|
|
|
How Not to Write a Press Release
Several years ago, when I was working for an agency, I was fired from an account. What that means is the client didn’t want me writing for him anymore. Another writer, a friend of mine, got the account and life went on. Of course, I was pretty...
Investors: Avoid These 5 Common Tax Mistakes
For many investors, and even some tax professionals, sorting through the complex IRS rules on investment taxes can be a nightmare. Pitfalls abound, and the penalties for even simple mistakes can be severe. As April 15 rolls around, keep the...
Seven Steps to Getting Known - Guerrilla Public Relations for the Entrepreneur
So you’ve started your own business and you’re ready to let the world (or your neighborhood) know. Now it’s time to add public relations to the list of your entrepreneurial skills. Public relations is human relations and a critical aspect of...
When it comes to your releases, don't bargain with jargon.
Learn the top press release writing mistake and ways to avoid it.
Copyright 2005 Cherry Communications/Be Heard SolutionsWhat is one of the biggest pet peeves of journalist everywhere? It’s jargon. And it comes in many forms.
Are you...
“Why Business Owners Need Security”
Publishing Guidelines: You are welcome to publish this article in its entirety, electronically, or in print, free of charge, as long as you include my full signature file. Please send a courtesy link or email where you publish to secuone@aol.com...
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
How to Turn Your Customers Into Evangelists
When we talk about customer loyalty, it usually means
the customer being loyal to the company. That should be
a great result to aim for, but it isn't the beginning
of the story. Real customer loyalty comes from you
being loyal to your customers.
Exceeding expectations is a worn-out cliché these days,
but like all clichés, it covers an important truth. In
an age of instant gratification and heightened public
awareness of consumer issues, your customers expect you
to be good. Good is standard. Good is the average
against which you are judged.
Good doesn't win you any prizes.
Bad, on the other hand, ranges from outright awful, to
'trying-hard-but-not-quite-there'. Any point on this
long line results in three things - none of which you
want: The immediate loss of a customer; the certain
loss of their future trade; the probability that they
will bad-mouth you to everyone they know, ensuring that
a number of potential customers are lost to you as
well.
-------------------------------------------------------
Aside: In writing this, I am deliberately personalizing
it to you. You are the representative of your company
whether you are the boss or the messenger. Customers
don't care about your position; they care about the
service they receive. So whoever you are, whatever you
do, the customer service buck MUST stop with YOU.
-------------------------------------------------------
Let's get practical. How do you go beyond 'good'? There
are three steps that every company should take, no
matter how big or small they are:
1. Empowerment
2. Think like your customers
3. Find out who is the best in your field, copy them,
and go a step further.
Empowerment.
------------
This is a little-understood, but immensely powerful
concept. Too many companies are frightened to implement
empowerment because they fear loss of control. They are
so wrong. If the idea is introduced correctly, with
every member of staff understanding what is expected of
them, and the parameters under which they can operate,
empowerment is the single most important action that a
company can take to improve its relationship with its
customers.
As a simple example, consider the famous hotel chain
which discovered that it had a 'chain-of-command'
problem:
A guest would complain about a problem to the desk.
The desk would fill in a form.
The form would go through channels to a manager.
The manager would, in time, read the report.
If the manager felt the problem was sufficiently
important, it would be delegated to a operative to fix.
The hotel felt that is was responding to its guests
complaints. In reality, the problem may have been
fixed, but not for the guest who complained. That guest
stayed disgruntled and probably took his business
elsewhere. Perhaps even telling his friends and
colleagues about the problem (which by now no longer
existed, but it did in their minds).
Then the hotel learned about empowerment.
Now when the guest complained to the desk, the clerk is
empowered to think and act. It is now her job to find a
solution, not to simply pass on the problem. She has a
modest weekly budget to use at her discretion for just
these eventualities.
So now, when she is told by the guest that the coffee
in his
room tastes bad, she can ask him which brand he
would prefer. Five minutes later, she calls in to the
local grocery store, buys a jar of his favorite coffee,
takes it to the guest's room and leaves the jar, with a
card personally signed by her. The guest is delighted,
and tells his colleagues what a fantastic place the
hotel is. All it cost was a jar of coffee, a little
thought, and ten minutes.
It even saved a heap of paperwork.
Empower your staff to solve the little problems and
many of the big ones will vanish too.
Think like your customers.
--------------------------
How can such an obvious statement be ignored by so many
companies? If you were buying from you, would you buy
from you again? If your mother walked through the door
of your store, would you treat her any differently to
your other customers? If the answer is yes, you are
wrong. You should treat every customer like your
mother. Substitute the President, or the Queen of
England, if you like. You get the picture.
If you are dealing with a customer who has a complaint,
never try to rationalize it or justify it. Don't blame
the problem on 'company policy'. As far as that
customer is concerned, YOU are the company. YOU have to
solve the problem. So think like they think:
Why is this a problem?
How would I feel if it had happened to me?
What solution would I want?
Think that way, and you will quickly get the irate
customer on your side. Irate customers expect to be
fobbed off with company rules and excuses. The best way
to defuse them is to give them immediate solutions,
without argument.
Over-copy your competitors.
---------------------------
Do some research. Ask around. Who is the best company
in the field? Why? What do they do that is so good?
Now, here is the clever part: ask what they could
improve, what even the best companies do wrong. Then,
when you copy the good stuff, you improve on the bad
stuff as well.
There is nothing wrong with copying good ideas. We all
do it all the time. The real trick is to put your own
slant on the idea and freshen it up to make it your
own.
When you have identified the little niggling problems
that even the best companies get wrong - go out and
celebrate! Once you have solved them, these become your
most powerful benefit-laden selling points:
"Of course we have great prices and people willing to
help you pack your groceries. Who doesn't? But at
Bloggs Supermarket, you get our special double-
reinforced carrying bags. We buy them specially so even
if a whole quart of milk leaks out, your groceries will
never fall through the bottom."
It is often the small difference that makes the sale.
Not because of the item itself, but because it shows
your customers that you care enough about them.
That way, they will care about you too.
Customers who care about the companies they deal with
spend a lot of time telling their friends. Everyone
like to boast about the great service they received.
They become your best promotional weapon: evangelists.
About the Author
Martin Avis publishes a free weekly newsletter:
BizE-Zine - your unfair advantage in Internet
marketing, business and personal success.
To subscribe, and get 4 great free gifts, please visit
http://www.BizE-zine.com
|
|
|
|
|
| Finance - Leases-Leasing Ezine Articles |
| EzineArticles.com allows ezine or email list publishers to upload or download free expert content that can be used within email newsletters or websites. |
| ezinearticles.com |
|
| Finance: Leases Leasing Articles from EzineArticles.com |
| http://ezinearticles.com/?cat=Finance:Leases-Leasing Free Content For Your Ezine or Website http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/ Why use your ... |
| ezinearticles.com |
|
| Leases Leasing - Money & Finance Articles |
| Leases Leasing - Money & Finance Articles. Money & Finance | Accounting & Payroll | Bankruptcy | Business & Loans | Credit Tips | Currency-Trading ... |
| www.article99.com |
|
| Finance » Leases Leasing » Absolute Article Directory |
| Absolute Article Directory: Finance, Leases Leasing. |
| www.absolutearticle.com |
|
| - Leases-Leasing |
| By David Springer | On January 29, 2006 | In Leases-Leasing | Rated. Short on cash, but need equipment? Consider leasing what you need. ... |
| www.articlebar.com |
|
| Leases Leasing |
| You are here: Article Directory arrow Article Directory arrow Finance arrow Leases Leasing ... Leases Leasing. Articles ... |
| www.rumorist.com |
|
| Long Term Car Rental Italy Auto Rentals Leases Leasing Rome Milan ... |
| Long Term Car Rental Italy Auto Rentals Leases Leasing Rome Milan Florence One Way Paris London Frankfurt Madrid Lisbon. |
| www.ideamerge.com |
|
| europe car rental leases leasing one way rentals long term renault ... |
| pictured is the Renault Laguna Estate, With Renault tax-free, short-term auto leasing you get the exact, brand-new vehicle you reserve, plus unlimited miles ... |
| www.ideamerge.com |
|
| Private Fleet - Finance, Insurance, novated leases, leasing, CHP ... |
| New Car Broker Australia. Private Fleet sales discounts on your new car purchase, no haggle, no hassle saving $1000s off all new and used cars for private ... |
| www.privatefleet.com.au |
|
| Projector Leases, Leasing Companies for LCD, DLP, LCOS projectors |
| Projector leasing programs and services. Choose a company. |
| www.projectorcentral.com |
|
| Category: leases-leasing |
| Category... leases-leasing. Results 1 - 3 of 3. Search took 0.01 seconds. Page 1 of 1. Buy or Lease: Which Automobile Transaction is Better? ... |
| www.articler.com |
|
| John Dellagnese & Associates: offices, officespace, lease, leases ... |
| It takes two companies to bring you the premier Corporate Property Development group in Northeast Ohio: the talents of John Dellagnese and Associates ... |
| www.dellagnese.com |
|
| John Dellagnese & Associates: offices, officespace, lease, leases ... |
| Welcome to our Tenant Login Page. * Forgot your password or haven't received one yet? Email us tinah@dellagnese.com or call 330-668-4000 and we will reply ... |
| www.dellagnese.com |
|
| The-Arts-Magazine.com - Leases-Leasing |
| Home arrow Article Links arrow Finance arrow Leases-Leasing. Main Menu ... Mosets Tree. Leases-Leasing. Listings. There are 0 listings in this category. |
| www.the-arts-magazine.com |
|
| OmegaMotors.com - Your Money - Leases - Leasing Overview |
| Blue Book retail & trade-in value reports on used vehicles. Kelley features prices on used cars, trucks, street and dirt bikes, ATVs, scooters, ... |
| www.omegamotors.com |
|
| Entertainment Guide - Leases-Leasing |
| Sunday, 03 December 2006, Home arrow Article Resources arrow Finance arrow Leases-Leasing ... Mosets Tree. Leases-Leasing ... |
| www.entertainment-resource-directory.com |
|
| - Leases-Leasing |
| Mosets Tree. Leases-Leasing. Listings. There are 0 listings in this category. spacer.png, 0 kB. spacer.png, 0 kB. download joomla modules download joomla ... |
| www.healthcare-resource-guide.com |
|
| FINANCEDEPARTMENT.COM- Finance, Mortgages, Leases, Leasing ... |
| Finance, Mortgages, Leases, Leasing, Brokerage Houses, Mortgage Lending. |
| www.financedepartment.com |
|
| vehicle leases leasing guide and facts |
| vehicle leases leasing guide and facts. Under the federal Consumer Leasing Act, you, the consumer, have a right to information about the costs and terms of ... |
| www.shopperfavorites.com |
|
| - Leases-Leasing |
| spacer.png, 0 kB. spacer.png, 0 kB. Home arrow Article Resources arrow Finance arrow Leases-Leasing. Mosets Tree. Leases-Leasing ... |
| www.cars-directory-guide.com |
|
|