When you start up a business, initially it is yours. All attention is on you the proprietor of the business. As time goes on, the ownership shifts from you to the people you call your customers. It’s all about them and what they want. That’s why they can even shout at you and get away with it but you cannot do the same. They owe you no respect even though you refuse to go to sleep, just to ensure that you provide them with the services they desire and satisfaction they seek.
You come into the business hall and nobody notices you but the moment a customer steps in, everyone’s attention is demanded.
Your very essence of setting up your business was to make profit and provide services and not to get attention, honor and respect. If you wanted a place where you will get a standing ovation each time you come in, it is certainly not in business. Perhaps you are in the wrong place. Just forget about ambiance and face the money and the service. This is Business 101 and you need to validate it.
The true owners of your business are those you call your customers. This is one mentality I try to drill down the heads of business owners. You will do great exploits in business if you have a strong mentality that your business is indeed owned by your customers. After all, you have nothing to lose as long as they are just the owners while you are the one who receives the credits and all the profits. Businesses that are built with a strong customer culture soar very high on eagles’ wings.
The interesting thing is that we are all customers of someone’s business, even those of us who own businesses. We know the kind of feeling we get when we are treated the way we think we should not be treated. But is it not funny how we go somewhere and demand to be treated with the highest esteem while back in our businesses, we forget what a customer wants? This is the reason for this piece.
With my many years of experience as a customer, and my interaction with other ‘experienced customers’, I have come to the conclusion that there are just 4 key things that every customer wants, in order to be satisfied. They may come asking for bread, shoes, clothes, books, food, phones, a hair-cut, and so on, but what actually they are asking for are these four things:
1. Guaranteed Quality
We all love good things, don’t we? I don’t know anybody who doesn’t. Even when we know we don’t deserve good things, we can’t settle for anything less.
The very first thing that a customer is looking out for, when he comes patronizing you, is quality. He wants to make a decision on where to always go to whenever he needs the best.
Why in most parts of Africa today we prefer consuming foreign goods, is simply because our own enterprises don’t give us the quality we want. Even when our local goods are by far cheaper, we prefer to spend much money and be sure of the quality we get.
People don’t just want quality goods some of the times. They want to be able to count on you to deliver the best quality, all the time. Can customers be sure that whatever thing they buy from you will always be the best? When you sell out to your customers, what guarantee do they have that what they have gotten will never fail them? The confidence that is built in the minds of your customers whenever you sell products with reasonable warranty is immeasurable.
Guaranteed quality is the number one sure way of satisfying your customers.
2. High Class Service
Can you remember the last time you went to buy some personal effects from a shopping mall? As soon as you entered the shop, the first thing you saw was an elegant lady dressed neatly and looking sharp with an irresistible smile on her face. You did not need anyone to tell you that you were welcomed. Immediately, you walked up to her and before you could ask for what you wanted, you heard something like,
“Good morning Sir. Welcome to Sweet Breeze Ventures where we guarantee you the best. How may I help you?” You went on to ask for what you wanted and then you were shown around as you made your choice. There were price tags on all the items and if you felt some of the prices were slightly higher than expected, you were given a polite answer for why.
At the end, your stuffs were well packaged and without wasting of time you were helped to your car. Before you could even leave the premises of the shopping mall, you received a text that read, “Thank you for making us your number one choice. We hope to serve you even better, next time”. The next day, you received a call from the manager, asking to know if you had any complaints about the stuffs you purchased. How did you feel about all that?
This is an example of high class service and no one who receives such a service can resist coming again.
High class service is constituted by the kind of respect and honor you give indiscriminately to all your customers; the sense of urgency with which you serve them, the ease at which they can get what they want; the support you give them while they make their purchases; the follow-up that you give when they leave your premise and the assurance they get that even if they went away and had a disappointment, they will be heard.
How is your service like? You will be making a big mistake if you think that since you provide the highest quality of goods in the market that is enough for your customers to be satisfied. Look at your service and set the standards, high.
3. Consistency
One thing that many good businesses lack is consistency. They could have quality goods and even maintain a high standard of service but they lack consistency. Consistency is about doing what you do when you must do it and in the way that you are expected to do it.
It is very disappointing sometimes, when a customer comes to get what you normally provide and you are out of stock or unavailable. This is one thing that makes businesses lose many customers.
I know it is sometimes difficult to ensure that you never disappoint your customers when they need your product so badly, but you must try as hard as you can to get to that level. This is one of the big challenges in business and if you can attain this level, you are in for more customers and more money.
I know a restaurant around my area where very good food is prepared and served fresh. I started patronizing them until lately when they became very inconsistent. Each time I went there to eat and have a drink, my choice was hardly available. I will be forced to make a different choice. I managed with this for a while until I could no longer tolerate them. So I left and until today, they don’t even know why I did.
Be known as a consistent person, by providing satisfaction to your customers all the time.
4. Dynamism
Dynamism is one very important way of keeping your customers coming. People love dynamism and flexibility. They love change, even though they resist it in their lives very often. Dynamism is about new and better ways of doing the same thing.
When your business operation is very predictable, it lacks dynamism. You must keep being very innovative and dynamic in order to win the hearts of your customers always. It is like a love relationship whereby you become creative and dynamic so that you cannot be predicted but can be depended upon to always do the best.
I have grown up and known businesses that existed even before I was born but have not changed one bit in their operations. They do things the same way and get the same or even worse results, even with the changing times.
Inject a lot of innovation into your business. From time to time, change the face that receives customers; change the face look of your business; change the way goods are packaged; change the advert that is used in the media; change the sign post in front of your shop, do something new and exciting for your customers; try one or two promotional services; raise curiosity in your customers; call for customer forums where customers can express their concerns, freely; and so on.
In order to be dynamic, you need a very creative and dynamic team as well as an environment that encourages creativity and initiative-taking. Read my post on "How To Build A Winning Business Team" for more on this.
In our very competitive business world of today, you must become more aggressive in winning the hearts of your customers, every day. Customer satisfaction is the way and these four keys will help open the door to that way. Apart from these are very simple practical and wonderful ways to make your customers excited about your business. See "How To Excite Your Customers" for this.
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By Kadzem Claude
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