Maintaining a Strong Customer Relationship

One vital part of a successful business is your customer service. Why? When you think about it, without customers you wouldn’t have a business. That’s why maintaining a strong relationship with your customers is so important. Customers love to feel appreciated. However, no matter how great your product or service is, if a customer has a bad experience, it may not be long before the word gets out and you start to lose customers.

When you have good communication, you have the opportunity to create a customer bond and a much better chance of retaining your customer base as well as gaining new customers. Whether you talk to customers on the phone or in person, there are basic strategies that you should follow. For example:

Have a plan. If you’re planning a face-to-face meeting or a phone conversation, create a list of talking points that are important to you and your customer. A couple of days before your conversation, send an email to the customer to see if there are specific items they would like to talk about as well as items you want to discuss. This will save time for both you and your customer. Try not to make the meeting too formal, add a little small talk to the mix, it makes everyone more comfortable and will help create a lasting bond.

Do your research. You can’t be prepared for everything that might come up in conversation but you can research what you do know will come up in the discussion. If you don’t know the answer to something, explain that you will look into the issue and get back to them. Give them a date and time you will get back to them. This will put your customer at ease and show them that you care about their issues.

Choose a setting. Make your customer feel comfortable. A relaxed atmosphere generally works best. Whether you meet face-to-face, video chat, or on the phone, if possible, hold your meeting in a quiet room away from surrounding noise and distractions.

Start and end on time. Set a timer so that you’re not late for the meeting. Get prepared well before the start of your meeting. That way if something unexpected comes up before the meeting, you will still be on time. Your customer may be on a time limit so, if you set the meeting for an hour, keep it within that hour. If you need another meeting, set up a convenient time for both of you before the end of the meeting.

Follow up. At the end of the day, send an email summary of the meeting to your customer. This will establish documentation of your meeting in case there are questions or any decisions that may need to be revisited. This will also reduce any confusion about the details of the meeting.

Meetings are all part of doing business. They can make or break your customer relationships. Think of these meetings as a learning experience and a way to improve your customer connections. For more tips contact our office at (866) 497-9761 to schedule an appointment with our advisors. At Summit CPA we offer multiple resources that will help get your business on the right track.