|
Home / Business / Customer Service
Over Delivering Provides Big Results
By:Alicia Smith
Over promising is a problem only when you under deliver. There are a number of ways that you can overdeliver to your customers or prospects, and as a result create a win-win situation for you both. They will be provided with some additional value, while you will be upgrading your learning around a particular issue, adding another product or service to your business, or even increasing the mastery level of your craft.
For example, let's say you are a communications coach. You might consider offering a complimentary group call for your current clients. The discussion during this call will not only increase your understanding of some aspect of your business, but it might provide the raw material for crafting a top 10 article, an e-book or an e-course - more things which might be passed along to your clients as a value add. Of course, your clients will love the opportunity to have more time to benefit from what you have to say - and at no cost to them!
What can you do today to provide more value to your prospective and current clients?
1. Underpromise and overdeliver. Before you even think of providing more value, you must set the stage from which you will operate. Always deliver what you promise to deliver by way of your products or services within the time frame specified. Never leave any loose ends. But, when you do deliver to your clients, always provide them with more than they expect. Not only will this come as a welcomed surprise, they will consider you as someone who is generous and who really cares about them. It can be as simple as providing a handwritten note or any of a number of other possibilities which will be discussed shortly. A human being's highest need is to be acknowledged. Think about the different ways you can acknowledge others when doing business.
2. Provide complimentary support. One of the easiest ways to provide additional value is to provide complimentary support for your products or services. You can provide phone or email support, or even an FAQ document that can be posted on your website. This gives the customer confidence that they will have a way to follow up with any questions or concerns that they might have. The beauty of this is that very few people will ever take advantage of it, yet by providing it, you can create a tremendous amount of customer goodwill.
3. Provide information and lots of it. We all crave knowledge and information. Provide as much information as you can around your products and services. You can provide articles, special reports, and links to other resources on your website. You can write the articles yourself, or use those of others with their permission. In less than a half day, you could find a dozen articles and as many links to other informational sites to support what you do. If you have your own articles to post, that's an added bonus. With your own articles, you can feature them in your email signature, along with an autoresponder (a type of email system that delivers the article automatically and immediately) so that folks can receive a copy right away. A small investment of your time can provide valuable content for your website and a valued resource to prospects and current clientele.
4. Create a free eCourse. It's so easy to create an eCourse. An eCourse is merely a series of short emails delivered via an autoresponder designed to teach a concept or series of concepts in an easy-to-understand manner. You can easily take a top ten article or other information that you have and “chunk” it into a series of 5, 7 or 10 lessons, which can be delivered over as many days or weeks. Each lesson is a short description of the topic along with an example and perhaps questions or resource links for future follow-up. An eCourse is set up in a mechanism called an autoresponder, an automated email system that delivers lessons at the interval you specify. An e-course is the perfect “product” to advertise in your email signature and can be triggered by the recipient merely sending an email to a specified address. From that point forward, the lessons are automatically issued without any further intervention on your part. E-courses are a great way to showcase an upcoming product or program offering, a way to get people interested in what you have to offer. They are a great way to offer a lot of value with less than a day of effort to write a simple course, set it up for distribution and let it work for you.
5. The benefits of an R & D team. Offering prospects and current clients the opportunity to join and participate on your research and development team is another way to offer value. Your R & D team can be used to test product or program ideas that you might have. By seeking feedback now, you can gather new ideas and you can which ones are worthwhile and of value to others. The benefit to the recipients is that they can play a role in influencing the types of products that they like most. Many folks who have R & D teams also enjoy offering participants special incentives like coupons, discounts, or even a free sample of the product or program before it is issued to the general public.
6. Offer free teleclasses. Offering free teleclasses to prospects and current customers is a great way to generate goodwill while providing valuable content. Free teleclasses are a wonderful way for newcomers to experience who you are and how you operate. For folks who already do business with you, they look at this as a wonderful bonus to experience more of the quality service they have come to expect from you. Teleclasses are a cost and time efficient value add and an easy way to reach others on a global basis. You may want to consider recording these classes and making the audio available from your web site.
7. Offer free assessments. Another way to provide more value is to offer assessments. Assessments are wonderful because they provide the prospect or client with additional information. Provide useful information, links to other sites (or yours), references to helpful organizations or even titles of books to read. Gear the assessment outcomes to focus on various products or services that you have developed so you can drive people to consider your various offerings. People like assessments because they can do them on their own and get immediate feedback. You may also consider bundling an assessment with a 15-minute complimentary consult allowing you to develop a stronger relationship with this prospect.
8. Celebrate special days in special ways. There are hundreds of different holidays celebrated throughout the year. Find a way to couple something you're doing with an upcoming holiday and share that with your customers. For example, if you're a relationship coach, you might want to send out a special report on celebrating Valentine's Day the week before. For folks who might be spending that day alone, you might provide a complimentary teleclass for everyone to get together to talk. If you're an event planner, you might wish to send out a special collection of easy-to-prepare recipes for the Fourth of July or the Super Bowl. These are simple things to do, but can mean a lot to your clientele.
9. Reward your long-time customers. It has been said that it costs up to six times as much to get a new customer than it does to maintain the ones you have. One of the best ways to maintain a good relationship with your current clients is by rewarding them for their long-term patronage. At least once each year, offer them discount coupons for themselves or to give to a friend, free product samples, or other promotions to thank them for doing business with you. This type of relationship building will go a long way in creating customer good will and it will probably result in many more referrals. Low cost offerings like this generate additional revenue for you, and can expand your client base with very little effort on your part.
10. Share the wealth. If you create new products or services based on customer requests, figure out some way to reward the person or persons who came up with the idea. You might compensate them by giving them complimentary access to your product or service. You can formally acknowledge them as an inspiration on your website, or you can send them a monetary or other gift as a “thank you”.
© Copyright 2004 by Alicia Smith
Digg
del.icio.us
Blink
Stumble
Spurl
Reddit
Netscape
Furl
Article keywords: marketing, business, customer service, customers, assessments, teleclasses, resource & development team, eCourse, complementary
Article Source: http://www.articles2k.com
Alicia Smith is a Coach and Trainer whose specialty is helping people Make Money Now. She has taught over 70,000 people how to improve their business bottom lines. To learn more about her courses, products and services please email her at alicia@aliciasmith.com or visit www.AliciaSmith.com and www.90DayMarketingMarathon.com
|
|
| Top Customer Service Articles |
- 1). The Top Ten Client Feedback Questions By : Alvah Parker
As program chairperson of my SCORE * chapter I am always looking for new presenters to address the group. I frequently ask my fellow business counselors to give me some ideas for topics of interest to them.
In August one member approached me with an idea. He suggested inviting some of the clients that the counselors had worked with this year to one of our meetings to give us some feedback on our counseling techniques -both the highs and the lows.
|
- 2). Customer Service Strategies on eBay By : Michael Hehn
Copyright © Michael Hehn, Online-Profit-4-You
Customer service is important on eBay. Buyers rate their satisfaction with sellers, and your rating can make a difference on whether potential customers are willing to buy from you.
Customer service strategies on eBay start by providing an accurate product description. Displaying clear pictures and describing any imperfection shows the buyer what to expect.
|
- 3). When Customers Complain By : James Calvin
You probably won't have been in business too long before you get your first complaint. It just can't help but happen: low-end customers pay nothing and expect the Earth, while high-end ones pay a lot but expect an inhuman effort in return. You just can't please all of the people all of the time, even if you run yourself ragged trying -- there will always be someone who's not happy with what you've done.
|
- 4). Why Do Your Customers Complain and What Can You Do About It? By : Robert Warlow
As the Internet becomes an increasing part of our lives there are a growing number of web sites which are run for dissatisfied customers to publicly air their complaints about bad service. See your name posted on these sites or get contacted by them and you know you have a problem!
How can you prevent your business from becoming ‘feature of the week’? Of all the skills small business owners need these days, the one least practiced is the ability to step back and look at your business from the customer’s perspective.
|
- 5). Customer Service - A Lost Art? By : Craig Binkley
Copyright 2006 Craig Binkley
Is customer service a lost art? Before you answer that question, take a moment and think about the last few times you have gone shopping or out to dinner. Okay, now that you have really thought about it, is your answer any different?
Why is it that when we actually DO receive excellent customer service that it makes such.
|
- 6). Angry customers - what can we do with them By : Dijana Dimitrovska
"You are the worst company I have bought from!" - writes the client. Oops, bossss! What should I write back?
It is very hard to select words when some of your customers is angry and complains about your company. Read more for an insight into it.
All is well when it ends well. And until it ends be sure not to panic; no matter how bad it looks. Your customers only want you to do your best when they complain.
|
- 7). Customer Loyalty – The Key to Business Success By : Robert Warlow
Talk to many business people about how they approach customer service and the majority of them will say that they are aiming to have ‘satisfied’ customers. No! What we all should be seeking is to have loyal customers.
Research has shown that 65% of customers say they are loyal. You may be happy with this but you shouldn’t! Satisfied customers are in a state of nothing – they are neither issatisfied or happy; they are in between.
|
- 8). The 5 W's of World Class Customer Service Training By : Rosanne D'Ausilio,Ph.D
The preamble to the United States Constitution begins, ‘we, the people.’ I feel strongly that we, the people, are what make the difference in life, both personally and professionally.
The interaction anyone has at any level with your employees, including you, gives a customer-- whether current, potential, internal or external--an opportunity to make a judgment about you, your company, all companies like yours.
|
- 9). Over Delivering Provides Big Results By : Alicia Smith
Over promising is a problem only when you under deliver. There are a number of ways that you can overdeliver to your customers or prospects, and as a result create a win-win situation for you both. They will be provided with some additional value, while you will be upgrading your learning around a particular issue, adding another product or service to your business, or even increasing the mastery level of your craft.
|
|
|
| New Customer Service Articles |
|
|
- 2). Customer Advice With Autoresponders By : David Hill
Client assistance with autoresponders is quite simple. When an order is place, an autoresponder can send out the receipt for the sale, the information for accessing the product, and a thank you email. This happens whether you are logged in to your computer or on vacation in an exotic setting!
|
- 3). Why you need an Answering Service? By : Vipul Gupta
The integral role played by the telephone as a business communication tool accounts for the growing importance of answering service businesses. All businesses, whether a physician's private practice, a small construction company, or a conglomerate, rely on the telephone as one of the fastest and most reliable communication tool in their businesses.
Anyone with a busy schedule and a telephone needs an answering service! Answering service can be a real lifesaver to a small business.
|
- 4). Top 7 Phrases to Use With Unhappy Customers By : Myra Golden
The next time you come in contact with an unhappy customer, try one of these phrases. They are highly effective in helping to restore customer confidence and facilitating diplomatic problem solving.
“The problem you experienced is no more acceptable to us than it was to you.”
“I understand your concern. What do you think would be fair?”
“Although you might not agree with my decision, I’d like to explain it so you can at least understand.
|
- 5). Computer Consulting: Excellent Customer Service Inspires Growth By : Joshua Feinberg
From a customer service perspective, what can you do to sell more monitoring and managed services? What would it be worth to a computer consulting client if you could predict and prevent a major problem before it occurred?
For example, if someone incurred $1,700 in billing last quarter due to some virus-related problems, is there something that you.
|
- 6). Answering Service By : Seth Miller
Just about everyone these days has some sort of answering service, whether automated, like an answering machine, or live. When you call someone without a service, often it can get very annoying. This is especially true when it comes to businesses. However, customers do not usually want to call a business and get just an answering machine or voicemail.
|
- 7). Seven Behaviors That Cause Problems With Angry Customers By : Myra Golden
Here are 7 common mistakes well-intentioned professionals make when it comes to dealing with unhappy customers. Learn exactly what not to do so that you're well positioned to completely regain the goodwill of unhappy customers after any service mishap.
1. Telling the customer he or she is wrong. You will be smart to NEVER tell a customer they are wrong or mistaken.
|
- 8). Customer Service Tips That Generate Referrals By : Hartley Pinn
How do you define good customer service? Does that simply mean the satisfactory marketing and sale of a product or service to a customer or does it mean something else? Is providing good customer service, good enough?
In these days of below average customer service, you may think providing good service will set you apart from the pack. Well, I am here to tell you that nothing less than exemplary service will help you succeed.
|
- 9). The Internet The World's Greatest Telephone for the Success of Your Business By : Shaun Stevens
Business owners of companies both large and small can achieve rich improvements in their operations if they start to ask themselves regularly, "I have just been handed a powerful new tool. It essentially lets me costless communicate with anyone on the planet. How can I best use it to my advantage?"
To focus, business owners must first ask themselves.
|
- 10). Internet Answering Service By : Seth Miller
Though most people are now turning to wireless, DSL, and broadband connections for their Internet access, those with dial-up modems still know how, occasionally, you can miss a call from someone important while surfing the web. That’s where an Internet answering service comes in.
An Internet answering service more or less screens phone calls for subscribers, allowing them to decide whether or not they want to take the phone call immediately as it is received or to have it transferred to an answering machine/voicemail.
|
|
|
