25 Mar Guide to Improving Customer Relationships

Improving your customer relationships isn’t going to happen on a whim and a prayer, it needs planning, research and strategy.  Let’s look at the practical steps you need to take to put a successful plan in place.

Research

What is it that your customers actually want from you? What are their priorities? It’s true that you’ll never be able to satisfy everyone but if you do your research well and are accurately targeting your ideal market then you will  find that their needs and wants will be incredibly similar.

Values

What are your company’s values? Do they incorporate a genuine desire to provide great service? Do you advocate for speed in communication, positivity and problem solving? Do you notice when you receive great customer service, how important is it to you?

Plan

Create a plan of attack. Customer relationships incorporate many facets so you may need to brainstorm all the touchpoints you have with your customers and then delve further from there.  How do you communicate with them (website, social media, instant messaging, email, phone, face to face)? How can you improve (speed, friendliness, ease of access)? What is the customer needing from you (information, reassurance)? How are they feeling when they contact you (nervous, excited, upset)?

Procedure

Create a procedure on customer service and outline the steps that will be taken when dealing with customers. You may have ones for Enquiries, Conversion, Onboarding, Follow up, Complaints and more depending on your business model. This can sound daunting but really, it’s as simple as writing down the journey you want your customer to take – from the first time they discover you, through to working with you and then afterwards. 

Implementation

Lastly, put all the above together and put it to practice! If you have committed to a guaranteed response time (and you should), then ensure you stick to it. In addition to your procedures, make your life even easier by putting together some canned emails that you can use time and again. These will be different for everyone but often include examples for replying to enquiries, setting up appointments, answering frequently asked questions, finishing a program, thank you for purchasing and follow up and requesting testimonials.

This is just a super quick rundown on what I often do for my clients. The bigger your business, the more in depth all these areas will need to be, but for small and micro business, there is no need to over-complicate the matter. Simply look at the areas that mean most to your clients and start there. And remember, never promise something you can’t deliver!