Customer service isn’t just about protocol and systems. It’s about the little details of nurturing relationships.
I truly believe that one of the great advantages that small businesses have is the relationships they can build with their customers and their teams. Although you may have a process or a system for building relationships, it’s the little details, the moments of instinct and communication. The way you serve in the moments you didn’t account for is what makes the real difference.
The way you serve in the moments you didn’t account for is what makes the real difference. #smallbusiness #smallbiz #smb #business #entrepreneurs
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Sometimes the thing that sets you apart is the extra minute you take to look up someone’s account – or what they wrote in their last email – before you respond. What was their situation? How have they worked with you in the past? Let that information be part of your current conversation. If they’re thinking, “I can’t believe you remembered that,” it is a positive. When someone says that to me, I know I’ve done something right that day!
How do you feel when someone let’s you know that they’re thinking about you without a sale or an ask behind it? What do you feel when someone remembers something that matters to you and asks you about it? It’s the same for your customers. Feeling heard and seen makes your customers value the relationship with you more, too.
Feeling heard and seen makes your customers value the relationship with you more, too. #business #smallbusiness #smallbiz #smb #entrepreneurs #biztips
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You can’t always know what your customers are facing. The next time you connect with them, you won’t know what they’ve been dealing with that day or in the days since they last talked to you. You don’t know unless you ask them.
In a moment of crisis or in a moment that appears calm on the surface, your customers are still living their lives, in ways that may or may not impact their patronage of your business. But your empathy, your checking in may make the difference in their relationship with you moving forward.
Rather than ignore the fact that your customers may have their own celebrations or challenges to manage, why not lean in? A simple “how are you?” can unlock a world of impact. Genuinely asking “how are you?” and listening for the answer can change the course of your relationship with this customer. Maybe they have happy news to share, and you are giving them an opportunity to share it with you. Or perhaps they will take the opportunity to reveal something that takes a burden off their shoulders. Either way, the bond with you and your business deepens. In the process, they may even mention an objection that would have come up later in your sales process, and now you are better informed.
We live in a busy world, and it can be surprising when someone takes a moment to think about you. To provide that level of service just for you at a time when you need it. It is the people who do that, the people who go above and beyond to show that you are important, that get our gratitude or loyalty. The little details matter, because the little details are part of how you take care of people in your network.
The little details are part of how you take care of people in your network. #customerservice #smallbusiness #smallbiz #smb #business #entrepreneurs
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Any company can put measures in place to be better about building relationships, but this is an area where small businesses shine the brightest. You can be a fixture of your community and a valuable presence to the people you serve not just because you deliver great products or services, but because you are paying attention to your customers while you do it.
So, I ask you, what are you doing to check in with your customers? How are you making sure they know they’re not just numbers on a balance sheet? What can you do today to nurture the relationships you have built and make sure the people in your network are getting what they need?
The foundation of good customer service is building a relationship. How can you do that today?
Want more ideas on tactical relationship building approaches? Read here!
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