More Information About Starting Your Small Business
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Customer Service
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Customer Service –
An Imperative |
The Golden Rule, "do
unto others as you would have them do unto you," may seem self-evident
in the way we try to conduct our personal lives. Yet this axiom is
assuming new importance as a guiding principle in the world of business.
The climate of the recession-ridden early 1980s, when customers
blithely traded away high-quality service in exchange for price
reductions or convenience is no more. Instead, customers are demanding
service again. And companies of all sizes are realizing that their
strongest selling point can sometimes boil down to treating customers
as they would like to be treated -- or better. "Consumers are
beginning to feel that their needs haven't been met," explains
Bonnie Jansen of the U.S. Office of Consumer Affairs. "They're
sick of getting poor service all the time."
And the message is getting through. According to John Goodman,
president of the Technical Assistance Research Programs Institute
(TARP):"In the past few years, companies began to realize that
service was really competitive factor, and began to view it as an
integral part of their product."
The growing significance of meeting -- or exceeding -- customer
demands for quality service has special implications for small business.
For it is in this arena that small companies can, in the least expensive
way, set themselves apart from the competition.
In fact, a recent three-year study by the National Federation of
Independent Business (NFIB) in Washington, D.C., showed that small
businesses which put heavy emphasis on customer service were more
likely to survive and succeed than competitors who emphasized such
advantages as lower prices or type of product. |
Golden Rule #1: Put the
Customer First |
"A strong customer
ethic must guide your business from the inception," writes
author and business owner Paul Hawken in his book, Growing a Business.
"No matter whether you manufacture, grow, produce, distribute
or sell, you are 'in service.' "
Quality customer service begins with your employees. An owner of
a successful chain of hair salons advises that the first step is
to set standards. Then make sure everyone in the company understands
them. Finally, he says, reward employees for achieving your service
goals. And be sure to seek out and solve any annoyances they might
have that could lead to poor morale. An employee with a complaint
cannot be completely effective in dealing with customers. "If
you take care of your employees, they will take care of your customers."
On the other hand, Hawken warns, if your employees are not customer-oriented,
no standards or goals will change that. "We concentrate on
hiring people who embody the quality of service for which we strive.
It is difficult to teach someone to be helpful and serve others
if he or she is misanthropic to begin with."
Hiring the best people means trusting them. Your employees should
be able to do what is necessary to make the customer happy without
fear of reprisal.
Says Hawken, "Policies and procedures are helpful only as
guides toward an end result. When employees run out of possibilities
to make the customer happy, they must have the latitude to improvise
to make it right. Most employees operate in a state of fear that
their own generosity with a customer will be viewed as foolishness
by their boss. This situation will stifle flexible customer service."
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Golden Rule #2: Stay
Close to Your Customers |
In the smartest companies,
asking questions and listening carefully to the answers is an important
part of customer service. These firms train their employees to focus
on what the customer is saying, and then tailor products or services
to meet customer needs. Says one corporate executive and his words
hold true for smaller firms as well, "Knowing what's on the
customer's mind is the smartest thing we can do."
It is also cheaper than attracting new customers. According to
the Customer Service Institute, 65% of a company's business comes
from existing customers, and it costs five times as much to attract
a new customer than to keep an existing one satisfied.
Losing a customer is even more expensive. According to studies
by the Technical Assistance Research Programs Institute, 91% of
unhappy customers will never buy again from a company that has displeased
them and will also voice their dissatisfaction to at least seven
other people.
This responsibility to be receptive does not lie solely with your
employees, however. If you want your business to be successful,
you must listen to and talk with customers as well. There is no
substitute for getting out "where the action is" to learn
from the customers themselves how you might serve them better. The
best business owners are not only committed to staying close to
their clientele, but also identify with them. They give their customers
the level of service they themselves would expect to receive. Moreover,
a good relationship with customers necessitates paying attention
to every link in the distribution chain. That means listening to
everyone who helps get your products to market and asking them for
suggestions on improving your service. Be sure to take advantage
of feedback from employees, especially those whose everyday job
is dealing with customers. They can serve as tremendous reservoirs
of information.
"Our goal as a company is to create customer service that
is not just the best, but legendary," Paul Hawken asserts.
“‘Legendary’ gives everyone who deals with customers
a rich sense of the possibilities."
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Golden Rule #3: Pay Attention
to the Little Details |
Many owners search
for a special touch that will make them stand out from the crowd.
Discount coupons, longer hours, home delivery or free coffee, for
example, all show customers you want to take that extra step to
please them.
Some of the most effective "extras" are really very basic
adages of conducting good business, although customers are often
surprised when they take place. These include answering the phone
by the third ring; treating customers respectfully and courteously
at all times; greeting them by name; promptly answering their questions
and, if you can't, getting back to them with an answer as quickly
as possible; and manufacturing high-quality goods that work the
first time and keep working.
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Conclusion |
Customer service is definitely
enjoying a resurgence. It's no longer the domain of a few clever companies
which have made it synonymous with their names. No business, whatever
its size, can afford to take customers for granted, because it's without
question a buyer's market and becoming more so every day. To succeed,
you must give your customers what they want, not what you think
they want. And as you never know who might eventually become a customer,
that means providing courteous, friendly service to your suppliers
and others with whom you come in contact, as well as current customers.
If you want to keep customers coming back for more, practicing the
Golden Rule has never made better business sense.
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FIVE RULES OF CUSTOMER
CARE |
Critical to keeping
customers happy is understanding them and the way they think. For
example, customers do business on the basis of emotional desire:
they want what they want -- when they want it. Customers also tend
to gravitate toward a company or group of people they like. Plus,
most customers have a strong tendency to stick with businesses with
which they are familiar, and are slow to change buying habits unless
given a very good reason.
However, when they are displeased, even by a small disappointment
or discourteous word, various surveys have revealed that customers
tell from seven to 11 people about their dissatisfaction.
An important key to serving customers well is this: don't try to
change them. Here are five specific steps to help you take full
advantage of the critical element of customer care:
1. Conduct your own survey. Profit from the ideas, suggestions
and complaints of your present and former customers. Talk and meet
with your customers. Ask questions. Learn their attitudes, what
they want and what they dislike.
2. Check employees' telephone manners periodically. This link is
particularly important for small businesses, as bad telephone handling
can undermine other constructive efforts to build a profitable enterprise.
3. Rules such as prompt answering and a cheerful attitude of helpfulness
are of critical importance. Have someone whose voice is unfamiliar
play the role of a customer or prospective customer, preferably
a difficult one.
4. Make customer service a team effort. Use group meetings, memos,
posters and in-house publications to build customer consciousness
throughout the organization. Continually drive home the crucial
rule that getting and holding customers requires team play, and
invite employee ideas.
5. Extend your efforts after hours. It's the friendly feelings people
have that draw them to you and your business. Take advantage of
the relaxed atmosphere of social occasions or a neighborly chat
over the back fence to turn friends into customers, or to reinforce
the loyalty of existing ones.
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