Marketing Direct

Never Again Take
Customers For Granted

by George Clay
Marketing Direct, Inc.

Taking customers for granted was easy...until THE recession crashed the party.

Layoffs...downsizings...foreclosures... bankruptcies...bank failures...budget cuts and budget freezes --- the game has changed. And so have the rules.

As markets go dry survival of the fittest moves your business square into your competitors' crosshairs. Up for grabs are your customers...and anything else that moves.

Also smelling blood are the price driven bottom feeders. Because their markets have vanished these predators have reinvented themselves as "experts" in your niche field.

Their strategy for getting your customers is simple: Beat any price. But trading margins for volume ---- unless checked ----can cannibalize a market...turning once profitable business models into shipwrecks.

Take note: Studies show it takes seven years for a brand to recover its value once it's been discounted. Seven years!

In this market anyone with money to spend should be treated like a king. Is your business getting it right? Are your customers getting more attention... better service...better quality...and greater value for their money?

Service means survival. If you don't love your customer, get another customer. If you can't find a customer to love, get another business.


Make calls to your best customers: Do phone surveys...asking for service "gripes and likes". Let your prospect's do most of the talking (learn by listening). Hear what they like...and what they want fixed (complaints do matter!).

Then take action. But don't make promises you can't keep.

Cover thy database. Make working your prospect list a daily routine. Set aside thirty minutes minutes each morning before you get bogged down by the day's projects. Staying in touch means you care.

Be a positive spark: In your service chain build friendly, sincere relationships from the top down. Customers remember being treated well. From front desk receptionist to accounts payable to custodial personnel --- train your employees on how you want them to interact with customers. What the ancient philosopher Confiucius said twenty five hundred years ago rings true: "Consideration for others is the basic of a good life, a good society."

Get organized: Invest in simple technology. Use contact management software. It's an easy --- and cheap --- way to boost your efficiency by adding, changing and updating all the notes you have attached to all the people you contact (no more prospect lists scattered about on slips of paper, business cards, or sticky notes).

You'll be able to organize and simplify everything you do...keeping up to date with what you've promised and what your customers and prospects have promised. Being organized is being in control. And being in control is key to survival!

Bottom line: "Profit in business comes from repeat customers, customers that boast about your product or service, and bring friends with them". ----W. Edwards Deming