Exceptional Service - The Cornerstone of a Successful Business

Marketing is so much more than just advertising.  I’m going to say this until every small business owner gets that through their heads!

Marketing ≠ Advertising

Marketing is a complete set of activities working together to create a positive, memorable brand image of your company.  And one of the most important parts of that is the level of customer service that the customer perceives your company provides.  It’s not just about what level of service you actually provide; it’s about what the customer perceives to be great service.

Having worked in retail management for so long, I am probably now the pickiest customer out there.  I worked hard to create amazing teams of staff members who delivered exceptional service and went above and beyond for each and every customer.  So now, when I go into a store I automatically take note of everything going on in the store.  I pay attention to the cleanliness of the store, the visual layout, the friendliness and professionalism of the staff, and how knowledgeable and customer-oriented the staff are.

These are just a few of the things managers and business owners need to be keenly aware of.  Yes, I’m the picky customer so I notice stuff that maybe other customers wouldn’t be looking for.  But why not strive to impress even the pickiest of customers.  Even the customers who might not have paid attention to the small details will be very happy with what they perceive as “exceptional” service.  After all, who doesn’t want to feel special?

We’ve all had some bad customer service experiences in our lives and they remain stuck in our memory forever.  But fabulous, amazing customer service experiences also stand out in our mind.  One experience stands out in my mind so clearly… and it happened over 9 years ago!  My husband and I had taken our 2 boys to Ottawa to visit my brother and some friends of ours.  We decided to take the boys (who were 2 and 7 at the time) to Moxie's Restaurant for dinner.  The waitress we had that night was absolutely phenomenal.  She did everything possible to make sure our kids thoroughly enjoyed themselves, which of course made the meal that much more enjoyable for my husband and I.  Now, every time I see a Moxie’s Restaurant, I associate the place with happy thoughts and fully recommend the place to all of my friends and family.

That’s what you want your customers to do.

Take an honest look at your own business.  When you take out the bias you have towards your own way of doing things and really look at things from a customer’s perspective, you may not like what you see.  So, don’t scrimp on your training budget when it comes to fully training your staff on exceptional customer service.  Remember that that memorable  image will remain in your customers’ minds for a very long time.

Decision Making 101 for Entrepreneurs - Taking Accountability

One of the most important things that I expect of people (any myself) is accountability.  We’ve all gone through ups and downs in our lives, both personally and professionally.  We’ve all made mistakes and said and done things that maybe weren’t the wisest choices.  But how can you expect to learn from those decisions if you don’t own up to them in the first place?

As a business owner, you make decisions all day, every day.  It’s sometimes hard to know what decisions are the “right” decisions because sometimes there is no “right” or “wrong” choice, just a subjective choice.  Here are some tips on how to make decisions that you can feel confident about and will be able to own up to no matter the outcome.

1.       Make your decisions based on your key core principles.  For me, if I am questioned about the decisions I have made, I want to know that the decision I made was based on honesty, accountability, and responsibility.  If my choices don’t fit those criteria, then I need to keep thinking until a decision can be reached that will fit those criteria.

2.       Keep other people in mind.  If you have the responsibility of being the final decision maker on an issue, think about who will ultimately be affected by this decision.  Is it a change to a process that will affect customer service?  If it is, then you’ll need to keep in mind how the customers will feel about the change and take into consideration your front line staff who will have to implement this change.

3.       Don’t worry about what other people think.  I know this sounds contradictory to what I just said, but let me explain.  Every decision you make in life will not only affect you, but everyone around you.  However, not everyone is going to agree with your decision or support it.  You will never be able to please everybody.  I know it’s hard to hear people tell you that you’re wrong or that you screwed up.  Everyone is going to have their opinions but as long as you are confident with your final decisions, not everyone’s opinions are going to matter.

4.       It’s okay to change your mind.  People make mistakes.  If you see that the choice you made was a wrong choice, don’t let your pride get in the way of making a better choice.  Too often people hold onto their decisions out of sheer stubbornness.  But this is where some of your accountability comes in.  If you made a mistake, own up to it, apologize if need be, make a different choice, learn from it, and move on.

Strong leaders are people who can make important decisions on the fly but are also confident enough in themselves and their abilities to be held accountable for their decisions.  They don’t let pride or stubbornness or greed get in the way of making decisions that have a positive impact on their organizations.  So, as you go about your day today, making decisions all day long, keep these points in mind.  Remember that you are a role model for your staff.  Be accountable to that.

How to Increase Your Sales This Week

I often hear people say that Christmas has become too commercialized and that it’s not about the true meaning of the holiday anymore.  But no matter what your thoughts are on this, this weekend is the busiest shopping week of the year.  In fact, according the 2012 BMO Holiday Spending Outlook, it is estimated that Canadians will spend an average of $1610 per person this holiday season.  That’s a lot of money! 

Having worked as a store manager, area manager, and regional manager in the retail industry for over 10 years I know firsthand what it takes to operate a successful retail location.  As a retailer you can capitalize on consumers’ spending this week to increase the amount customers spend in your store (instead of your competitors’ store!) with a few simple sales tactics that really work.

·         Encourage multiple unit sales (UPT’s) – Set a UPT goal and hold a contest among your staff to see who can get the most units in one sale.

·         Increase your average total transaction dollar amount – Encourage your staff to make each sale a minimum amount, for example $50 per sale.

·         Show complimentary items. Don’t just tell customers about the other items in your store.  Show them!  And present them with items they already want to purchase.

·         Put items near the cash so customers will see them when they already have their money in their hand.  These are referred to as Point-of-Purchase items (or POP’s) for a good reason.  Often customers will pick up one of these items just out of curiosity while you’re entering their other items into the cash.  Train your staff well on providing exceptional customer service and selling these items will just come naturally to them.

·         Create displays that tell a story.  People purchase benefits not products.  When they can see themselves using a particular product that’s when they will buy it.  Get creative with your displays, but don’t overdo it.  You don’t want it to be so busy that the customer gets overwhelmed and walks away.

Try these tricks in your store and you’ll reap the rewards of having more sales in your cash and you'll be able to say that you helped put more money into the economy.  But amidst all the craziness, don’t forget why we celebrate Christmas in the first place.  Happy selling!

Creating a Positive Company Image During the Holidays

The holiday season is upon us in full force.  Santa is at the shopping malls and in parades all across the country and people are lining up outside stores to get the best deals on gifts.  But lately over the past several years, I’ve noticed a difference in how people approach the holiday season.  Have people gotten more lazy, less thoughtful, less considerate,  andless respectful over the years?  Or am I just getting old and expect some good old-fashioned manners?

Maybe when I was younger I just didn’t notice, but it seems that people are now a lot less thoughtful.  I realize we’re all busy, trying to do too much to make Christmas a wonderful experience for everyone we love.  But imagine that every time you step out your front door that you are a representative of your company.  No matter what position you hold in that company, whether you are the CEO or the stock boy, you represent that company every time you talk to someone.  You may not be talking business, but the image you project will be remembered by the people you spoke to.

 

Marketing is about creating a positive image in the minds of your customers.  And there are lots of marketing communications tools to do that with.  But have you ever given much thought as to how your personal image reflects on your business?

Remember that no matter who you’re talking to, that person could someday be a potential client or may refer you to a friend who could give you your next big break.  I know we’re all busy, but this season when you’re out running around, take the time to say please and thank you to the sales associates helping you, be considerate of the other shoppers, help someone just because.  These are not only good business practices but they are things that should be in everyone’s daily repertoire anyway.  

So, like I was saying it’s a busy time of year.  People are rushed and tired and sometimes in a grumpy mood and we’ve all seen people at the grocery store in their pyjama bottoms.  Think about this before you leave the house… you never know who you’re going to meet throughout the day.  I doubt you’d want your first meeting with a potential client to happen in your jammies!  I'm not saying you need to go shopping in a business suit, but getting dressed is a good first step.  And, remember that Santa’s watching… so you might want to make sure you’re on the “nice” list and not on the “naughty” list!

How to Leverage Customer Service to Avoid Negative Business Reviews

Later this week I will be attending a luncheon hosted by our local Chamber of Commerce.  The guest speaker is my personal friend and social media celebrity Dave Carroll.  Dave’s a musician who has used his talents to raise awareness of customer service in this country.  For anyone who hasn’t heard of him, you can visit his website at www.davecarrollmusic.com for the full story.

So since we’re only 3 weeks away from Christmas I thought this would be a fitting time to talk about the most important thing to a business… customers!  One of the most important parts of the marketing plan is your personal selling activities.  The customer experience is what people talk about when they talk about your business.  Do you want people giving rave reviews about your business or do you want people telling their friends to never shop in your store?

This is the time of year where you need to put aside your ego and pride, just buckle down and do whatever needs to be done.  Whatever the customer wants, you make it happen.  I would hope that you’re doing that all year long, but at this time of the year, when you have 10 times more people in your store than usual, it really is a challenge to stay on top of every customer.  But I can guarantee you that if you can just focus on providing exceptional service to each and every customer they will remember and appreciate it.

For many years I was a retail sales manager, first for a telecommunications company, then for a clothing retailer.  Each store that I managed achieved sales results that surpassed the competition and the other store locations within the company.  And I truly believe it was primarily because our customers felt appreciated in our store and kept coming back… and bringing their friends with them.

Here are some tips to help you provide the best possible customer experience.

·         Treat your customers like they are guests in your home.

·         Brace yourself for the craziness.  You know it’s going to be crazy busy so just go with the flow.  No point in stressing out over it.  Customers are already stressed out as it is trying to complete their shopping.  They don’t need you to be all frazzled too.

·         Anticipate your customers’ needs and order enough product to have on hand.  Not having enough product leaves you with unhappy customers and lost sales.

·         Train your staff well.  Staff need to be trained in customer service and they need to know how to multi-task.

·         Drop everything when a customer enters your store.  Stop chatting with your co-workers, put down the new shipment of product you just received, tell the Purolator guy he’ll have to wait a second, and make your customer your number one focus.

·         Conversations that are private in nature need to held in a staff room where customers can’t hear you.  I once walked into a store where a manager was reprimanding an employee for being late, completely oblivious that a customer had just walked into the store.  That just makes the whole shopping experience very uncomfortable.

So, unless you want to end up like United Air Lines as the subject of a viral YouTube video bringing their terrible customer service to light, give your customers everything they want and you just might be the subject of a viral YouTube video praising your amazing company instead.

Happy selling!!

Social Media Communication - How to Make it Work for You

This past weekend was our high school reunion.   As part of the celebrations we had the honour of a performance by two of our alumni, Don and Dave Carroll, also known as Sons of Maxwell.

I’ve known Dave personally since our high school days so I always look forward to getting a chance to talk to him whenever he and Don come home.  This year, I didn’t have a chance to talk to him because he was so busy selling his new book, aptly called “United Breaks Guitars”.  Dave’s musical career got an unexpected boost in 2009 when communication between him and United Airlines prompted him to communicate in a new and different way.  This story has been told thousands of times, but I’ll just do a quick recap.  In 2008, Don and Dave and their band mates were travelling to Nebraska for a performance via United Airlines.  United Airlines subsequently broke Dave’s beloved Taylor guitar but refused to help him in any way.  After months of arguing with them, he did what he know how to do best.  He wrote a song.  In fact he wrote 3 songs.  He produced a video for the first one and put it on Youtube.  Not expecting much to happen with it, he was shocked to see how quickly the video (which incidentally had been produced on an almost non-existent budget) was gaining attention.  With the promise to United Airlines that he would write 3 songs, Dave wrote and produced the final 2 songs and posted them on Youtube within several months of the original video.  Since that time, the videos have had 12,310,382 hits, 1,533,940 hits and 533,663 hits respectively.  For the whole story in Dave’s words, visit his website at http://www.davecarrollmusic.com/music/ubg/story/.

Youtube is the most widely used search engine in the world.  Owned by Google, Youtube generates in excess of 2 billion hits every day!!  So, you can only image how Youtube videos can have an impact on your business.  Of course, a lot of Youtube videos are funny animals or babies doing silly things, kind of like “America’s Funniest Home Videos”.  And you do hear of the occasional “discovery” like Justin Bieber, but that’s very rare.  However, it really is possible to use Youtube along with other social media to create a buzz around your company. 

The key to using social media is remembering that you are still communicating with customers.  Social media is not a one-way street.  Our current generation uses social media and text messaging to communicate.  A generation ago, it was the telephone.  Before that it was written letters and telegrams. I’m sure I’m going to offend some people here by saying this, so I apologize in advance.  But here’s my opinion on people who say they are “social media experts”.  That is like saying you’re a “telephone expert”.   Social media is a form of communication and you need to have proper etiquette in that forum the same way you do on the telephone. 

So, when using social media,

·         Be polite
·         Develop 2-way dialogue with your customers and communicate regularly but not to the point of being a pest.  Nobody wants to get overloaded with stuff online the same way people don’t want to get a hundred phone calls from you in a week. 
·         Use appropriate social media sites.  There are so many sites out there but if your customers aren’t using them, why bother?
·         Allow people to get to know you. Show your personality. Dave’s videos show his personality.  Let your personality come through and you too will build a fan base of your own.

We may not all have the YouTube success that Dave Carroll has had, but that doesn’t mean social media won’t work for your business.  Follow the tips I’ve given you and watch your fanbase grow too.

Direct Marketing - It's Not Just Junk Mail

We have all had “junk” mail appear in our mail boxes.  Well, it’s only junk if it doesn’t interest you.  But that doesn’t mean direct response marketing doesn’t work.  If it didn’t work, nobody would do it.   Similar to sales promotion activities, direct response marketing is designed to encourage immediate action.  Things like catalogues, direct mail flyers, sales or fundraising letters, magazine inserts and statement stuffers.  Even some forms of television can be considered direct marketing.  Things like infomercials and commercials that encourage you to “Buy now!  Just call the toll free number on the screen.  If you call in the next 10 minutes, you’ll receive a free bonus gift!”  Direct marketing is very highly targeted to ensure that the advertiser is reaching only a very specific target market as opposed to mass marketing which attempts to reach a much broader audience.

 

Advantages of Direct Marketing:

·         Allows you to target your message to a very specific audience.   Whatever kind of business you have, you will have defined specific target markets when creating your marketing plan.  Mail-outs can be sent specifically to those people only instead of mass mailing something.  Also, each specific piece can be customized to each person in that target market.

·         You can evaluate its effectiveness. If you compare the number of responses to the number of pieces mailed, you can calculate the response rate. If you include coded coupons or response cards you can keep track of exactly who responded and from where.

·         Mail readers are actively involved.  When people take the time to read their mail, your message will have their undivided attention while they open and scan through it.

Disadvantages of Direct Marketing:

·         Many people don't like unsolicited offers and many are skeptical of their validity.

·         Increasingly, busy people don't even open what they view as "junk mail."

·         Using this method of advertising requires thorough maintenance of mail lists. Many small business owners don't take the time to update their mailing lists. With outdated lists, however, mail goes to undeliverable addresses, which is a waste of money.   Another possible glitch - an inaccurate list may misspell names or address a person who has died. These kinds of errors annoy, or worse yet offend, the recipient.

·         Some groups are concerned about the environmental impact of resources used for advertising mailings.

·         It can be expensive.  When creating a direct marketing campaign, you really need to weigh out the cost differential between producing the materials and the profits earned from any new business the campaign will generate.

Tips on Developing Your Direct Mail Piece

·         Focus on customer benefits and do it right at the beginning. The first sentence (the lead) in a direct mail letter should be about benefits.   Your prospective customer only takes a second or two to decide whether or not to keep reading or to pitch it.  So, make sure the benefits of your product or service are offered right up front.

·         Keep the offer simple, easy to understand and persuasive.

·         Include a "call to action."

·         Ask the customer to "call today."

·         Include a postage-paid reply card.

·         Make the offer for a limited time to encourage prospects to act.

·         Make it easy to respond or place an order. Include order forms if appropriate for your product. Include a:

o   toll-free phone number (24-hour ordering if possible)

o   fax numbers

o   email addresses

o   payment options such as credit cards

o   payment plans for big ticket items

·         Use a personal and friendly writing style. Mail is a one-to-one communication; make it sound that way.

·         Create different direct mail pieces to address different audiences - even when you're offering the same product. Your product or service may have a different benefit for different target markets. So, create multiple forms of the same offer for those different audiences.

·         Consider making your mailing "3D" by including an object in the envelope that will peak the recipient's curiosity.

Mailing List Options:

Mailing lists are available for purchase, but they can be quite costly, especially for small businesses on a tight budget.  A better option is to use your house list.  That means that you really need to be diligent about obtaining information from your current customers and people who have inquired about your product or service in the past and maintaining it.  Keep your mailing list current by periodically asking your customers for their current mailing address.

Success Measurements:

When you include coded coupons or response cards, you can track how many you have received and where they came from.  Direct mail experts tell clients to expect anywhere between a .05 percent and 1 percent response rate.  That means that if you mailed out 1,000 direct mail pieces, expect to receive about 10 responses.  That might not sound like a lot, but it’s better to receive 10 actual sales, than 500 “maybes” that you could be chasing down forever.  So, don’t increase the number of mail outs just to increase your response rate.  The quality of the response is what’s important.

Consistency in your image is crucial

Communicating a consistent message is absolutely imperative to any business, from your marketing materials, to your on line marketing to the look of your business.  That includes the visual layout of the store, the cleanliness of the store and the attire of your staff.  Many small businesses just kind of wing it when it comes to marketing, not really knowing what to do when and not having a lot of money to play with.  But no matter what kind of business you’re in, the first impression a potential customer has when they walk into your business is an impression that will stay with them.  So what kind of impression do want to make?

·         Merchandise your products in a way that is appealing to your target market.  For example, a discount store can put racks of clearance stuff out front and centre because that is what that customer is looking for.  As soon as you put a clearance rack in a store that is geared to the wealthy and affluent customer, they’ll be insulted and walk out.

·         Make sure your company signage reflects your brand.  It doesn’t have to have your logo all over it.  It just needs to reflect the core values of the company.  I have a client that sells all natural products to a very elite target market who expect exceptional quality and service at any cost.  With this client, we needed to develop different sets of signage, some that could be used year round and some that could be used seasonally or during a particular occasion or event.  The signage that she uses everyday shows the products along with a description of the product and the manufacturer.  The other signage reflects the feel of the store with earth tone colours and pictures, without overdoing the “natural” theme or plastering her logo everywhere.

Creating that consistent image doesn’t need to cost a ton of money.  Get creative with decorating your place of business.  Better yet, make sure your place of business is clean and inviting.  Make sure your staff is dressed professionally and they greet your customers with a smile as soon as they walk in the door.  The last thing you want is for your customers have a consistently “bad” image of your company.

The State of Customer Service in this Country

My personal opinion about customer service in this country is that it has been going downhill for years.   This past weekend was no exception.  My husband I decided to take our kids to the movie theatre.  We very rarely go to the theatre since it’s a little pricey for all 5 of us to go regularly.  Anyhow, I was flabbergasted at the complete lack of service, in fact lack of respect for the customers.  With this kind of service, I don’t plan on going back anytime soon.  In fact, According to American Express, 85% of customers have decided to never do business with a company because of poor customer service in the past.  That’s a lot of people!! 

Now of course when you go anywhere on a weekend, it’s going to be busy and you’re going to encounter teenage sales associates.  I get that.  After all, I was a manager for 10 years and some of my best employees were my students.  However, when we got to the movie theatre, there was line up a mile long.  We got in line, but the line didn’t seem to be moving very quickly.  After standing there for a very long time, the line suddenly split off.  I guess they had decided to open another cash window.  Maybe it’s just me, but really… on a weekend matinee with 5 movies playing that everyone wants to see, you’re only going to open one cash window with a slow moving teenager??  By the time we got to the cash, the teenager did not even look at us, he just told us the total and that was it.  No apology for the wait, no “Thank you for coming”, no acknowledgement what so ever.  Next we headed to the lineup for the popcorn.  Once again we stood there forever.  Once we got to the front, the teenager working this cash was taking his sweet old time, oblivious to the fact that there were 50 people still standing behind me.  Once again, no acknowledgement what so ever.  He just took our order, proceeded to have a conversation with another teenager working the counter, took my money and that was it. 

Now I’m not bashing teenagers (I have a 15 year old son), but what is with the level of customer service lately?  I’m not blaming the teenagers.  After all it’s likely their first job, so they have never had any training on how to be courteous.  (Don’t get me wrong, some of that is common sense and should have been instilled in them at home by now)  When I was a manager, the absolute number one priority in my store was customer service.  The stores I managed were number one in the district and the company for a reason… because we had repeat customers who wouldn’t think to shop anywhere else.

So, how have things changed in terms of customer service training?  Do you have a thorough training plan in place?  Do you have high expectations for your staff (teenagers or not)?  Remember, 85% of your customers won’t come back because of poor service.  Taking the time to adequately train your staff, follow up regularly with them and instill a sense of pride to be working for your company is well worth the time it takes to do that.  Remember that customer retention is so much easier and cheaper than customer acquisition.