Should you treat your customers like... more than customers? The great debate that I have encountered for more than 2/3 of my own career and I can tell you that my answer then and now, is the same.
Yes.
As you go out in the world to seek your own way, its difficult to know all of the do's and don'ts. I mean, seriously, have you got time to check the list to see if you're supposed to be doing something when you're in front of a customer? For me, I found out early on... that I cannot be anything other than me. I tried all the "so called" checklist methods. I tried to follow in the footsteps of those before me who found greatness. I tried to be everything and anything but who I truly was... and I can tell you, I was completely and utterly miserable. Once I realized that trying to be something I wasn't and focused on just being me and letting customers see and get to know "me", I started seeing success. I found that people liked me and the fact that I was so open and genuine. I began to develop "real" relationships with my customers. I began to see them as more than "just" customers. They were people... why... they were friends.
Is it really possible to do business with friends? Trust is essential in every relationship, whether business or personal. Trust is the backbone for creating and keeping successful and long-term customers. You cannot BUY trust. You can only EARN it and work to keep it.
Trust. It makes me feel so good when someone says to me, I trust you completely. It means that I have earned that comment in some way. It means that my actions and follow-ups and effort have been noticed. It means that you have developed a solid relationship between two individuals who like each other and are very comfortable not only doing business but being friends as well. There are many customers who you won't have this type of relationship, but there are many that you will. Be grateful for those because they will enrich your life in so many ways.
Does being friends mean you owe these customers something extra? In my own mind, its a bonus by becoming friends. For me personally, it challenges me to exceed their expectations. Customers like to feel that you are going the extra mile for them. When you're friends with them, I have found that they appreciate that extra mile even more. (Think about how you feel when you're the customer and someone goes out of their way to make you happy.) Its a great feeling!
I've had a few supervisors who told me that my way of doing business was wrong. I have had one of them tell me that you cannot be friends with customers and that the "company" owned the relationships. Well... they were wrong then and they are wrong now. Relationships cannot be "owned" by anyone. Relationships are developed, nurtured and maintained by people. I have often told my own consulting clients when developing their customer base, don't micro-manage your sales people. Allow their personality to shine and let them represent your brand by being themselves. If a sales person knows the product and believes in it... the rest will take care of itself. The key to success is not the product or company - it's the person selling it.
My rules of thumb for selling have been the same for 25 years: Sell yourself, sell the product or service and then sell your company. IN THAT ORDER.
So... as I sit here today, I am smiling and happy. I know that when I go out into the world to meet new people and share my new passion for whatever project I may be working on... one thing is for certain - they will meet the "real me" and they will immediately become part of my family. All the critics can say its not "professional". They can say that its too personal, but for me - it's success. And, personally... I like success!
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