Pastor Welcome Thamsanqa Mlungisi Dlalisa
Over the past two weeks, we looked at defining customer service and why customer service is important. This week we continue with the theme of customer service but look at how to ensure that you keep all your existing clients. Business is truly about customers – both getting them and keeping them. Keeping your clients is just as important as getting them. However, most businesses focus on getting them and do not put enough effort into keeping them. In this article, we continue looking at how you can keep those most valuable clients that you already have. The following points will guide you on how to ensure that you retain all your existing customers:
1. Ensure continuous improvement in what you do and how you do it.
Your business is not alone in what you offer. Therefore as an entrepreneur, you need to improve continuously in what you do and how you do it. Your customer must always feel ‘happy levels’ going up and up. These happy levels are driven by improvements that you intentionally introduce all the time. The customer’s experience must always get better every time that they interact with your business. You need to teach and train all your workers and intentionally invest in training your workforce on customer service.
2. Improve on listening and create platforms to receive feedback
Listening is key to the success of every relationship. It tells your customers that they truly matter. We all feel we matter every time we see that we are listened to by our parents, colleagues, bosses and employers or even life partners. As a business, you need to create mechanisms to hear or get feedback from your clients. These mechanisms include interactive websites, Facebook accounts, Twitter accounts and answering all your telephone calls and mail. Once you introduce these feedback mechanisms, your clients will feel listened to by your enterprise.
3. Be transparent, honest and open to your clients
Clients often buy a person, not products. What I mean is that you need to build trust with your clients. This trust comes as a result of being transparent, honest and open as a business. It does not help to hide things. You need to apologise where you are wrong and fix your mistakes. Often companies try hard to disprove their mistakes. This often leaves clients even more dissatisfied.
4. Be kind and learn to say “thank you”
Another very basic customer service rule lies in two simple words: “thank you”. You need to recognise that your clients came to buy from you over other potential clients. Simply saying “thank you” can go a long way in showing your clients you appreciate their support. It creates a positive climate for you. You need to make it your culture to show gratitude. Many buying decisions are influenced by a customer’s experience the last time they visited your business. Therefore, it is important to appreciate all your clients, as this might influence their next buying decision.
5. Resolve all customer complaints on time and effectively
Resolving client complaints is another key to customer service and retaining your existing customers. When your customer has pending complaints, they effectively stop buying from you or giving you new business. They also speak badly about your business, thereby pushing away all your new potential customers based on their individual experience. So, as soon as the customer complains, you need to fix the problem straight away.
6. Show utmost respect for your clients
Respect means you do things on time all the time, give quality products or services and are friendly to all your clients. Respect also means doing what you promise to do at the right time in the right way. Clients do feel disrespected every time businesses fail to do what they promise to do. Often you have to afford the same respect even to your small clients. Why? Because they could be your biggest customer in years to come.
These are some of the mechanisms that you can use as an entrepreneur to ensure that you keep your clients.
In order to help entrepreneurs of Tembisa to implement what we are learning via these articles, I have set up what I call the JOSEPH ACHIEVERS MENTORING (JAM) programme. The programme is based on Joseph in the Bible, who rose to prominence despite his background. I am encouraging all Tembisa residents to join. This programme is aimed at supporting all residents of Tembisa but it targets mainly young entrepreneurs, young professionals, university students and high school learners. It offers a range of support initiatives including career guidance, training and mentoring. Many have enrolled for the programme and receive business management training and mentoring. I challenge you to enroll for JAM in order to propel your life or your business to new heights. To register for JAM, send an email to dlalisa.rhi@gmail.com or call the number below.
For more information, contact Pastor WTM Dlalisa on 083 395 1165.
call to action – For more articles in the Entrepreneur’s Brew series, visit our website.
