact the client and tell them. If your delivery is delayed - contact your client and tell them. Keep your customers informed of progress and any problems that may be occurring. If a customer contacts you, aim to respond within 24 hours. Respond to emails, faxes and calls.

Even just a quick email to acknowledge their contact is better than deathly silence. 1Smile and be friendly. - you can teach skills - you can' t teach attitude as easily. Genuinely caring about your customers and their well being shines through. Always look for the happy employee who genuinely cares about your customers and their needs. They will become your greatest asset your company has.