Your business is only as good as the customer service that you provide. Why? Because when your customer service sucks, customers won
Archive for the ‘Customer Service’ Category
Customer Service Options for Small Businesses
Image taken from sayitcommunity.com
Customer service or customer support is a very important part of running a business. Any small business owner who wants his business to grow and be profitable needs to invest a portion of his resources to making sure that his customers are satisfied with the products and services they bought. Fortunately, there are ways for small businessmen to provide excellent customer service without breaking the bank. Here are some of them.
- Telephone Support — The most basic of customer support options, telephone support is still preferred by many customers, especially the older ones. Nothing beats talking to a real person on the other line. You can have a special telephone line dedicated for such purposes if you receive many calls and inquiries during business hours. Consider voice over Internet phone (VOIP) when setting up a customer service line.
- Email Support — This is probably one of the convenient and easy ways to provide support to your customers. In your web site, make sure that you have a noticeable button that allows your customer
The Do
Last week I spent some time looking for a new VA for a client I thought was no longer a good fit for the current structure of my business. We have a good relationship so I felt it was only fair to help her find a replacement.
I communicated with quite a few but one potential VA
Client Satisfaction: Dealing with Difficult Clients
As a virtual assistant, I must admit that I’ve experienced some unique challenges in my business. However, for the past month I’ve had the experience of chasing down a client that just seems to have vanished into thin air! I cannot get her at her office, her cell phone and via email. To the person that works virtually, this tends to be a very frustrating ordeal. How do you deal with difficult clients when working virtually? I found this article on life123.com by Rachel Mork to be useful and hope you do too..
In an ideal world, all of your client relationships will be pleasant, positive and easy to manage. In reality, that won’t always be the case and you’ll occasionally have to deal with difficult clients who don’t communicate clearly, have unreasonable expectations or delay projects or payment. Dealing with difficult clients is part of being in business, but with some careful planning and good decision making skills, you can learn how to identify problems before they start and manage them effectively when they arise.
Setting Expectations
Good client management begins before you start or even commit to work. The more you understand what your clients wants from you, the better equipped you’ll be to set expectations for the project and your relationship. Start by communicating your services and service terms to the client clearly and in detail.
Provide a detailed, written description of the services you provide, including any limits on the number of project changes or revisions you’re willing to make. Promising to revise work until it meets the client’s satisfaction without amending your pay rate could cost you more than the business is worth.
Put your pay rate and payment schedule in explicit terms, making sure there’s no room for misinterpretation.
Require a monetary deposit upfront, unless you’re comfortable with the client’s reputation and ability to pay.
Set a strict schedule for communication, including the days and time of day you’re available for meetings, conference calls and other telephone calls as well as your response time for returning calls and e-mails.
Put Project Specifications in Writing
If your client doesn’t provide you with the project’s specifications, draft a proposal that communicates your understanding of their needs and the terms you’ve agreed to before you sign a contract. At a minimum, you’ll want to spell out all aspects for the project, the expected timeframe for completion and your payment terms.
Send a copy of the work agreement to the client and revise, if necessary, until you both agree on the important details. This way, you can refer to that document if the client suddenly changes their requirements or expectations mid-project.
Characteristics of Difficult Clients
Look for signs that the client may not be with the business they bring to you, including:
Not respecting your time. If the client is already calling you frequently or at odd hours, chances are they won’t respect your work hours during the project.
Looking for free advice. Some clients like to talk, but never seem to get the project started. Before you know it, you haven’t done any work you can get paid for, but you’ve taught them how to do the job themselves.
Refusing to pay a deposit upfront. If a client isn’t willing to put a deposit on the project, it may point to other payment issues further down the road.
Badmouthing other freelancers. If a client tells you a horror story about a bad experience with another freelancer, be wary. Although it may truly be a case that the previous freelancer wasn’t right for the job, it may also be an indicator that the client’s expectations are consistently unreasonable.
Admitting they didn’t pay another freelancer. Some clients will go as far as to tell you that another freelancer’s work was so bad they didn’t pay them. Be careful-the client may claim your work doesn’t meet their standards to avoid payment.
If you find the client to be difficult during the project planning stages, you may want to turn the business down graciously before you begin. You may have invested a few hours in them already, but it’s more effective to cut your losses and move on if you suspect the client may be too hard to handle. Simply explain that after careful evaluation, the project exceeds your scope of expertise or requires more hours than you have available. Thank them for the opportunity, apologize for the inconvenience and focus on your other clients.
When a Client Goes from Easy to Difficult
Sometimes you can do everything right during the planning stages and move forward with a client, only to discover mid-project that they’re more difficult than you realized. At this point, it may be too late to back out of the project without damaging your reputation, but there are several things you can do to manage the situation.
Take emotion out of it. Remaining professional is of utmost importance, so make sure you express any anger or frustration in private to a friend or family member, not directly to the client. Distance yourself emotionally and try to identify possible solutions or compromises that may make the project run more smoothly.
Rely on e-mail. If client discussions have been heated, limit face-to-face and telephone contact that might cause you to react (or overreact). E-mail not only allows you to review what you’re going to say before you say it, but it also serves to document any negotiations or project changes for later reference. When you meet real-time with a client, send written summary of the meeting as a follow up.
Solicit help from another freelancer. This is where networking with other freelancers really pays off. You’ll lose a few bucks bringing in extra help, but having a partner on the project can speed the project along so you can end the relationship sooner and move on to clients you value and who value you more.
Accept partial payment. If the project is winding down, but you can’t bear working with the client any longer, offer to take partial payment for the portion of the project you’ve completed.
Pursue payments calmly and persistently. Some clients are wonderful all the way to the end-when they conveniently forget to pay you. Always express your gratitude for their business and tell them you enjoyed working with them (even if you didn’t), then reiterate the payment terms to which you both agreed. Send an additional copy of the agreement and/or a duplicate invoice. You may need to increase the frequency of your reminders as time goes on.
Image compliments huynhphuclinh.wordpress.com
10 tips on building a loyal clientele
As with all relationships, showing interest in the other party as well as communication is essential. The same applies to business relationships. All you need is that one or two loyal clients and you’re set. Here are 10 tips that will assist in building lasting and successful relationships with your clients.
1.Think of clients as individuals even though they may be a company. While a client represents a company, each client still is an individual. They cannot be treated in a general manner. Different strokes for different folks, they say. Some may have different needs and priorities than their counterparts and will require a little more prodding than others to get the work moving forward.
2. Each time you meet clients make it a point to discuss their needs. The more you ask, the more their needs are covered. Meetings are almost always what’s in it for the clients. It’s a meeting because they want to know how you could help them make their business better. Unless you’re able to show ways in which you can do that, it’s a waste of time.
3. Make a list of your clients and contact them frequently. Creating a database of your clients, no matter how simple, will make contacting them on a regular basis more efficient. Never come in from the cold. It’s easier to ask for something from a client or a friend if you’ve kept in touch through the years instead of coming in from out of nowhere asking for a new project/task. Frequent updates/inquiries will remind them about you and your services.
4. Help clients succeed and you so will you. Their success is your success. If you proved to be instrumental in a certain project’s success, chances are you will be hired again in the future.
5. Always ask your clients how business is progressing. Keeping yourself updated of how their business progresses allows you to determine how to position yourself and how to be indispensable to the client, like they can’t do their work without you. If not, you’ll be the first thing on their minds when it comes to cost-cutting.
6. Study the trade magazines for each of your clients’ industries. Not many people read it, but it is a rich source of information. Familiarizing yourself with their trade allows you to catch up on discussions and terminologies. That way, you show you know what’s happening in your client’s industry from a macro and micro perspective.
7. Remember that the client is the lifeblood of the organization. A company is only as good as the people who work there. Gone are the days when clients could hide behind the institution. Now, companies must have a human face. Help your client acquire a better affinity from their clients/consumers.
8. Get feedback from your clients and find out what your clients think of your service. Don’t wait for feedback; ask for feedback right away. Don’t allow a vacuum in the communications between you and your client.
9. Make it your business to know your client’s business, in every way possible. In some cases, if not most, some companies/clients expect you to have done your homework. Always be one step ahead of the client. Show them that you’ve exerted effort to know their industry. That way, your clients would know that you’re interested in their business and how it’s doing. What good is all their hard work if they’re the only ones who know about it.
10. Strive for consistency. The person who is indispensable is the one who can be depended on instead of the one who occasionally comes up with one big idea. It means submitting reports, budgets, etc. on time. It means doing the boring, dirty work. Consistency is key. The more your clients are assured of your consistent, quality delivery, the more they are confident in hiring you again and perhaps even recommending you and your services to other businesses.
Signs that you should fire a client.
As a business owner or any professional for that matter, at some point in time you are likely to experience the need to cut ties with a client. This can occur for a myriad of reasons. When it gets to this point, the client does not seem to be worth the time, energy, money or trouble anymore.
Letting a client go is not a bad thing. In fact, it can be a necessary step if your business is to ever get to the point that you would have envisioned it. The key is to wrapping up the relationship with the client properly and professionally once this can be done. To avoid burning bridges, you will want to ensure that all unfinished work is wrapped up, possibly assist in finding a replacement and just generally doing things that will demonstrate that there are no hard feelings. However, if the relationship has not been amicable, these may not be possible at all.
Here are my top 9 signs that it is time to let a client go. I will expand on these later on and repost sometime soon.
1- Consistently pays late and probably never paid an invoice on time. Need I say more?
2- Talking to the client or checking your inbox and seeing an email from them fills you with dread. There is no joy in working for and communicating with the client. Client can be considered a
Social media marketing and the link with customer service
Poor customer service sucks and is very dangerous and costly for businesses and brands.
Prior to the advent of social media, the company that provided mediocre customer service and treated their clients with indifference could have gotten away with it and have little to minimum impact on their brand. Apart from the person affected, few people would know. Social marketing has changed this and the provider that fails to meet consumer expectations not only damages their brand, but builds a bad name and online reputation for themselves. In an age where information is quickly and easily disseminated, damage to a brand’s reputation can have far-reaching and long-lasting repercussions. Social media is changing the way businesses think about customer service. The cost of poor service, once measured in terms of single consumers, can now have an immediate and far-reaching impact on companies both far and wide. The onus on each company in this business new environment is to play it safe by delivering stellar service and staying attuned to their customers.
For the company that is new to social marketing and now coming to terms with the impact that it can have on their product or brand,
How to set yourself apart from your competitors and keep clients in a rough economy
Tomorrow at 6:00 PM AST I’ll be talking about how small businesses can keep their clients happy and set themselves apart from their competitors even in a rough economy, where client retention is critical. Tune in and feel free to share your own tips on client retention.
Check out the show by visiting www.blogtalkradio.com/ciboneyvirtual
How a Customer Service Virtual Assistant can be an asset to your business.
Earlier today I did a show on Blog Talk Radio about the benefit of hiring a a customer service virtual assistant. You can check it out here. Next week I’ll be sharing some of the points mentioned in my blog posts.
