Prosperity

"Prosperity is only an instrument to be used, not a deity to be worshiped." -- Calvin Coolidge

Oh, if we would only remember that. The pursuit of money over the best interests of our fellow human beings is all too common. Scams, selling potentially dangerous products, and identity theft are perpetrated every single minute of every single day. Most business owners are not in those categories, of course. But we may have been guilty of pursuing dollars to the detriment of our customers. Sometimes, there is a fine line between money and what's best for the customer. Business owners are human beings and temptation can be great.

We are in business to make money, to support ourselves and our families, and to enjoy life. Money is the ultimate goal. If we lose site of the fact that people are more important than money, we open ourselves up to feeling okay about selling substandard products or following procedures that hurt our customers, whether they realize it or not.

People first, business second is the most rewarding business philosophy you can live by. Nothing is more important than believing in your product or service, knowing it is beneficial to the customer, and treating customers like family.

5 Steps Toward Resolving Customer Complaints

Where are we without customers and clients? Out of business, that's where. The ability to relate to our customers is second only to our product or service. Our product or service fills a need or solves a problem for customers, but it doesn't stop there. We have to keep our customers engaged, informed, and satisfied.

Below are five steps to take when dealing with customer complaints:

1. Listen, listen, listen. If a customer is calling to complain about something, listen first. Don't try to think ahead to come up with an answer. Simply listen.

2. When a customer needs help with a problem, repeat your understanding of the situation - out loud - to your customer. Discern the exact nature of the complaint.

3. Ask questions. Customers want to be heard. By asking questions and taking complaints seriously, you have won half the battle.

4. Offer solutions. Give customers a choice of options.

5. Console the customer. Offer a discount on a future purchase, something of value for free, or otherwise give the customer some type of additional compensation.

Treat customer complaints as a way to improve your business. When customers experience difficulties with your product or service, it gives you an opportunity to think about how the problem could have been avoided in the first place.

Little Things Mean a Lot

I was working with a client this week who was wondering if his web site was attracting any visitors and if it was really worth having. After reminding him about the statistics data we gather and showing him again how he can sign in and see that his site is absolutely attracting visitors, I asked him if he had recently checked the email we set up to handle contact form submissions from his web site. He replied that he had not. We went in and checked and guess what? There had been 13 form submissions, everything from questions about services to prices. One of the messages was two months old.

Several of these potential customers have probably moved on to someone more responsive to their needs. My client is an expert in his field, but not such an expert on making sure each customer contact is handled expertly. It is little things like this that can, especially in economic downturns, make or break a business.