Why Providing Excellence in Customer Service is Essential to Every Business Written by Myron Curry
Customer service is end-all to any company’s success or failure. The customer is what provides income that a company needs to thrive and determines whether or not a company can continue to stay in business. Therefore, it is of utmost importance that a high level of customer service always be something to strive for. Without continued excellence in customer service, a company’s success is over before it starts. GET TO KNOW ‘EM So many times we see a company provide what customer is looking for and then send them on their way. In a bicycle shop, for example, a customer walks in and is obviously searching for something related to a bicycle. He or she mentions that a desire to purchase a new bicycle is what has brought them into store that day. The shop owner has plenty of bicycles for sale, lets customer find one they like, receives payment, and lets transaction end there. One thing to remember is that, often, businessman or woman knows more about product or service they are providing than even most informed customer. Suppose that customer in bicycle shop picked out a street racing, ten-speed bicycle and shop owner, neglecting to develop a personal relationship with customer, let customer’s choice be beginning of transaction and payment for said bicycle be end of it. Now, suppose that same customer with a new street racing ten-speed bicycle was planning on taking that bicycle on a mountain trip through rugged and desolate trails. Obviously, street racing ten-speed is not best of choices for doing so. If shop owner had taken time to talk to customer and asked questions such as, “So, planning on doing some riding? Where at?” shop owner would have been able to suggest a better product for customer and, hence, developed an appreciative bond between business and customer, causing customer to, more-than-likely, make a return visit. MAKE IT SPECIAL Sometimes, excellent customer service calls for unusual. Make an effort to go extra mile and provide what is known as “customer-led services”. Some customers might work until 5:00 p.m., which is just when your store closes. Offering to let customer shop after store closes is catering to a customer’s special needs and goes a LONG way in relationship department. This sort of action also goes hand-in-hand with developing a personal relationship with customer, as mentioned earlier. This example of customer service is something that can be used anywhere, from a small storefront business to a large corporation. The point is, pay attention to special needs of your customers, whether a customer is a casual shopper or a corporate client, and you will be rewarded with continued business from that customer again and again.
| | Sell at the top -- enjoy greater success!Written by Frank Williams
As a former CEO of a good size industrial company, I always found it strange that I didn't have more salespeople call me directly. Did they know I always answered my own phone? Did they not intuitively understand that, at some point, I would be involved in any major buying decision? Did they not grasp that getting to know me and understand my thinking would be a smart move in closing any sales with my firm? And, to me, starting at top seems to be best place to begin any sales cycle, yet my phone rarely had salesman attached to other end and many studies on sales techniques confirm this.Would you be surprised to find out that more than seventy-five percent of high-level decision makers are involved early-on in any major buying process? A more shocking statistic yields that less than five percent of all salespeople talk to high-level decision maker. Why is this? Global Marketing, Inc. held discussions with many salespeople about this inhibitor to greater sales achievement. Lack of business knowledge, low confidence or no experience connecting with high-level decision makers is most common feedback as to why these sales people don't start at top. Global Marketing suggests that if you have these individuals in your organization - route them out fast or train them how to approach and close on high-level decision makers, or your competitor will! Selling at highest level in any account makes good selling sense. Calling on these top-level people means talking to someone who has ability to say "yes" or "no" to your idea. Going straight to top means shorter sales cycle, better treatment, and will create additional pull for your idea. Those that sell at top usually find there is less competition because (as earlier stated) most salespeople are too intimidated to call on top decision maker. And when was last time you heard a top decision maker suggest that they don't have budget for an idea they like. Failure to call at a high level within a targeted business come with a variety of salespeople rationalizations. Many individuals we spoke to said they were afraid to go over head of their lower-level contact in fear of offending them. Others stated they feel intimidated by top level decision makers.
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