Focus on existing customers, reach past customers, increase prices, work on conversion rates and change
James sat down with us and put his head in his hands. As one of our partners noted later, he seemed like the weight of the world was on his shoulders. His company was doing millions of dollars in business but was struggling to stay open. James said he needed to come up with some…
Those who can adapt will thrive
I recently facilitated a meeting of a group of more than 100 retailers. Seventy per cent of them were either fearful or concerned about the future of their stores. And so they should be. Retailing is changing – you would have to be blind not to see that. When I started in retailing in the…
The list of expenses for business owners sometimes feels never-ending
Profit is one of the most misunderstood and misconstrued words in the English language. Customers often think that profit is anything between a company’s cost for a product or service and the customer’s purchase price. Employees think profit is the difference between the selling price and the cost, less their wages. In reality, profit is…
One day, you’re an unshakable fan of a company; the next day, you’re warning complete strangers to stay away
The relationship between customer and company is a delicate thing. One day, you’re an unshakable fan of a company; the next day, you’re warning complete strangers to stay away. Here are three examples of customer service and how it can go so right – or so wrong. Many years ago, my Telus internet went out.…
It’s all about making a connection with your customers and building a relationship by giving them what they need in that moment
I recently gave a customer service session to the employees of a store called Great White Toys. Having seen in the news that Toys ‘R’ Us has filed for bankruptcy protection and that many other retailers are also in trouble as a result of online competition, I was surprised to hear from store owner Cameron…
Offer them amazing discounts and perks to make sure they know how important they are to your business, then let them spread the word
Our online customer buying journey is about to come full circle. We’ve gone from someone first hearing about you all the way to a regular customer becoming a raving fan and helping you grow your business. Let’s recap what we’ve talked about in the past few weeks: We started with interest and awareness. Someone already…
Six steps to achieving a positive customer sales experience from beginning to end
A customer-centric culture is not just about offering good service. It’s a way of doing business that provides a positive customer experience before, during and after the sale in order to drive repeat business, customer loyalty and profits. Elements of customer centricity include: Employees understand what customers want. They capture customer insights and share this…
When we listen to our clients, it allows us to improve on aspects of our organizations that perhaps we haven’t noticed
What would you do if you woke up one morning and right there on your Facebook page, for the whole world to see, was a complaint about how terribly one of your staff members was treating customers? Customer complaints are nothing new. In the past when customers received poor service from you or your staff,…
Always keep in mind these goals: easy to deliver, easy to implement. That gets purchased over and over
We’ve been working on making sure we understand the entire customer buying experience online. Today, we’re moving onto conversion. We started with interest and awareness and how your customer might hear about you – and what to do once they do. Then we moved to findability and reputation – both online and really important in…
You really need to control what’s said about you online and you need to show how you respond to all types of situations
Your marketing efforts should make an impact along each step of your customer’s online journey. From when they first see an advertisement or a post shared by one of their friends on Facebook, you’ve tweaked their interest. They’re interested in your product or service, and now they’re aware of your business. After becoming aware of…