Every business has an ideal customer.  If the business has done an excellent job at market research and testing, then the business should be able to describe in specific detail everything they know about their ideal customer.  The result is a marketing and sales campaign that will become incredibly profitable.

There is another ideal that the business should also strive to obtain.  That ideal is customer loyalty.

A loyal customer not only purchases more from the business.  A loyal customer refers the business to friends, family, and coworkers.  A loyal customer raves about the business and becomes a fan.  A loyal customer gives the coveted prize all businesses seek: word of mouth.

The foundation stones for a balanced success are honesty, character, integrity, faith, love and loyalty. – Zig Ziglar

While those are really great items and define a loyal customer for business, there is one attribute that is missing.  Can you guess it? (Are you really trying since you know the answer will be given in the paragraph?)

A loyal customer has the back of the business.  They are not just fans; they are defenders of the realm, guardians at the gates, and the last line of defense.  When you begin to lose them… well, your business is done.

The Problem Most Businesses Have

Quite simply, they do not have a description of their ideal loyal customer.

Not Trusting The Customers

Sure they want them to be repeat clients, referrers, and raving fans.  Those items are just one dimension to a complex customer.   Yet, many businesses miss the other dimensions that make up the ideal loyal customer.  In missing those dimensions the businesses tend to push away the ideal loyal customer instead of engaging them.

Why?  The answer lies in how the ideal loyal customer presents himself or herself to the business.  Typically it is not always in the positive way.

Loyal Customers In Your Mist

Let’s first take for granted that loyal customer spend, refer, and rave.  Move those items off of the list because they are all positive traits.

How you can tell you have a loyal customer in your presence is through the other traits they will display.  They can be easily confused with customers you do not want to have.  Here are their traits:

• The Improver. This loyal customer will always tell anyone in the business how it can improve products, services, and relationships.   This particular person is typically never part of a focus group, tends to speak their mind at will, and will make comments about everything.  Typically they are ignored because their opinion has not been bought and they sound like a complainer.  In reality their information – while at times on overload – can be priceless in helping a business bring new products or improve services.

• The Justice Seeker. These individuals easily get confused with the irate and righteous customer for whom “nothing is good enough.”  The justice seeker is actually willing to work within the confines of your customer service protocols while dropping hints about what seems odd, asinine, and out of touch with common sense.  They typically miss the policy shifts your company may have instituted and just want to be dealt with like they were in the past.  The value they bring to a business is their ability to shine a light on the absurd procedures you’ve put in place.  You know them when they give the tell tale comment of, “I’m looking for a fair result.”

• The Midnight Caller.  Also known as the informer, this type of loyal customer will give your business a unique insight that will sound insane at first and never come during normal business hours.  Typically the customer service representatives misconstrue their comments as nonsense or “crazy talk”. The reality is that their warnings are usually right.  Does it mean that your business should stop everything? No, but you should pay attention and investigate further if their claims become more than a one time incident.

• The Silent Purchaser. They strike fear into the hearts of salespeople across the globe.  They show no emotion and barely ask any questions.  They seem not to care and yet they buy.  When this particular loyal customer does ask a question, most salespeople tremble in fear for the question cannot typically be answered.  What makes this type of client loyal is their questions.  The questions tend to provide a business with competitor information, new and trending objections, and train your staff to seek first to understand before seeking to be understood.  It is through fear of the unknown that this loyal customer represents is why they are typically ignored.

• The Misuser. The final loyal customer never uses a product for its intended purposes.  These junior MacGyvers will do everything your product label says not to do and invent a few more.  Beyond the shear danger these loyal customer represent is their R&D nature that your business can learn from.  They gladly will post their findings online, so finding them is not difficult.  They get overlooked because of the nature of their activity makes the legal department lightheaded and your business insurance carriers recalculate their actuary tables.  Don’t let them out of your sight because their loyalty can take your business to the next level.

Now that you have these five traits, look over your business and current customer list.  Do you have any of them within your database?  If you do, how are you handling and supporting them?  If you do not, why are you ignoring them?

Loyalty is shown in many different ways for a business.  The businesses that recognize this diversity in loyalty and can accurately describe what it looks for them will have a huge advantage over their competition.  They will harness more customers, better products, and in the end raise standards in the markets they serve.  Oh, and they will make a ton of money!  So, what are you waiting for?

We have all heard the maxim, “Dress to impress.”  In fact it is a given that how you dress speaks volumes about your character, your self-awareness, and your ability to deliver.  When you dress like a bum, people will treat you like one.  So when you stare out at your employees, or even yourself in the mirror, how do you look?  What message are you sending?

How You Look Determines Whom You Attract

No matter what type of economy you are in, it is hard to attract new leads and customers.  There is a lot of time and effort that goes into finding a lead, qualifying a lead, and helping them make the decision to choose your business.  All of that equals money.

How you present yourself, from your web presence to what you actually wear to meeting your potential lead, will determine whom you attract.

If you want high spending clients, then you better have a polished website grammar and all.  You better make sure you dress professionally and like you fit in.  Your social media presence must also be a reflection of what you want to present.  (That means the keg stand pictures have got to go!)

How you look and present yourself, determines whom you attract.

If you are not getting any leads, are you dressed to impress or not?

Looking Great Never Stops

Your presentation does not end after you have obtained the new client.  In fact in order for you to keep your client, you better perform and present better than when you were trying to attract them.  Failure to do so presents doubts in your client’s mind about where there are investing their money and spending their time.  That means opportunities for you to lose them to your competitors if you are not presenting your best.

Nice White T-Shirt Uniform

If you are nodding your head in agreement as you read this, then are you inspecting what you are expecting of your business?

If you are not nodding your head, you better start taking a good look around and clean things up!

Why It All Matters

It comes down to having pride in what you do and the products you deliver.  That pride transfers a feeling of quality and value in your customers.  That pride in your presentation will also determine how much you can charge your clients.

We have all been to Wal-Mart.  (I know you won’t admit it, but you have, I know you have.) That wondrous big box store of items you can buy cheaply.  If you have had the pleasure, and you have, to walk through the store you find the following:

• Crowded aisles
• Clothing falling off the racks
• Product damaged, misplaced, or on the floor
• The over all feeling of the store being dirty

Those atmospherics give you the impression that the items you are going to buy will be cheap and most likely of poor quality.  Does your business present itself the same way?

The next time you have the pleasure of going to your local post office, take a look at the postal clerks and their surroundings.  You will see lots of signs telling you, the customer, what you cannot do or most likely did wrong.  You will see your civil servant, whom is paid by your tax dollars, dressed in their uniform.  A postal uniform that is either too tight, dirty, covered with pins and stains, or maybe they will be in just a t-shirt.  What does that say about the quality of their product?

How you present yourself matters, because when given a choice, your client will always choose the option that makes them feel valued and that quality will be delivered.  For your business to be profitable, it has to have clients that want value and quality.  Otherwise you have just created a commodity mindset and you will always be beaten on price.

How does your business dress?

I first want to start out by saying that this post is not paid for, nor any form of compensation received, by the Starwood Hotels Group, Aloft hotels, or the great city of Chesapeake, Virginia. Instead it is merely my observations on what transpired on a snowy day, 26 December to be exact, and how a remarkable individual made a dreary experience warm and bright.

By now, the latest storm of the century has passed by and while New York continues to be plagued by cars left on the streets – even hotdog stands were abandoned – the recent blizzard may have shattered dreams, but not mine. While I woe for the loss of excellent customer service at normal times, it is during extreme conditions where it is really needed. So I experienced being snowed in at the Aloft Hotel in Chesapeake, Virginia.

A Great Place To Stay

Snow, when a hint of it happens, brings everything in the Chesapeake Bay area to a stand still. Everything closes and everyone hunkers down. So when a blizzard combined with a Nor’ Easter dumps close to a foot of snow, well you can imagine that they area becomes a ghost town.

Even if I had driven a super duper four wheeled colossus SUV with the cool trim, there would be nothing open to drive to. Stuck as I was, I needed food. I needed to get out of the box of a room that I was in (which is still larger than the standard studio in New York) and move around. I made my way to the lobby of the Aloft Hotel, where the bar, food, and humanity awaited.

The bar was packed; a couple was eating their dinner while playing pool, a man waited at the front-desk, and the phone ringed incessantly. Chaos seemed imminent and my desire for thirst/food satisfaction my not happen at all. Here I found Joseph.

Joseph, the poor lad, was an army of one. He was the bartender, cook, front-desk, snow clearer, and bell hop. His comrades unable to make it in due to the snow, he was alone. I was not expecting much given the conditions I just wanted food.

Joseph greeted me with a smile and quickly summed up the situation. He kept eye contact with me an explained how he would take care of me needs as long as I understood that there would be some time involved. I nodded in agreement and took my seat by the fireplace while Joseph finished checking the man at the front-desk in.

Packed but with snow outside!

What I witnessed was beyond customer service. It was really leadership.

It started with how Joseph greeted me. Even though there were twenty plus others all needing his attention, he made me feel as if I was the only one that mattered. He addressed up front my concerns: will I be fed, will I be helped, and will I see him again if I need him. Joseph also set a level of expectation that most other people I don’t think would ever think to do. He rallied my spirits by thanking me for my patience before it was even called up.

Joseph did this with everyone he met, talked to on the phone, and helped.

What he did well was enlist the support of everyone else in the lobby/bar. So if Joseph were in the kitchen preparing someone else’s meal and a new person walked in, a customer at the bar would explain the situation. When he had the chance Joseph would introduce new people settling in at the bar to those already there. If there was a time to rest, Joseph did not take it. Instead he walked around the room and made sure everyone was well taken care of. Joseph behaved like a leader.

My worries were eased upon meeting him and the atmosphere was one of joy for everyone that was there.

Joseph did not just serve; he led as any leader would in crisis. He controlled what he could. He enlisted the support of those around him. He set expectations that he over delivered on. He made sure that everyone was taken care of.

So if you find yourself in Chesapeake, Virginia, and you need a place to stay. I suggest the Aloft Hotel. Ask for Joseph, he will take care of you.

Nathan Bryce is the inventor of the world’s first patented personality system, the Insight Temperament System, which applies the research of Carl Jung, David Keirsey, Isabel Myers (and many others) into real-life settings. His educational company, the non-profit Insight Learning Foundation, teaches hundreds of thousands of people all around the world how to understand people better.

Have you ever noticed that when a Microsoft product doesn’t perform the way we expect it to (i.e. make our lives easier), there is a tendency to blame Bill Gates or Steve Ballmer. We don’t blame the software, but the leaders of the company. The fact is, for a majority of the American public, the product being sold is often synonymous with the person who endorses or manufactures it.

This phenomenon lends a twist to the role customer service plays in business. Now, not every product is as high profile as those offered by Microsoft, but the tenet remains the same. From the customer point-of-view, your company IS the person that they speak to on the phone, meet at the counter, see in uniform on the street, or run into at a social gathering. The perception is, in short, user-friendly customer service equals user-friendly products.

The Customer’s Viewpoint

“Dissatisfied online customers are almost four times more likely to discuss their experience in an online forum than satisfied customers.”

The definition of what constitutes customer service differs greatly. In general, customer service starts with great products at great prices. It’s quick, efficient, competent, customer-conscious communication and service. Customer service, however, also deals with a whole set of intangibles like integrity, honesty, and interpersonal skills. According to one study, these intangibles become the deal breakers for many customers.

If you don't give great service, the customer will send you out to pasture!

With the vast array of possibilities today, customers have more options than ever and they are not afraid to exercise them. Customers today are also less shy about offering their opinions. The Small Business Association reports, “some studies indicate a disgruntled customer will tell 7 to 11 people about an unpleasant experience with your company.” The popularity of e-mail, blogs, and social media outlets like Twitter and Facebook have made it easier for customers to pass on the word. In fact, e-satisfy.com notes that e-commerce customers are even more vocal when dissatisfied. “Dissatisfied online customers are almost four times more likely to discuss their experience in an online forum than satisfied customers.”

From the consumer perspective, loyalty is earned (or lost) through both the tangible and intangible components of service. Due to the increase in competition, consumers expect good prices and great service. Their business, return business, and referrals will be awarded to the enterprise that regularly provides more than they expect.

The Business of Customer Service

Customer service today has a tendency to be reactive because problems always arise unexpectedly and fires need to be put out quickly. Most companies are aware that this is not the most effective or efficient way to handle customer issues. In fact, many companies are spending top dollar to take their customer service departments from that reactive stance to a highly proactive structure.

Dianna Booher, of Booher Consultants, Inc., maintains that good customer service is dependent on three things:

1. Customer-friendly policies set by the organization. Have the consequences and impact of new policies been thought-out from all standpoints. Has procedure and implementation been clearly defined and communicated. If carried out correctly, will this policy help your employees show your customer that he or she is highly valued? Is there room for review on a case-by-case basis or are your customer service agents “reading a script?” Are the people on the front lines given some autonomy to help the customer in the way that provides the highest rate of service?
2. Staff training. Is the definition of quality customer service clearly defined for your staff? Has each representative been given specific instruction on how to provide a positive experience for a customer? Does every staff member know the clues that will help indicate the value set (temperament) of each customer (i.e. Can they communicate with a Green just as effectively as with a Blue?)?
3. Staff attitude. The members of your staff typically provide the first impression of your company. Staff members who perceive themselves as valued will put forth a better impression than those who simply feel like a cog in a machine. Listening to ideas, providing ongoing training, incentives, clear expectations, autonomy, and follow-up are all ways to show how much you value your customer service staff.

Good customer service may start with a high quality product or service, but in the world of high competition from multiple sources, it surely doesn’t end there. In order to build a successful customer service strategy, being proactive is the order of the day. Successful businesses know to pay attention to the details and to value each and every customer each and every time they connect. The bottom line? When all else is equal, customer service becomes the tiebreaker.

Author: Nathan Bryce
Article Source: EzineArticles.com

We have been busy the last few weeks, which means that there is definitely a turn in the economy.  This guest post comes by way of Ezine Articles — Dick Wooden is the founder and President of Success with CRM Consulting, Inc. His 28 year background has been in the design, development, implementation and support of various Customer Relationship Management Systems for small to medium sized businesses. His firm provides strategy and tools for clients across the United States relating to Customer Relationship Management. Key focus areas are Lead generation, Drip-Marketing, Sales Opportunity Management and Customer Experience Management.

Remember the 80:20 rule? Outstanding customer service aims to go even better than that. You may not get everything perfectly right, but getting most of it right will be much, much better than the majority of your competition.

1. Be Your Customer – Walk in their shoes, listen with their ears, see with their eyes…

Encounter your business the way your customers do and experience what they experience. Stand in line, call your support center, report a complaint, check on an order. Soak up feedback.

2. Give Memorable Service

Street Vendor #1 Lesson: Customers Are Always Special

Make everyone’s (yes, everyone’s) life’s mission to focus on the customer – even team members seemingly out of the line of fire. Remember the last moments of a customer’s interaction with your business leave the most lingering experience. Remember the last minutes of the conservation will be what is remembered- make it memorable!

3. Listen Hard to Complaints

Complaints are a wonderful gift – they’re feedback of the highest order. Enjoy them and learn fast. A positive response to a complaint will be remembered and actually builds trust.

4. Enable Your People

Enable and encourage your people to give an immediate and generous customer experience. Allow them to directly solve an issue without lots of delay or paperwork.

5. React Fast

Make sure that you and your people work with pace and immediacy to solve customer issues. I’ll bet you can remember the pain of a slow reaction from your dealings with other companies, right? Don’t be like that – respond ASAP.

6. Have Product Available

Generally, you can’t sell it if you haven’t got it. Work your system hard and focus to get the product there on time. Check your other locations for stock.

7. Be Systems-Focused

Ask, “What would my customer think of this – would it give an impression of brilliant service?” If not, reshape the system fast!

8. Be Curious

Encourage everyone on your team to overhear, be politely nosy, ask questions and obtain feedback and information from your customers. Save it all in your CRM Success System for others to learn from – grow that knowledgebase.

9. Research the Marketplace

Your experiences as a customer elsewhere can educate you about what to do, or not do, in your own business. Encourage your people to share what they learn this way as well, and implement the best into your business.

10. Have Fun

Have fun with customers – a pleasing personality goes a LONG way. Smile while on the phone with customers and it will come through. This builds relationships – you are in a relationship business, right?

There you have it: 10 tips for success, in an easy to use framework.

Will you take up the challenge to deliver outstanding customer service? Looking for insights to create or optimize your Business Success with CRM?

Richard (Dick) Wooden
President
Success with CRM Consulting, Inc.

Author: Dick Wooden
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Advice on AdSense

How far does your customer service reach?

Is it limited to face-to-face meetings, telephone conversations, mail, email, or social media?

When does your customer service end?

These three important questions need to be answered by you and your employees.  Answer them honestly and you will find the hidden reasons as to why your customers are going to the competition or why it is harder to obtain new business.

It used to be that customer services ended after the sale.  Only to be revisited after a problem arose or it was time for an upgrade.  The in between time between a business and it’s customers was a purgatory for customer service.  A nowhere land.

If you have not noticed things have been changing, quietly over the past fifteen years, as the Internet matured.  Customers now research you, compare prices, and purchase online.  If a customer really wants to push the envelope, they can engage your business – therefore your customer service – without every getting out of their chair or putting their smartphone down.  Customers expect constant service.

It’s 10:23 am. 1:38 am. 3:51 pm.

Which Tool To Use?

Your customers are online 24/7.  This applies to global organizations and the shop owner on Main Street.  Your store hours are only one means of interaction.  When the shop is closed – or your client cannot sleep – the Internet is there… waiting to feed their desire for content/service.  Your customer service must be up to the task of a 24/7 business cycle.

In order to have your customer service a part of the twenty-four hour cycle you need to establish a plan.  Your customer service plan should detail for your employees and even your customers how you are going to provide service.  Your employees should know what a customer service engagement looks like and the proper steps in providing excellence.  Your customers and employees should know what your expectation of quality is for customer service.  For instance is your service going to be a full pampering/catering to every whim or are you going for the “no frills” model?  Lastly you must inspect what you expect and then some.

Once you have a plan in place the next step is the tools.  You have people, phones, email, regular mail, and website.  Those are the basics.  What about social media?  We are not just talking about Twitter and Facebook.  There are blogs, YouTube, Skype, Foursquare, and the list goes on and on.  These tools are additional means to reach out and provide service to your customers.  Service like price comparisons, how to use your products, feedback, updates on product changes, or anything else you wish to communicate.  You are only limited by your own imagination.

If you notice one thing about the above list is that advertising is not mentioned.  Advertisement is not customer service.  Yes it may educate, but it typically is not interactive, and it does not provide for a two-way exchange of ideas or seek to provide solutions/service.

Tools Change.  Engagement Is Forever.

Five years from now or shorter, there will be a new tool that will “revolutionize” how businesses interact with their customers online. Tools are always going to change.  What is constant is the engagement your business has with its customers.  That engagement builds a relationship of trust, emotion, and reciprocity.  Customer service – value – delivered correctly builds a cycle of wealth for all the parties involved.

Use the tools available now to maintain a level of engagement/customer service that is envied by the competition.  Embrace whatever means available to increase the depth and bonds of your customer relationships.

If you have a customer service that seeks to engage and understand then there will be no limit to its reach.  There will be no limit to the tools used to achieve success.  There will be no end to your commitment or level of service.  Once a client or prospect experiences your service it will always have an influence on them.  Your business will grow.

So… how far does your customer service reach?

Customer service.  It seems to be lacking, especially with the airlines.

We all know bad customer service when we experience it.  Yet what is excellent or great to one person is mediocre to another.  So, what is customer service in the end?  Is it solving needs?  Is it mitigating customer problems?  Or is it something more?

Customer service is like leadership.  We can all tell the bad and worse versions of both when we see it in action.  We all know how great it can make you feel when you experience great service and great leadership.  Like with great leadership, great customer service seems to be difficult to replicate.

Great customer service is not a replaceable part.  It cannot be assembled in a classroom or in simple steps like the instructions for Ikea furniture.  Great customer service from any business or company starts with the individual.

Hire Attitude, Individuality, and Freedom

Companies that have a reputation for excellent customer service are known for having the same traits.  Those traits are attitude, individuality, and freedom.  Their customer support teams are excited about working where they work, they enjoy solving problems, they all are a bit quirky, and they are given freedom of movement to create solutions.

A great example for a high-end provider of customer service is the Four Seasons Hotel chain.  First they hire employees that match the brand image of the hotel chain, which is class and manners.  These employees display an excellence in manners towards each other and their guests.  They pay attention to detail in ways that the hotel guest will notice; making them feel as if their individual needs are attended to.  For lack of a better term, the Four Seasons hires “neat freaks.”  The second important item the Four Seasons chain provides is a freedom of movement to service a guest’s needs.  Each employee at the Four Seasons is given a budget that they can spend on meeting the needs of their guests.  This freedom of resources, in most cases cash, allows the employees of the Four Seasons to quickly solve problems and be creative in the process.  The end result is that guests feel completely taken care of.

On the lower-end of providers is Zappos.com, the online shoe provider.  Employees of this fast growing Internet store love shoes.  The founder and CEO of Zappos.com, who is a self-confessed shoe aficionado, hires the same for his customer service staff.  The customer service staff at Zappos.com is given the freedom of movement to solve a customer’s problems.  This can be from a no questions asked return to helping the client find the best show at the lowest price for a particular occasion.  The goal is to have satisfied customers, no matter how you get there.

Both companies are successful brands.  Both understand that it is the customer who controls their destinies.  Therefore they hire customer service representatives that match the attitude of their brand, enjoy solving the needs of their customers, and give the freedom to do so without giving away the store.

Your business can do the same.  You have to be willing to hire employees that match best with your customers you have and the clients you want to get.  You must hire employees that truly enjoy the intellectual challenge in solving customer problems.  You must allow them the freedom to solve those problems.  If you do, you will have created and executed a formula for success!

We are going to be away for a bit, but have no fear as we have guest bloggers here to fill your desire for knowledge.  Be kind and share what you learn here, leave comments, and put what you have learned to use.  We look forward to coming back and sharing with you what we have learned.  Enjoy!

Is customer service a department in your company? Is customer service simply the title of an order entry department? Is customer service an empty shell, long on rhetoric but short on delivery? Does the term customer service actually mean anything, or is it a leftover expression from an era of days gone by?

Superior customer service is indeed alive and well alive and working at many progressive companies, both large and small. Customer service is not simply a term or a department, but rather an attitude and a manner of doing business. It boils down to caring and adhering to the golden rule…”to do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”

An example of bad customer service.

Superior customer care has declined to such an extent that some firms are actually promoting their own efforts at providing customer service as a unique benefit of dealing with their firm. Unfortunately, that is an apt description of the current state of customer service provision from most companies. Most companies do not get it. They are so consumed with the bottom line that they miss one of the most important factors in growing their business: The customer is king. He always has been and always will be. Customers, customer satisfaction and retention should drive all other facets of a company.

The relevant cost of acquiring a new customer is high. Marketing, advertising and other functions utilized to attract new customers are expensive and require a period of time to work successfully. Many prospects do not become new customers until perhaps the 7th or 8th exposure to the company’s marketing efforts. Customer service then, is the cost of retaining that customer. Customer retention should be a driving force behind the successful operations of every company. It simply makes good business sense to keep that new customer as well as those repeat customers. How often is a new customer “soured” because of a perception of poor attitude or lack of caring on the part of an employee?

Depending on the type of business operation, companies must embrace developing superior customer service in a variety of modes. In a small retail or food establishment, where minimum-wage workers are often employed, this is difficult. One area that is destined to improve how customers are treated is for the owner of the company to treat their employees fairly, with respect and with a receptive attitude concerning their ideas. This attitude and practice will spillover and the end customers will often be treated in the same manner. The mid-size and large companies must provide specific training for all employees, especially for those with any direct contact with customers. Employees must be cognoscente of what is expected by their employer, the importance of their dealings with the customers and how the implementation of these policies directly impacts their own success and employment. Simply stated, if there are no customers, there is no need for their job.

Place yourself in your customers’ shoes. That should be easy since we are all customers sometimes, no matter what we do for a living. How do you like to be treated? Do you want to be forgotten? Do you feel that the company you do business with should value you and your business? Do you appreciate little “extras” that are not always necessary but pleasant and beneficial? When you are pleased with your treatment from a firm, are you happy to make recommendations to your family and friends about dealing there? Learn to transfer these answers into the way you treat your customers. The golden rule applies.

Human nature, being what it is, is the common thread among us all. We all want to be treated fairly, confirmed of the value we bring and have a sense that others care about us. We are all other people! In many ways, regardless of ethnicity, religion or background, we all want the same things. Remember this fact and do your part to offer superior customer service by performing your duties in a manner reflective of the way you also wish to be treated. Your success is guaranteed. If this attitude is encouraged in every department in every company, customer service will never be a department, but rather the attitude or mindset of the company. As the sum of its internal parts, the firm will reflect this mindset guaranteeing superior customer service and previously unheard of customer retention.

Daniel Sitter is the author of the popular, award-winning e-book, Learning For Profit. Designed for busy people, his new book teaches simple, step-by-step accelerated learning skills, demonstrating exactly how to learn anything faster than ever before. Learning For Profit is currently available from the author’s web site [http://www.learningforprofit.com] and from a variety of online book merchants. Mr. Sitter is a contributing writer for several internet and traditional publications. His expertise includes sales, marketing, self-improvement and general business topics.

Author: Daniel Sitter
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Low-volume PCB maker

We are going to be away for a bit, but have no fear as we have guest bloggers here to fill your desire for knowledge.  Be kind and share what you learn here, leave comments, and put what you have learned to use.  We look forward to coming back and sharing with you what we have learned.  Enjoy!

There are basically 5 different reasons why nothing great is ever accomplished without enthusiasm.

Street Vendor #1 Lesson: Customers Are Always Special

First, no great success is ever attained in life without the surmounting of obstacles. In every life there are challenges. Some people view challenges as problems, others view them as opportunities. This marks one big difference between those people who give up and those who move up. You need to understand the positive role obstacles can play in your development. Challenges will push you. They stretch you. They make you develop your potential. Because you cannot leap a hurdle without energy, you need to value energy. You need to understand and embody the power of enthusiasm.

Secondly, without the motivation that comes with enthusiasm, you will never dig deep enough to discover and develop all the talents you have that can lead you to the greatest accomplishments of which you are ultimately capable. Developing your talents is itself sometimes an arduous task. Without enthusiasm for what you are doing and what you are becoming, it could be at times an exhausting and dispiriting task. It takes energy. You will often need to push yourself to find that you are capable to find what you’re capable of doing, and what you are capable of being.

There is a third reason why nothing great was ever accomplished without enthusiasm. Great success requires great risk. It does not come cheap. You need to be willing to try things you have never tried before. Maybe even things nobody else has ever tried before.

The fourth reason why enthusiasm, or strong emotional commitment, is typically necessary for greatness is that, without it, you can easily be tempted to settle for nothing more than a basic, minimal competence in what you do, at best.

No great success was ever attained alone. No one in this life ever accomplishes anything worthwhile flying completely solo, from start to finish. Satisfying success is always in some way, and most times in many ways, a social product, which results when people work together. Whatever your dream is, whatever your goals are, you cannot do it alone.

It is important to clearly understand how this comes into play with providing excellent customer service. It is not your perception of how good the service is that counts. It actually has to do with the perceptions of the customer. The customer is the one who matters.

Excellent customer service exceeds customer needs (real or perceived) in a consistent and dependable manner. Note the phrase real or perceived. This is very important in understanding excellent customer service. It is not your perception of how good the service is that counts. It is the perception of each customer that matters. These perceptions include how customers react to your attitude, your concern for their problems, and the way you handle their questions or service requirements.

When you provide service over the telephone, you may speak with the same customer many times. Even though you have never met this person face-to-face, you probably have an idea of what he or she is like. You may even have a mental image of what a particular customer looks like. Customers are no different. Likewise, they also have an image of you. As a valued employee, you have the ability to influence the perceptions of many customers. It is important to remember that you are in a direct position to win or lose company business!

Janae Wentworth

Affiliate-Success.Org – The Last Membership You’ll ever need!

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Reach the Other 98 Percent

Author: Janae Wentworth
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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Have you heard about the antenna issue with the iPhone 4?  (If you are on your iPhone can you hear me now?)

When Steve Jobs, of Apple, came back from vacation to address the antenna controversy with the iPhone 4, he mentioned that the antenna complaints were only less than one percent of all related calls.  One percent.  Seems like a very small number indeed.

The Size of A Town, The Power of the Planet

Apple's iPhone 4

Let’s take a deeper look at the less than one percent number.  Assuming that reports are correct, the very first day of sales for the iPhone 4 totaled 1.5 million.  If that is the case than one percent would 15,000.  (Granted for all you number people out there it could have one percent of all related support/complaint calls.  So the number could be lower or higher. Okay back to the blog.)  Fifteen thousand is the size of a small town.

If anything the Internet, social networking, and Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon have taught us is that the size of the pool does not matter.  What does matter is the content of the message.  In this case, the content of the message was the new iPhone 4 simply did not work and was beginning to look like a dud.  The power of one percent was able to draw the attention of an interconnected world.  The power of one percent was about to ruin the image of incredible product launches by company that typically gets it right the first time.  The power of one percent was about to create a customer service nightmare.

Where Apple Got Customer Service Wrong

Apple’s first reaction to the complaints of the miniscule number of iPhone users was, “Do not hold the phone that way” and “Go buy a case.”  That is akin to the doctor telling the patient to stop doing whatever they are doing that makes them hurt.  It does not really solve the underlying problem.  It actually makes the person who is complaining feel unappreciated and dumb.  In Apple’s case it resulted in a backlash.

That little one percent – also known as the little people – was not going to take arrogance lying down.  They fired quickly back and even called into question Apple’s high priced third party solution.  One percent was on the verge of leading a revolt.

There is a strange thing that happens to companies when they become too successful: they become arrogant.  Arrogant companies pay lip service to customer service but instead make the customer feel as if they are bothering the company.  Arrogant companies forget the power of referrals and testimonials – both good and bad.  In the case of Apple’s response it only expounded the problem and creating a perception that Apple had become like it’s closest foe Microsoft: arrogant.

Successful companies when they become arrogant forget what made them beat their competition: stellar ideal customer service, quality products, and making the customer feel special.    Apple is at a crossroads.  Should it make customers feel special or should it become arrogant?

Everyone Is Special To Someone

Your business can learn from Apple’s mistake and make sure that you do not let your success go to your head.  Companies live and die by the customer.  Without the customer there is no need for the business to exist.

Street Vendor #1 Lesson: Customers Are Always Special

Here are three simple rules that you can deploy today and create a cult of the customer in your business:

• Everyone Is Special To Someone. It means exactly what it says.  Treat everyone with respect, even when they make you mad, because you do not know whom they know and with whom they talk to.

• The Power Is In The Message. Obviously if you have 98% of customers returning your goods there is a serious problem.  In most cases perception is built around a small number, as it was in the case of the antenna complaints.  If the message has reach and influence than it really does not matter how many people were affected.

• Make The Customer Feel Special. When customers call to complain it means that they are investing time and showing trust in your company.  Emotion is involved out of frustration and a sense of being wronged.  They want the problem solved.  Ideal customer service seeks to understand and empathize with the customer while finding fair solutions.

Investing just a small amount of time in training your customer service staff will have a tremendous impact on your business.  Studies have shown that customers will spend an average of ten percent or more when they feel appreciated through excellent customer service.  What can be so wrong in having your customers feel special through your ideal service?

Destiny Delayed?

Apple quickly realized the path the iPhone 4 was headed if they did not respond: failure.  Bringing out Steve Jobs to explain the design, testing, and statistics behind the antenna made for good geek stuff.  The real powerful solution was the offering select iPhone 4 cases for free.

What Apple has done is delayed the decision at the crossroads on which it stands.  Does it strive to bring ideal customer service or will Apple let success go to its head becoming arrogant?

The clock is ticking.