Cathy Stucker - The Idea Lady

Attract Customers and Make Yourself Famous

The Power of Thank You

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thank-youDo you thank your customers? Saying thank you to someone who helps to keep you in business seems like Business 101, but it is surprising to me how often I do not hear the words, “Thank you.”

As a mystery shopper, one of the questions I frequently answer for businesses is whether or not their employees thanked me when I made a purchase. How often does a salesperson or cashier say, “Here you go,” “Have a good one,” or something other than a simple, “Thank you”? This common courtesy has now become uncommon.

Any time a customer interacts with your business, they should be thanked. Here are some ways you can show your customers you appreciate them.

Thank everyone who calls. A customer’s first encounter with your business may be by telephone. Give them a positive experience by providing the information they need and thanking them for the inquiry. When customers call to place an order or make an appointment, they deserve a big thank you for their business.

Thank customers in person. When someone comes to your business, whether or not they make a purchase, thank them for coming. Information seekers and “tire kickers” will be more likely to return and make a purchase if they were treated warmly on their first visit.

Send thank you notes. Welcome new customers by sending handwritten notes thanking them for their business. Handwritten notes are rare in these days of email and mass-produced cards. They will make the recipients feel special. And do not forget to show appreciation to long-term customers. Get in the habit of sending thank you notes to at least a few customers every week.

Say thank you for referrals. I am always delighted to receive a card letting me know that one of the people I referred has become a customer. Sometimes, the thank you is accompanied by a small gift, such as a coffee mug. The gift is nice (and keeps the name of the business in front of me) but the thank you alone makes it likely that I will remember that business and refer more customers to them.

Customers appreciate gifts, too. Surprise them with a free product or upgrade, just for being a customer. Make it appear spontaneous and random, even if the timing and value of the gift are based on how long the customer has been with you or the value of that customer to your business.

Happy employees provide better service, so don’t forget to thank your employees. Show appreciation for what they do to serve customers, and they will catch the gratitude attitude.. Listen to customer interactions with your staff, and praise employees who do a good job. When you catch an employee doing something special for a customer, thank them immediately.

Customers still want to be thanked. Get in the habit of saying thank you to customers, in both word and deed, and educate your employees about this simple way of making more sales and increasing customer satisfaction.

Creating Customer Communities

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Do you serve a group of customers who could benefit from getting to know each other? Could you also benefit from bringing them together? 

Online communities are great for staying in contact with your customers, but you should not overlook the power of face-to-face contact, especially if your business operates locally.

One book store near me hosts several book clubs on topics related to writing, financial issues, fiction and more. These groups meet once or twice a month at the book store to talk about a book and enjoy time with others who share their interest.  Of course, the members buy the book which will be discussed at the next meeting, and they buy other books, too.

Comic and trading card stores host tournaments for people who play card and role-playing games. The players hang out in the store, and spend money, too. A gift or toy shop could start a club for people who collect figurines, toys or other collectibles sold at the shop.

Could you host a group of people interested in collecting something you sell, or learning about a topic you can teach them? You can benefit by selling products to them, selling services, charging for membership in the group or attendance at the meetings, or just by elevating your profile and making more people aware of you, your business and your expertise.

To get people to attend, post notices in your store or other physical location where you will hold meetings, send out press releases, call, mail or e-mail people who are interested in the subject, put out fliers or a newsletter at various locations, and get word of mouth going everywhere you can.

If you do not have a local presence but do most of your business online, you can create an online community where your customers can gather. Create a forum where customers can share tips and advice or make other connections. You may find that customers provide support for each other, easing demands on you for support.

Your customer community is not a “set it and forget it” task, though. You may need to be very actively involved at the outset to get momentum going. After that, someone from your organization should monitor activities in the community and participate as warranted.

Creating an involved customer community can bring customers closer to you, keep them loyal, and increase their purchases.

Don’t Solve Problems, Prevent Them

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prevent-problemsHow much time do you spend every day solving problems and “putting out fires”? Could you put that time to better use, such as doing things to serve your clients, attract new clients or expand your business?

The secret is simple: Many of the problems we deal with can be anticipated and prevented. Often, it takes less time to avoid a problem that to resolve it and repair the damage it caused. And sometimes the damage to your business, reputation and customer relationships can not be repaired.

Here are some things you can do to avoid problems and mishaps. [Read more…]

Respect Your Customers’ Time

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respect-customers-timeOne of the best ways you can show respect for clients and others is by respecting their time. Time is in limited supply for all of us, so don’t waste theirs–or yours.

Think about the cable company. What do people hate about them? OK, lots of things. But usually right at the top of the list is, “We will be out Tuesday, between 8 a.m. and infinity.” Customers have to set aside an entire day for installation or repair. And everyone has things they would rather do than wait for the cable guy.

Lots of other businesses waste our time, too. Don’t let yours be one of them.

Be on time. Show up for client meetings early (but not too early). Honor appointment times. Start on time. I teach a lot of classes, and I always start on time, even if several students have not arrived. It annoys me when an instructor, speaker or other group leader starts late because some people aren’t there. Some of us are. We got there on time, so start already.

End on time, too. If the meeting is scheduled for an hour, make it an hour. Not ninety minutes, not two hours. One hour. Or less. If you really want to make people happy, take less time than they expect.

Don’t make things harder than they have to be. I don’t know if any of these places are still in business, but there used to be a chain of stores where you chose the items you wanted, filled out an order form, got in line to pay, then waited for them to pick your merchandise and call you to pick it up. Pick something up, drop it in your cart, check out and leave? Nah, everybody does that. We’ll be different.

Operate for customers’ convenience, not yours. That might mean changing your hours, so they can come in after work or on the weekends. Offering financing or payment terms. Or accepting the payment method they prefer. Or changing how you provide support.

Don’t over commit. Years ago, I owned a car by a brand that had very few dealer service departments—but these cars needed a lot of service. A simple fix that took an hour or so meant that the car was at the dealership for days. Finally, I made a deal with the service department. “How about if I pretend that I brought the car in today, and you put it in line for service? Then, in two or three days, when you are actually going to work on it, you can call me and I will bring the car in.” Amazingly, they agreed. I went without my car for one day instead of three. Why didn’t they do that for everyone? It goes back to the idea of honoring appointments.

Time is our most valuable asset. Value your customers’ time at least as much as you value your own.

Avoid Credit Card Chargebacks

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The credit card chargeback is the bane of the online merchant’s existence. Although any credit card charge may be disputed, it is more likely that customers will forget the details of a purchase they made online. When the charge shows up on their credit card statement, they may dispute the charge just because they do not remember making the purchase.

When a customer initiates a chargeback, your merchant account provider will deduct the disputed amount from your account and ask you to provide proof that the charge is valid. It is time consuming and, even if you prevail, you may be charged $20 or more because you had a chargeback. Have too many chargebacks, and you could lose your merchant account.

Here are a few things you can do to reduce the number of chargebacks you receive.

Most importantly, deliver what you promised. If a customer does not receive what they ordered or what they receive is not what they expected, they may reverse the credit card charge. Use a method of delivery that includes a signature so you can prove that the item was delivered in the event of a chargeback.

Make it easy for customers to contact you if there is a problem. If they can not find a phone number or other way to reach you to make a return or request a replacement of damaged merchandise, they will call their credit card company to ask for their money back.

Only ship to the billing address on the credit card, and make sure your credit card processor matches the billing address entered by the customer to the billing address on file with the credit card issuer. As a merchant, you might notice that your customers may find this inconvenient if they wish to ship a gift to someone, or have their credit card statement sent to a different place than they receive parcels. However, if you are getting a lot of chargebacks due to fraudulent charges, or your average purchase is for a large amount, you may wish to do this.

Because many chargebacks occur when customers do not recall the purchase, here are some ways to help them remember who you are and what they bought:

Provide an order confirmation or receipt customers can print out. Suggest that they print the receipt and save it for their records, or to compare to their charge statement.

Remind them who you are. If your website name is not the same as the name on your merchant account, include a statement in the order confirmation that, “Your credit card will reflect a charge from .”

Remind them of the purchase. Send a follow up email a couple of weeks after the purchase thanking them for their order and reminding them of the amount of the charge and how it will appear on their credit card statement.

Put your phone number or web URL on their statement. Contact your merchant account provider and ask them to include your phone number or URL next to your company name when a charge appears on a customer’s credit card bill. That way if the customer doesn’t remember the charge they can call or visit your website to jog their memory.

Chargebacks are unpleasant and expensive.  Although you probably can not get the number of chargebacks to zero, taking these steps will keep them manageable and keep your merchant account safe.