Sales Management articles: tips, advice, ideas, strategies & solutions

Subscribe to our Sales Management Articles Feeds


Feeds

What's this?

Home > Sales Management

How to Turn Your Clients into Raving Fans

Jim Klein
Customer Service Tip #1: Treat everyone like they are the most important person in the world.

"Customer service is the never-ending pursuit of excellence to keep customers so satisfied they tell others of the way they were treated in your place of business."

A big problem in the sales world today is that many salespeople and companies spend more time and money to get a new client than to keep their current clients satisfied.

One of the keys to this customer service tip is go the extra mile. Give the client more than they paid for. Treat everyone like they are the most important person in the world and they will become "raving fans".

In 1991 my bride to be and I were flying from Rochester, New York to Reno, Nevada to meet her sister and brother-in-law and get married. We were flying through O'Hare and for those of you who fly often; planes are usually late in Chicago. Ours was that day and we missed our connecting flight. When we got to the customer service desk we were told it would be two hours before we could get another flight, I was upset. We had plans that evening and by making two more connections, those plans were lost. My fiancé told me to let it go. She said "they don't care about us".

When we finally boarded our next flight and were seated on the plane the flight attendant came on the speaker for passenger Jim Klein to press the attendant button. I did wondering what was going on. Down the aisle came the customer service agent from the airline with a bag which he handed to me. Inside the bag was a bottle of champagne with a card that said, "Congratulations! Someone at American Airlines does care".

Using this customer service tip, that small gesture turned an upset customer, me, into a fan. Even though our plans were spoiled I felt much better knowing that someone cared about my situation even though it was out of their control. I told everyone about that little gesture.

Find ways to go the extra mile for your clients and they will reward you with more business than you can handle.

Customer Service Tip #2: A satisfied customer tells three people. A dissatisfied customer tells everyone.

Have you ever had lunch or dinner at a restaurant and the food, service, everything was excellent? How many people did you recommend dine at that particular restaurant, three or four, probably? Now, the second half of this customer service tip. Have you ever eaten at a restaurant where you had to wait for a table, wait a long time for service, the food was bad, everything about the experience was awful. How many people did you recommend eat at that restaurant? None, right? Actually, you told everyone about this awful experience. Everyone you came in contact with for the next day, or two, or more got an earful about your terrible experience and you advised them never to eat there.

To quote a successful speaker Zig Ziglar, "You can get everything in life you want if you will just help enough other people get what they want". Excellent customer service is definitely a win - win situation. The client wins by getting more in value than they paid for and you win by creating "raving fans" out of your clients.

Think about this customer service tip. Which group do your clients fit into? Are they truly satisfied, or do you need to make some changes?
About the Author:
Jim Klein provides salespeople with effective strategies to increase their business while working less, guaranteed. Get free sales training by subscribing to our free newsletter "The Sales Advisor".
 

 

No. of Times this article has been viewed : 126
Date Published : Nov 25 2008

Most Recently Published Sales Management Articles as of

Jun 19 2009    Sales Mission Complete

by Tony Cole

What does it take to build a committed and cohesive sales team? Read how one of the best learning institutions in the world addresses this crucial element of success the same way sales organizations must.

Jun 15 2009    Email is the New Phone

by Kendra Lee

Expectations and how email is used have changed. With these changes email is now as important as face-to-face meetings and phone calls. Here are some tips to consider when making email a primary customer interaction tool:

Jun 15 2009    Shortcuts to the Decision Maker

by Kendra Lee

Every seller knows it can take as many as nine phone calls and emails to finally get the attention of a busy business owner or executive. Lately I've noticed that some sellers are ignoring the steps that should be taken in the effort to shorten their path to reach the decision maker.

Jun 15 2009    Fill Your Pipeline by Refining Your Referral Requests

by Kendra Lee

Lately I've heard a lot of people talking about how to get referrals. No doubt about it, they're one of the quickest ways to fill your pipeline. They're definitely easier and less stressful than cold calling. They're more accessible, and there's less competition to close the deal.

Jun 15 2009    Are You Selling to Customers or Clients? Know the Difference to Succeed as a Consultative Seller

by Kendra Lee

How do you refer to the people you represent? Are they “clients” or “customers”? The terms may seem interchangeable, but for those who recognize the subtle distinctions, you may be leaving a wrong impression.

Jun 15 2009    Client Communication as Easy as A-B-C

by Kendra Lee

To be a successful consultative seller, you need to grow and maintain a broad base of client contacts. How do you maintain and strengthen relationships with all of these people so you will be the first person they remember when they have a business issue that requires your expertise?

Jun 15 2009    Getting Past the Executive Gatekeeper

by Kendra Lee

Some sellers fail miserably when trying to gain access to a company executive. They smile and dial, hoping their canned pitch will be enough to get an appointment. This strategy doesn't get many sellers past today's sophisticated executive gatekeepers.

Jun 15 2009    Increase prospecting results by integrating your touches

by Kendra Lee

Connecting with prospects for the first meeting requires persistence, consistency - and simply wearing them down. You can speed your access time by integrating your communication strategy with multiple connection methods without frustrating prospects.

Jun 15 2009    Is Email Hiding Your Personality?

by Kendra Lee

Email is so much easier to use for prospecting than the phone. But it's also easily deleted with no response. you have to be really careful that the words you choose let your personality shine through. So how do you let your personality out and get 85% of your prospects to hit reply?

Jun 15 2009    Now is the Time to Master Financial Conversations

by Kendra Lee

Financial justification is the biggest blocker in today's economic environment. But some sellers aren't feeling any pain - their sales aren't taking longer in spite of the economy - and yours don't have to either.

Jun 15 2009    Create Opportunities in our Tough Economy

by Kendra Lee

Creating opportunities is all about keeping your name in front of potential customers, listening hard during sales calls, and thinking deeply to make creative suggestions. You can do it, too.

Jun 15 2009    Top 3 2009 Sales Resolutions

by Kendra Lee

It's a new year, with a fresh sales quota and a new set of sales resolutions. I'm always looking for ways to improve and January consistently finds me evaluating my performance from the previous year then setting goals for the coming one.

Jun 15 2009    Your Value is Like a Homemade Chocolate Chip Cookie

by Kendra Lee

Even though my homemade chocolate chip cookies are definitely not low fat, people eat two, three and four at a time - more than they ever intended. Your clients are the same way. If they love, love, love your consultative recommendations, advice, and observations they'll buy more and more.

Jun 15 2009    Don't be Afraid to Help Clients Reach Financial Justification

by Kendra Lee

To be a true consultant to your clients you must build a business case for investing in your recommendation and providing the client with a strong feeling of confidence in the return on investment (ROI) your solution will bring.

Jun 15 2009    Use Testimonials to Attract Prospects and Win Sales

by Kendra Lee

Strong testimonials make prospects long to engage you - especially when times are tough and companies are cutting expenditures. They see you as the answer to their prayers. Add them to your sales kit and you'll soon find prospects asking you to engage with them.

12345678910...
Search for ebooks on Management & Business