Nearly half of the customers who dump you each year do it for the same reason. This is where you’ve failed them:
Customer service.
When small business owners were asked by researchers from the marketing firms Cargo and Toluna why they quit doing business with another company, their top reasons were:
- Bad customer service (17%)
- Better product/service/support from another brand (17%), and
- Bad experience (14%)
That means nearly 50% of them found new suppliers because they felt they weren’t treated well. Of course, customers expect a little more than courtesy, help and an avoidance of issues. They want to feel important.
It’s how you make them feel
Whether customers mostly call, visit, email or use social media to interact with you, they want a one-of-a-kind experience most of the time. Here’s how you can make them feel like much more than an account number or the next order:
- Use their names. Nothing is sweeter sounding to a person’s ear than his or her own name said in a kind tone. If you’re interacting with customers early in the relationship, ask them how they’d like to be addressed. Some still like formality — especially when they’re paying you for a service or product.
- Treat them all well. Customers deserve different levels of attention based on their status with your organization. If they spend more or have been with you a long time, they deserve more from you, too. But every customer deserves to be treated well with prompt responses, limited waits and some flexibility in doing business with you.
- Be proactive. When you can anticipate needs or questions, reach out to customers before they have to contact you. When customers know you’re thinking of them when they’re not in need of something, they feel their business is appreciated.
