4 ways to keep customers coming back for more

By Kathy-Ann Fletcher

I am not a good salesperson. I get nervous and stutter and stumble over my words. A former boss tried to encourage me to be less nervous by saying ‘look at it this way Kathy, 90% of the people you serve you will never see again.’ He used this to encourage me to be bold and unafraid of embarrassing myself in front of someone who I would see regularly. However, this belief leads many to be rude or take customers for granted. The result is a dwindling customer base and a horrible reputation for customer service.

Increasingly we realise that this 90% rule is not true in fact it is the opposite. Reports that almost two-thirds of our business comes from repeat customers indicate that we need to treat each customer with respect and encourage them to return and to tell a friend. If we treat them with scant respect they will tell their friends and all of Facebook and Twitter. I found that these four steps helped me treat my customers with respect and believe they will help with retention and a strong customer service reputation.

1.       Be empathetic – customers are sometimes unsure of what they want and a rude and forceful salesperson or business can cause them to walk away dissatisfied. Instead of being rude or impatient give them the time to determine what they want or even gently make suggestions that they may then happily follow if you are not forceful or condescending.

2.       Service with a smile – I don’t mean a fake one. It may be hard in the midst of a customer who is behaving emotional and unreasonable. However, you have to think about what that customer will say about his or her experience with your business. They will never mention that they were being unreasonable. Therefore remain calm and do all you can to ease their concerns.

3.       Ask Them – Engage your customers to determine straight from them what it is they require from you. Then do all you can to deliver these as best your resources allow. Pay attention to any complaints they may have and suggestions they may have for improving your service. These can be used to generate new ideas and ways to improve your product or service.

4.       Provide memorable service – the guy who I purchased my computer from will always get a sale from me. His advice was free and flowing and he went above the call of duty to help me understand what went wrong with my previous computer even after the sale was completed. Service like that leaves customers satisfied and ready to return and share good reviews of your company.

Treat each customer like you want to be treated and you will be sure to have high retention rates.