The Sunday Mail
“How you think about your customers influences how you respond to them” Marilyn Suttle, Success Coach
Humans in their natural state love to share stories either good or bad. This love of story-telling has seen some stories being shared around the globe through the film industry or through literature. The business world also has its stories to share and some of it is shared by its customers through customer experience.
Although bad news is said to be more memorable in human minds, exceptional good news also takes that spot. Businesses must therefore thrive to never give bad news a chance especially in this age where information travels at the speed of lightning but rather give customers a positive experience that will make it hard for them to contain but love to share it with anyone who cares to listen.
Businesses that are customer centric know that investing in out of this world customer experience is the greatest marketing tool. Customers that have received amazing experience literally becomes the human version of an organisation advertising tool. These customers will not stop at anything just to share the pleasant experience.
It is therefore up to the organisation to create lifelong customers that are willing, able and enthusiastic to be brand advocates. They will definitely be referrals who will refer as many clients as they can at zero commission. Once a company manages to build a sizeable clientele business then a growth pedestal is definite.
- Get together with your customers Customers love it when they are celebrated by their service providers. How they are celebrated really depends with each organisation and the service that they provide. Customer databases are a gold reserve that must be treasured and extracted for the right reasons. Organisations that are smart do not just gather names and addresses of their customers and file them somewhere and forget about them. They gather all the relevant information that will be of use when they plan to do something special for them. Birthdays, anniversaries, achievements and even difficult times of customers are important to know. Be creative and come up with fun ways to bring your customers together as a way to strengthen the relationships and create unbreakable bonds. It must not always be big and extravagant but it can be a private, intimate and small affair just for the organisation’s top clients. It feels right when you are appreciated and valued.
- Be in touch
Being present in your customers life throughout your business relationship will always make you a permanent feature in their minds. However, your presence should always be associated with great customer service experience. Offer solutions to their problems is one way and provide value that is beneficial to their needs. Business news updates, market updates, technology breakthroughs, new global trends, political activities that has an effect on the local or global economy and even healthy living tips must also be shared with the customers. These updates must be relevant and regularly shared so that they will always serve as a reminder of your existence in their business world whenever an opportunity to make a buying decision arise.
Strategies that make you stay on top of your customers’ mind make them consider you as an expert in your field and you always be their trusted adviser and go to person.
- Ask for recommendations
Organisations that are so confident of their superior service are never afraid to tell their customers to recommend them in their circles. When exceptional service is given, word spread like a veld fire and soon you become the talk of town. A delighted customer is likely to refer anyone in need of your service to you. Thus, their actions make them an organisation’s mobile advertising bill board. They also provide word of mouth referrals. Exceeding customers’ expectations automatically gives an organisation the right to ask that they be considered recommending others to you. When referrals start trooping in never be too busy for them but rather work hard so that you become the only service provider in your field they will go to.
Always be reliable, trustworthy and above all provide quality service or product wrapped in delightful customer care. There so much enthusiasm involved when one refers another customer to a service provider who is known for delivering beyond and above, in fact they become the organisation’s advertising loudspeakers in its marketplace. Positive customer experience equals increased business from quality clients and a rise in high quality leads.
- Provide the human touch
Never underestimate the power of the human element. Even if in this day artificial intelligence and robots are making some human tasks redundant, people in their natural state still crave that connection that can only be provided by another living being. The world has become busier as people hustle to make a living; the only way people can reconnect is when you give them the original human feel. Customers love it too when their service providers delight them with surprises. A simple handwritten personal note from an organisation to their customer who is in hospital can brighten their day…imagine getting a bouquet of flowers and a box of chocolate instead of an invoice or statement or bill? This can be accompanied by a voice call just to check on them. Gestures as these shows that the relationship is much more than just transactional but that the customer is a priority too. However, they must never be fake gestures but rather come from a genuine point done through authentic communication. When customers are happy there is likely to an increase in the reach of the organisation’s brand and a fat bank account will be on the way too!
Cresencia Marjorie Chiremba is a marketing enthusiast with a strong passion for customer service. For comments, suggestions and training, she can be reached on [email protected] or on 0712 979 461
