Ten Tips for When the Customer Isn't Pleased

We have all encountered the customer that there is no pleasing, they are never satisfied and they take up time and resources with little benefit. Or is the benefit little?  Sometimes the best referrals come from the most demanding customers. Other businesses give up and let the customer go away angry and dissatisfied. A few tips to deal with dissatisfied customers:

1. Understand the problem. The customer has a complaint, don't assume that you know what is wrong. Ask questions until you understand exactly what is wrong.
2. Under what the customer expects.  What will make the situation right for them.  For example some customers don't know what it is they want you to do...just fix the problem. If the new tires that you sold to the customer are faulty what does the customer want...new tires, a refund, a credit for the tread remaining on the tires, or ???
3. Give the customer you undivided attention. Don't let them feel that their concern isn't important to you. 
4. Don't promise more than you can deliver
5. Deliver on time and more that you committed too
6. Ask the customer what it would take to make them happy. A gutsy move so be prepared to follow through if you use this one. 
7. Let the customer know what is happening to solve the problem. If you have to resolve the complaint over time, keep in touch with the customer. 
8. Follow up with the customer to make sure the solution that you put in place is working.
9. Follow up again after a few months to make sure everything is still all right. 
10. Treat your customers like the valuable asset that they are...no shortcuts and no "good enoughs". 

Sounds like a lot, but customer service will make or break your business. 

Ten Things to Include in Your Marketing Plan

Marketing is such a broad term, covers so many things. Marketing is knowing what you are selling, who you are selling to, identifying your delivery channels and telling your customers about your brand. The following points should be covered in a marketing plan for product sales:

1. What are you selling, give a clear description including whether the item is a necessity or a luxury.
2. Where is your products in price compared to your competition?
3. Where do you expect your potential customers to hear about your product?
4. Who is your primary customer? Your secondary customer?
5. Where will you be selling your product?
6. What are you doing (going to do) to promote your product?
7. What guarantee or warranty are you offering?
8. Do you have a plan for sales follow up?
9. How will you deal with complaints (of course you don't want any, but...)
10. Do you have a sales budget that you can used to measure how effective your marketing plan was? 

and 10.5  Do you have a marketing budget prepared that includes all marketing activities as well as all associated costs?

Ten Ways to Lose Customers - Poor Customer Service

We all have them, examples of poor customer service. Here are a few examples of what a business owner/manager should avoid:

1. A business is open from 9:00 to 5:00 Monday to Friday with no consideration for appointments or open hours in evenings or on weekends. It's a fact of life, not everyone can shop, do errands or visit your business during the Monday to Friday hours. 
2. Ignore a person who is browsing because you don't think they will buy anyway
3. Encourage staff (and yourself) to take personal phone calls and let those pesky customers wait. After all you life is important too.
4. Always charge full price, sales don't work anyway
5. Ignore your customers once they have made their purchase,  they know where you are so they can find you if they need to buy something else. 
6. Complaints are just a pain, there isn't anything you can do to make a dissatisfied customer happy anyway, so why spend time and money trying?
7. The only thing customers are interested in is how cheap they can buy something so there isn't any reason to find out anything more about the customer. 
8. There is no such thing as customer loyalty so it isn't important to get to know your customers
9. Charge for everything, those giveaways and promotional items are just profit eaters, and the customers don't appreciate them anyway.
10. Don't smile or be friendly, after all it is serious business running a business.

And 10.5    Stay with the customer, follow them wherever they go in the store. If you chat and talk and follow them they will eventually get fed up and leave.

While hopefully you got a smile from the above list, I have personally experienced all of the above to one degree or another...and I'm afraid most people have. To improve your sales and grow your business none of the above can be allowed to live at your place of business.