Next Level Group

In my last blog post, I talked about putting on “fresh eyes” when regarding the portions of your business of which the customer has contact.  Consider how you feel about these new areas and how you would feel/respond to a business that had similar challenges.  Then, if anything needs attending to – DO IT!  Your customers will notice and your profit margin will grow.

Other parts of your business that may need attention:

*Your employees:

• Unsmiling
• Unfriendly
• Not helpful
• “it’s just a job” attitude
• Badly or underdressed

*Your materials:

• Poorly printed
• Spelling errors and mistakes
• Looks like they have been copied too many times
• Little thought put into them
• Not user friendly

*Meeting with you:

• Are you on time?
• Does your visual image fit the prospect/customer’s visual image of you?
  • Are you dressed appropriately for your job?
  • Are you well-groomed?
  • Are your clothes in good condition?
  • Did you check your breath?
• Are you enthusiastic about meeting with him or her and can they tell it?
• Are you knowledgeable about your product?

You get the picture.  Customer service is more than just a face-to-face interaction; it also involves the customer’s perception of everything about your business and how it affects them.  Would you rather do business with a company that had little or none of the above challenges or one that you perceived “simply didn’t care”?  Don’t lose customers because you just aren’t paying attention!

When I think of a lack of customer service, the first thing that pops into my mind is working with someone at a business who just doesn’t care about their job.  Generally, those employees are not striving to meet your expectations, let alone exceed them, on a daily basis.  Why?  Because to them, “it’s just a job.”

Have you ever heard someone say, “It’s just a job,” before?  Have you ever said (or thought) it?  I have heard that phrase many times and the people who say it usually don’t like what they are doing, or worse, don’t like (or respect) their employer and feel that they are not respected. Later this year, we will tackle employee issues.

Today, I want to plant the seed that a poor or indifferent attitude is the number one (#1) way to lose customers.  Your customers/clients want to feel acknowledged, respected and appreciated.  Are you and your employees living up to your customer’s expectations?

In the next few weeks, we will take a look at other ways you can lose a customer – or worse, never get them in the first place.