As Katherine Barchetti has said, “Make a customer, not a sale.” Indeed, one of the common themes of our blog is the importance of making the customer experience your top priority so you can do just that. There is nothing more vital than the lasting impression he or she takes away after any interaction with your business, so everything from the initial greeting to the follow-up will influence how customers feel about your company, and whether they continue to shop with you.
Because those feelings are critical, you’ve doubtless heard the saying that “perception is reality”, and that no matter what the facts really are, the customers’ perspective is all that really matters. After all, you want their business, so you need to keep them happy; thus, “the customer is always right”, has become the most ubiquitous customer-service mantra of our time—even if it’s not always factually accurate.
In order to keep your customers satisfied, then, you must meet or exceed their expectations. So, how does a business accomplish this? By being perfect all the time? —That’s not humanly possible. What about always giving the customer what he or she wants? —That’s not economically feasible. To meet or exceed expectations, your employees must first set them, first establish what’s reasonable for your customers to expect. This means defining what a product or service can and cannot do, how long that product or service will take to be delivered, and what powers the employee has to remedy a problem. They must be proactive in these regards because customers won’t always ask the right questions, but the employees must always be ready to give the right answers, even preemptively.
Taking the time to go in-depth with customers, whether to go over all the options or to educate them on how to use your products and services, is an important first step. Doing so will curtail most problems before they even have a chance to arise. But the unexpected will certainly happen, and products will be faulty on occasion, and services sometimes inadequate—no matter your business’s best intentions. What happens then?
As we’ve explained a few times, allow customers to speak their minds and get everything off their chests. Sometimes the problems they complain about really aren’t your company’s fault, but employees must learn to have a sympathetic ear: employees must patiently hear their frustrations and then set realistic expectations for how they can help. The business owner or manager will have to set the parameters for what’s acceptable, but the employees must always be ready to accept responsibility even when there’s no actual culpability. What we mean is that even when the customer is wrong (or the failure was outside your company’s control), employees should do all they can to help—as a gesture of good faith and the desire to see a single sale transform into a loyal customer.
This philosophy can be tough: it requires dedication, practice, and a great deal of care from your employees and the managers who oversee them. Embracing it, however, will lead to an enhanced reputation in the long-term, something so valuable you can’t even put a number on it. Foster these qualities in your people and never again worry about the lasting impressions the customers take with them.
The Brandt Group is a customer service consultancy, meaning that we’ve dedicated ourselves to understanding customer expectations, along with how to train and hold accountable the employees who are the face of your business. Contact us now to learn more about our mystery shopping services and training seminars, and together we’ll help your business meet or exceed your own expectations for success.
