Wednesday, February 6, 2013

Make Money Saying Thank You




As a business grows, sometimes business owners tend to forget the most important part of their business the customers. This can be quite a precarious situation, as nobody wants to be a "flash in the pan", another generic retailer soon to be forgotten. Remember that acquiring customers is difficult especially if people just buy from you once. This phenomenon is what makes grizzled old veterans of the business milieu would tell you that spending on marketing and advertisements to keep existing customers is much better than the seemingly Sisyphean act of trying to gain new customers.

To keep these old customers around, you would want to spend about one or two days per month by your phone, making courtesy calls to thank customers for their business. Never mind if you aren't planning to sell anything new - just some friendly small talk would do, about anything under the sun, or even just saying hi, hello. Simply taking this effort to make small talk and thank your customers will be undoubtedly appreciated by the majority, if not all your customers.

Your sales weaponry can greatly benefit from thanking your customers, even if not too many businesses take time to do this. There are several instances where in a simple thank you to your customers will be very much appreciated.

First, when they make a purchase a simple thank you will be well appreciated. Thank customers for purchasing, but first, hearken back to the last time a department store staff member thanked you for your business. Even the process of shopping and considering items is something a staff member might have thanked you for. A simple thank you could be a gift that keeps on giving if you think about what it means to your customers.

Second, when they contact you regarding a service issue. Now you might be going, "why should I thank my customer when he's out for my head and probably my family too?" What they don't realize is that when people express their concern they are giving you an opportunity to improve your business.

Third, when they refer you to other potential customers. Some businesses generate customers through referrals. Do not neglect to say thank you to your customers for their referrals, even just once, because they just might stop referring new business your way and tell others about what an ungrateful Scrooge you are. And this could be a big loss for your business.

Fourth, loyal customers also deserve a thank you. It is critical to thank long term clients. But some take these individuals for granted. They are people too, busy as they may be, and they deserve a little gratitude once in a while. Thus, sending a regular thank you card or note will be enough.

There are countless ways to say thank you. It could be as simple as thanking them in person, writing a note or card or through email, though the latter one we find mailed-in, no pun intended. An inexpensive card with handwritten comments can help you stand out from your competition. Sure, the Internet has opened the floodgates for business, allowing you to reach out to anybody anywhere in the world for your customer base. Being a cut above everybody else matters, but you need not always rely on technology to do that, especially when it comes to thanking others. Yes, creating thank you cards can take some time but the payoff is usually worth it.

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