Are you thinking of making some changes to your business?
Two-thirds of customers now buy based on beliefs, according to a commercial study. So, you should first understand what aspects of your products are worthy of your customers’ loyalty which means you need to grasp your customers’ favourites.
Even some successful businesses, like eBay, suffered initially from not meeting customer demand. Original customer support for their mega-sellers was subpar, and there was no direct line for service.
Those sellers opened their own online stores and gained loyal clients. As a result, even when eBay adjusted to provide more services for large sellers, they had already lost out on many opportunities.
Focus on customers
Make effective and frequent communication with customers a priority. Ensure that your shipping and delivery services are reliable and efficient. By communicating how important your top clients are through quality service, you build bridges to larger clients and revenues in a practical, reliable way.
Let’s face it, customers like to feel important. One big way to make them feel important is to have interaction with management and the owner. Have you ever been to a restaurant where you see the manager or owner walking around from table to table greeting and chatting with customers? How did it make you feel? Pretty good right?
You need to realize management can’t get involved in every customer interaction, it’s not feasible. However, choosing strategic opportunities to get involved will go a long way in making your customers feel important and appreciated. Management must do their part and not entrust everything to other employees.
There is something special about dealing with management or the owner of the company. By showing this level of engagement, your customers will feel like they are a priority. This may be hard to do especially when you are busy running the business, but spending a bit of your precious and valuable time will be worth it in the long run.
Ask for your customer’s opinion
Don’t assume you know what your customers want…ask them. Get them involved in the process. Most customers are more than happy to share their opinions when asked. The benefit to this is twofold:
- You gather important feedback so you can make educated decisions that will positively impact your business.
- Your customers feel valued and respected because you value their opinion enough to ask for it.
Poll customers promptly after they do business with you
Speaking with customers about their experience with your business will help you gather valuable data about your customer experience. Are you meeting expectations? Are you exceeding them? Where are you falling short?
Actively listen to them as they speak and politely ask them about what they want or what other things you can do to improve your service. By taking this time with the customer, you will know where the reputation of your business stands and what steps you may need to take to fix any issues.
This is another great strategy to show your customers you care and value their opinion, making them feel special.
Deliver an experience your customers won’t forget.
Think of some of your favourite brands, what is it about them that keeps you loyal?
The customer experience.
Customer experience has a domino effect. If you do it well, you will see a boost in positive brand awareness, traffic, and loyal customers to your online store.