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Get Unsolicited Referrals by Wowing Your Customers

Guest post by: Paul Tobey

Article Overview: So many businesses fail even on handling base expectations. Setting simple standards that everyone in you business adheres to demonstrates your reliability to your clients

Get Unsolicited Referrals by Wowing Your Customers

There is no question that businesses that wow their customers grow quicker than firms that do not. But how do you wow your customers consistently? This is a question that should be top of mind for every business owner. Many people believe you "wow" customers by exceeding expectations every time they come in contact with your firm. While I believe this to be true for the most part, and is an excellent goal, in reality I think it is somewhat simplistic and not entirely practical. For example how do you "wow" a customer when you are sending an invoice, or asking them about a late payment of a bill. So many businesses fail even on handling base expectations. How often do we leave voice mails for suppliers that take days to be returned or send e-mails that never get responded to? I believe that there are simple standards that you can hold everyone in your firm accountable for. For example, Adam has an electronics business that requires his staff to work in people's homes. He trains his staff to adhere strictly to four standards which few of his competitors adhere to. Almost all of his business comes from referrals and he believes these behaviours are at the root of this revenue. The first is to show up on time. His work teams make appointments and work hard to leave early enough to show up at another customer's house at the appointed time. He believes this commitment to a specific time is rare in his business and it shows reliability, something also generally lacking in the world of contractors. The second behaviour is to say please and thank you. While this seems trivial, Adam believes that this shows respect for the other party and builds rapport between worker and client. He also believes that good manners are rare these days and make his people stand out. He also insists that his workers do what they say they will. Not following through is grounds for dismissal. Doing what you say you will shows consistency, reliability and trustworthiness. Finally his workers are never allowed to leave work unfinished. Even where installations take weeks there is communication with the client about progress and when the workers will be back. Its no more complex than that, everyone knows the standards and agrees to adhere to them. It results in great communication between supplier and client, high levels of trust and satisfaction and the referrals come in almost daily.

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Article Tags: client, customers, referrals, supplier



Related Forum Posts
Re: Email Marketing Benefits - Yes. GT. Unsolicited mails to cold prospects are sometimes treated as spams. Robert
Re: Two Useful Books To Help You Focus On The CLIENT - Hi David, To add to your thread, I'd like to recommend Jonathan Tisch's "Chocolates On The Pillow Aren't Enough: Reinventing The Customer Experience". Tisch's book includes content on "Welcoming Customers", "The New Art of Customization", "The Challenges of Customer Diversity" and "Offering Something Extra to Your Customers" to name a few.
How to Do Great Marketing with (Amost) No Money - I've given this presentation to CEOs many times. Now i can share it with you. But I cannot because I do not yet have 20 posts. Jeff Ogden, President Find New Customers
Re: How do you get your clients? - I think staying away from gathering clients strictly online when first starting out is probably a good idea. Your first few clients could maybe be people you know, or know through somebody that may require some of your services. Another good way of gaining new clientel is offering your first few clients completely free service in exchange for placing your business card or promotional material in their business if you're doing b2b sales. Referrals are the lifeblood of many small businesses.
Re: Are Business Owners too Old School to be Sold by a blog - [quote:140e27hj]Customers Pick Static Documents over Blog Entries 8 to 1 on Average[/quote:140e27hj] Interesting study. Just as a commenter said on your post... don't call it a blog. I agree.


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