Wall Directory - BUILDING CUSTOMER LOYALTY

Customers want to like you and trust you. Otherwise, they don’t want to do business with you. Loyal customers like honest people. This is why they come back. This is why they refer you to their mother! In a sea of online businesses that do not live up to expectations and brick and mortar businesses that go out of business, these are not trusting times. It is hard to know when to trust a business. You want to standout by being someone your customer wants to have as a friend. That’s real business. You want to like and respect someone before you give them your money. Make yourself that someone with a few simple reminders.

The Top 5 mistakes businesses make
1.      Being vague. Vague information eventually becomes obvious. If you’re not licensed or qualified to do your business, there is no need to elaborately cover up that detail. People respect inherent knowledge and efforts. If you are honest outright, no one will claim you were trying to be deceiving.
2.      Stalking. You spent money and time advertising. You get a few leads. You give them the information that they requested. You live up to your promise to inform. Now, you’re waiting, and waiting, and… (sound of crickets). Waiting for leads requires patience. Call a lead (or email). Send out snail mail. Wait. Try again after two weeks. Make sure that you confirm an interest and correct contact information. Give people a reason to contact you back. Do not call someone each day and hang up. Leave a message, wait a few days, and then call back within 48 hours. Common courtesy should make a person call you back, unless you’re a debt collector! It is unlikely that you will get a lead to contact you, if you’re annoying them.
3.      Disappearing. You can’t be reliable if you do not communicate. If you go on vacation or have some type of start-up emergency, there is nothing wrong about telling you customers. A deli in my town recently posted a sign on their door two weeks ahead of time that they were to be closed on an upcoming Sunday for a family wedding. When I walked into the family-owned establishment that Saturday, I waited on a line for almost 20 minutes, but aside from being antsy about wanting to go home, I was authentically happy as a human being for this family. I could live without my fresh bread on Sunday.
4.      Poorly training staff. If your staff is your frontline, be responsible for training them properly. You could have the best product on the planet, but it can become easily inconsequential to a customer who is dealing with a moody or rude sales representative. We’ve all had our share of stories in this area as customers. Guarantee that this won’t happen in your business. Fire people when necessary. It’s the only way that they will learn to represent you.
5.      Lying. This seems obvious, but many businesses engage in a little fibbing from time to time. It’s really not okay. You may make the sale, but you will never get that customer to come back, and the odds are that they will tell everyone about your dishonest business methods. Don’t embellish. Don’t promise when you know that you can’t keep it. State facts. Preface opinions appropriately.

The easiest way to keep a customer loyal to your business is actually free. Smile. If you smile while you’re being honest with a customer, even if you can’t help them, you are setting a good tone for your business. When you smile on the phone, people hear it. When you smile after not making a sale, a person feels like a person, not a dollar walking away. Keep your priorities straight. You need to make money, but you need to build and keep a reputation. Always be pleasant. In the end, it is maybe the only thing that a customer will remember, especially if they are not interested in your business. At least, they will be interested in you, and you never know when you will encounter them again.

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