Your customers are your most valuable asset. After all, if you don't have customers, your business isn't going to do very well. Every business can build and improve customer relationships to take their business to the next level. Here are some tips to help you and your customers develop an even stronger bond.
Learn about your customers
You spend a lot of time thinking about how to talk to your customers, but do you take the time to listen to them? It's time to listen to what your employees have to say! Give them the opportunity to fill out surveys at the end of every interaction to hear what they have to say about the experience. You may notice some similar comments about the store, your employees, or the products that you weren't anticipating. This information can help you make changes. Encourage employees to tell the customers about the survey at the end of every sale.It's important to learn the demographics of the people who come into your business. All surveys should include a section for people to enter their gender, age, and ethnicity. This information can help you market to the people who come into your store. You can also use this information to come out with new products that cater to the needs of your customers.Surveys aren't the only way to get information from your customers! You should also give them the opportunity to post reviews on popular sites, such as Google, Yahoo, Yelp, Facebook, and anywhere else your company is listed. This can not only give you a way to hear from your customers, but good reviews can also help you promote your business! Negative reviews aren't necessarily a bad thing, either. You have the opportunity to communicate with this customer and guide your company to a more customer centric focus! Be diligent about responding to negative reviews and use them to
switch your company to a jobs to be done framework.Finally, take the time to spend time in your store talking to your customers! You can get opinions on the store and the products from the customers themselves. Plus, customers love shopping at a place where they have met the owner.
Related:
Here’s How Analytics Can Help A Business Take Off Have a good attitude with customers
Anyone who has ever worked in the service industry or retail can tell you that the customer is definitely NOT always right. However, there's a reason a lot of companies emphasize this mantra. Whether the customer is right or not, you want them to come back into your store! You and all employees should maintain a positive disposition throughout every interaction with a customer. While it may be difficult, this is even more important when it comes to upset customers. Set your employees up for success by giving them a clear and extraordinarily reasonable return policy. This will help solve problems before it even gets to a higher level. When the situation goes outside of your policy, teach employees how to handle it in a respectful fashion. Make it clear to your employees that a argumentative tone is inappropriate in any situation, and it will not be tolerated.
Be consistent
When a customer goes into your store, they expect a certain experience every single time. Be sure to give them that same experience! Keep your store hours consistent so that people know when you will be open, carry similar products of similar quality, and keep the store's appearance at a certain standard. Of course, you will change products with the seasons and introduce new products, but you need to create an image for your company and maintain that image.Having a
good relationship with your customerswill help you give them what they need. When you give them what they need, they will come back for more. It's worth the extra effort!
