Customers/Clients Archives - Page 18 of 35

Marketing tip #1: Create a love affair with your customers

November 1, 2010

Satisfaction is nice. Loyalty is good. Repeat business is dandy.

But none of that is love. And if you really want to get and keep a customer for life — you have to be willing to stick your neck out and love them. You need to put your heart on your sleeve and woo them.

You need to create a love affair
with your customers.

Why? Let me give you 5 good reasons.

It feels good: No matter what you sell — it feels better to serve people you care about. It's easier to go the extra mile for customers that are special. It helps elevate your work to noble work. As my friend Steve Farber says…"do what you love in the service of people who love what you do."

It's easier to sell more to a current customer who loves you, than a new customer: In fact, recent studies show that it 6-7 times more costly to acquire a new customer than it is to retain an old (in love) one.

It's more profitable: Boosting your customer retention up by as little as 5% can elevate your profits by 5-95%. New customers are more price sensitive and require a huge amount of up front time, even after you've closed the deal.

It generates word of mouth: When a customer loves you, they can't help but talk about you to others. When you make them feel special and go out of your way to love them — they will be your most powerful marketing tool — advocates who spread word of mouth.

It's incredible for employee retention: Who doesn't want to work at a place that gives them permission to be incredibly kind and considerate? Who wouldn't love to hear customers rave about them? Who isn't looking for a way to put more meaning into their work? Why not make it a labor of love!

Is there a business who has created a love affair with you? How does it feel to be on the receiving end of that kind of attention?

The real question in my mind is — why wouldn't you create a love affair with your customers?

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Marketing tip #17: Stop assuming!

October 29, 2010

I've said it before….no one is worse at seeing your business objectively than you. If you own or run it — you cannot possibly remove your own biases, opinions and hopes from the equation.

So when you make operating, marketing and customer service decisions, you need to second guess yourself now and then. You need to remove yourself from the equation and see it from your customer's perspective. But how do you do that, if you can't possibly be objective?

You walk in your customers' shoes. Literally.

You need to experience exactly what they experience. Go through your own drive thru, try to navigate your phone system without using any of the back end short cuts, see what asking for a credit or return feels like.

I'm betting that 90% of companies never do this. They think they know what their customer wants, so based on that dangerous assumption — they run their business. We all know the old saying about what happens when you assume…

Over at IowaBiz today, I explore this topic some more. Come jump into the conversation.

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Why is world class customer service so rare?

October 28, 2010

Last week, I told you about three conferences that I thought were worth your time and attention (and my readers added a few more in the comments section!). One of the conferences I mentioned was the Secret Service Summit.

I had a chance to run some questions by the event's founder, John DiJulius. I think you'll find his take thought-provoking.

Drew: Why do so few companies truly offer exceptional customer service?

John: The view customer service as an expense rather than an asset, yet in down economies, the only businesses surviving with long term sustainability are the ones that focus on making the customer experience their competitive advantage. A company’s strongest asset in any economy is customer loyalty.

Drew: What are the top 10 obstacles to providing great customer service?

John:

Lack of service aptitude.
Decline in people skills.
Inability in connecting employees’ jobs and their importance to success of the company.
Poor hiring standards.
Lack of experiential training.
Not letting employees have input on systems.
Failure to implement and execute consistently.
Lack of a strong employee culture.
Lack of measurements and accountability.
Focus on artificial growth.

Drew: Some suggest that you either have the customer service gene or not. Can it be taught and if so, what are the keys to successfully teaching it?

John: I disagree, most people have low service aptitude when they enter the world of business, because service aptitude is based on one’s life experiences & previous work experiences.

Front line employees do not make enough to drive Mercedes Benz, fly first class, or stay at five star hotels, yet leaders expect those same people to provide a world class experience. They do not have clue what truly world class is.

Service Aptitude: A person’s ability to recognize opportunities to exceed customer’s expectations, regardless of the circumstances.

It is companies & managers responsibility to elevate and dictate new and existing employees Service Aptitude through soft skill training and constant awareness to what world class looks like.

Drew: What do you find to be most surprising when you think about incredible customer service?

John: When someone anticipates your needs before you are even aware of it and when someone handles a challenge even when it is not their fault.

Drew: How will someone be different after they attend the Secret Service Summit?

John: The Secret Service Summit is about creating a customer service revolution, which is; A radical overthrow of conventional business mentality designed to transform what employees and customers experience. This shift produces a culture that permeates into people’s personal lives, at home and in the community, which in turn provides the business with higher sales, morale and brand loyalty– making price irrelevant.

So what do you think? Is he right? Do you think everyone can be taught how to deliver exceptional customer service or is there an innate gift that makes some people remarkable and others just passable?

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Marketing tip # 71: How many hooks have you set?

October 25, 2010

Whether it comes to fish or our customers, the more hooks we have in them, the more likely we're going to be able to keep them!

I'd like to think the "hooks" we have in our customers — the reasons they can't imagine going anywhere else to buy what we sell, aren't painful, but in fact… they're the little things we do to be so remarkable and so unforgettable, we have earned their business and their love for life.

That's the way we should be setting our hooks. With love. It's all about creating that love affair with our customers.

I was speaking to a banking association last week and told them the story of a bank who happens to have a significant population of 70+ aged customers. Which makes social security day a busy one! Lots of elderly ladies showing up to deposit those checks and then they hang out for awhile.

The bank saw the opportunity and began providing cookies and coffee. It was a white haired networking extravaganza. Now, that's a nice hook.

But the bank tellers took it to a whole new level. They started noticing if some of the regulars hadn't been in the bank for awhile and they took it upon themselves to call those customers (often widows who lived alone) to make sure they were okay and if they needed any assistance. Some of the elderly actually broke down and cried on the phone because they were so touched by the concern.

That's setting a hook with love. And that's how you keep a customer for life.

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Are you smart enough to know what they really want?

October 7, 2010

Sometimes I think we get in our own way. Our heads over think and we don't just trust our instincts.

Try this experiment.

Grab some paper and a pencil/pen. Without any editing and within one minute — jot down the three reasons people buy from you.

No censoring, no being politically correct, no company speak. Just trust your gut.

Once you're done, take a look at the list. Are those the benefits you talk about on your website, in your brochure and as you pitch a prospect?

I'm betting not. You have "marketing speak" in all those places. You aren't speaking from your customers' heart.

What would you say if you were truly speaking in their voice…about what actually matters to them?

(The photo is a high end restaurant in Chicago. I'm sure they have thick steaks, fresh flown in seafood and the best liquors and wines. But check out what they promote in their middle window.)

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Facebook tip #413: Start with a question

September 17, 2010

Everyone and their brother has built a Facebook Fan page or has a Facebook account. And the ultimate goal is to get more LIKES and more interaction.

It makes sense — no one is going to buy from you until they know who you are.

Sadly, most people approach this "new" media with the same methodology as they've used in traditional media. I call it the "Let me tell you all about me" method.

Imagine being at a party (because social media is a lot like a cocktail party) and a stranger or someone you barely know walks up to you and says…

"Hi, aren't you glad to see me? I'm quite fascinating, aren't I? Let me tell you a little about me. I graduated from college in 1994 and began an illustrious career as a physician. And I must tell you, my bedside manner is the buzz around around the hospital."

When you see it illustrated like that — it's clearly insane. And yet, pay attention to what shows up in your Facebook NewsFeed and watch the businesses and business people tell you all about themselves. Yuck. (If you're grimacing right now, it's because YOU do this!)

On the flip side, watch a master communicator like Scott Ginsberg (the nametag guy) demonstrate the way to begin to build relationships. You ask questions. Scott is constantly posing relevant, off the wall, sometimes just plan odd questions. And boy does he get participation.

Why? Because people will fall over themselves to talk about… themselves. How do you make a sale? Get people to talk about themselves.

Are you seeing the connection?

If you want to build an active community that knows who you are and what you do — know who they are and what they do. Learn all about them by asking questions.

What would be a talk-generating question you could ask your online audience today?

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Do you want your jerky naked or hot and smoky?

September 11, 2010

For the last decade, marketers have been talking about customization.

We've acknowledged that the Baby Boomers had both the personality and disposable income to generate enough market pressure that companies big and small started adding options and choices to their offerings.

Often, the options were window dressing. Sprinkles versus nuts. Companies were trying to meet the demand without going out of business.

The challenge in the early days was finding enough customers to make the customization profitable. Somehow, you had to have enough demand for each version so you could still apply some principles of mass production to manage costs.

But today…the mass adoption of the web has answered that question. How do you find enough customers? Go online, of course.

The New York Times reports that the marriage of the worldwide customer base on the internet and customization hunger are a match made in heaven. Check out these stats.

"Zazzle, CafePress and Scrapblog, a site that lets people create and print digital scrapbooks, have each reported 80 percent increases in sales this holiday season compared with last year. Orders at Spreadshirt, where people can customize shirts, bags, umbrellas and even underwear, have doubled. At Blurb, where people create their own photo or art books, sales are up 43 percent.

Meanwhile, overall e-commerce sales have grown only 4 percent this season, according to comScore, and offline retail sales have barely grown at all."

And now…even your beef jerky can be built to order. New Jersey's Slant Shack's jerky offers customers numerous choices.

Traditional USDA choice or organic grass-fed beef?
An original or a “hot & smoky” marinade?
A rub of four tantalizing options or the “naked” approach.
Finally, brown sugar or spicy pepper glaze.

(No doubt my friends David Armano and Connie Reece are going to order some today!)

Why am I telling you all this? Because it matters to your business, whether you are a CPA firm or a bakery. The Boomers created the demand. But today's digital natives have grown up surrounded by it. They don't know anything else.

So you can't go the sprinkles versus nuts routine. You need to actually offer real choices that matter to your consumers. Cookie cutter won't cut it anymore.

The good news is…you can build customization into many aspects of your business:

Your products or services
Delivery speeds/methods
Packaging
Billing options

So….how are you going to give your customers real choices that matter to them, feel significant but don't break your business model?

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Is the juice worth their squeeze

July 20, 2010

Let's face it, we're a lazy people. The idea of actually getting up to change the TV channels or hand crank open a car window is almost offensive to us.

We are used to our conveniences. And we don't expend a significant amount of effort without getting something of note in return. And yet, we seem to forget this human truth when concocting some of our marketing efforts.

As you are crafting a new campaign or gimmick that you hope will go viral — always ask yourself, is the juice worth the squeeze for my audience.

Let me give you an example. These photos are the pizza box top from a place called Ciro's. It's a fun idea and an eye-catching, almost handwritten design. Here's what they want their customers to do:

Cut out Ciro from the top of the pizza box (Scissors, a knife, exacto blade?)
Carry Ciro around with you until you go someplace interesting
Have a camera (or cell phone with a camera) with you and remember to snap a photo of yourself and Ciro
E-mail them the photo so they can put it on their wall

What's in it for you? A free pizza.

For a poor college student, this is probably just the thing to do on a Friday night. Especially after a couple beers. God only knows where Ciro has appeared.

But for a busy mom or harried business guy ordering pizza from his hotel room, probably not going to happen. A free pizza just isn't worth the hassle.

Whether you want your customers to fill out a survey, prospects to play a scavenger hunt, or want to try some variation of the drive them to a website, 800 number or bounce back card — always remember that you need to make the reward worthy of the effort.

And not everyone will judge that through the same lens. So decide who is most important to you and design the reward for them. Hopefully Ciros wanted to capture the college crowd.

What do you think…do most marketers ask themselves this question before launching a new initiative?

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Social media fans and followers are like new neighbors

May 21, 2010

Imagine glancing out your front window just as the moving van pulls in at the house across the street. Oh goodie…a new neighbor!

As soon as the moving van unloads everything and pulls away, you brush your teeth, run your fingers through your hair and head over. After all… you've got to check them out, right?

Their garage door is still open and it's packed with stuff. You start rummaging through the boxes and are pumped when you see the power tools. You have a lot of uses for those! You hear the door leading into the house open up and a startled man looks at you in surprise.

With skipping a beat, you look up and say, "Hey neighbor! Nice to meet you. Mind if I take these tools for a couple days? I'm finishing my basement and…"

I know…it sounds crazy doesn't it? Everyone knows that you don't treat a new neighbor that way. The proper way to get to know a new neighbor is to take over a little gift or some freshly baked cookies. You ask if there's anything you can do to help them settle in. Maybe you watch the kids while they unpack or you offer to bring dinner over so they don't have to worry about getting to the grocery store.

In other words — you give without expecting to get something in return.

The same is true in social media. When you get a new neighbor in the form of a Facebook fan, Twitter follower or blog subscriber — you don't dig through their proverbial garage, looking for what you can get from them. You don't immediately try to sell them something or make them jump through a bunch of hoops.

And yet that's exactly what most businesses do. Automated DM tweets pushing their product, Facebook updates that are all about them and blog posts that are just self-promotional press releases.

No wonder most companies abandon their social media efforts and declare it all a waste of time. Because they're lousy neighbors.

Related posts:

Photo courtesy of Shutterstock

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Give them your heart… and then your head

May 19, 2010

Clients have high expectations of us and rightly so. And I think that most companies (and employees) bust a hump to meet and exceed those expectations. But sooner or later, we're going to mess up.

It's inevitable. We're human beings and we screw up.

Whether we catch our own mistake or the client points it out — how we respond in those first few minutes will make or break the experience. I have always said — it's not the screw up, it's how we handle the screw up that matters.

Because we work our tails off to please and serve our clients — when we mess up, we're embarrassed and we are highly motivated to correcting the problem. So we go into "Fix It Mode."

Oops…we just made it worse. Yup… worse.

The client doesn't want you to fix it. Not yet. First, they want you to feel their pain. They want to know that you are sorry (you cannot substitute words here…the words are: "I am very sorry…") and that you are upset that you have let them down. In other words, it's time to eat some humble pie.

It's not that the client wants you to grovel or beat yourself up. But they're feeling pretty lousy at this point. And they want to know you're in it with them. They want you to feel as badly about it as they do. This is less about blame and much more about reassurance that when things go wrong — you give a damn.

Then and only then, can you go into "Fix It Mode." If you go immediately to fixing the problem and you're all logical and left brained — to them it feels like you don't care. You're just trying to get out of the jam you find yourself in. When you go right into "Fix It Mode" — it feels to the client like it's about you, not them.

And they really need it to be about them. (As it should be.)

But once you've demonstrated that you're sitting right there beside them and are feeling as badly as they are — then you can roll right into your creative problem solving and fix whatever is broken.

Ultimately, they do want you to solve it. But not before you've felt it. So remember…heart and then head.

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