Do you ever wonder what would happen if you went undercover in your company and worked with your employees? What would you discover about your employees’ work ethic and their attitude toward customer service? Would your employees follow your directions and treat customers with appreciation or would they break all your “rules” about customer service? Do they understand your “rules”, or do they see your example of how to treat customers?
These are interesting questions, and they should be
considered by every business owner who has employees of any sort. Appreciation
Marketing is the philosophy of any business which understands that
customers who are treated fairly and as human beings instead of account numbers
will help the business succeed. They will remain loyal, and they will tell
others what a great experience that they have in their relationship with the
business. Thus, their referrals will bring more customers to the business,
making it more successful.
While this is a great philosophy for the business owner to
have, it will have no positive effect if your employees will not follow your
“rules” to apply Appreciation Marketing in their dealings with customers. No
matter what instructions you may have placed into effect, your employees will
pay more attention to the example that you yourself set in your dealings with
customers. Set the example, and your employees will follow, but make sure that
your examples are the ones that you want your employees to follow. Be a leader,
not a boss.
You must be very clear when you train new employees or
retrain ones who may not understand exactly what you want done within the realm
of customer relationships. You must know what takes place between employees and
customers when you are not present. If you conduct your business in an open
manner, treating customers as valued assets of your business, you will set an
example that should be easy to follow. You must communicate your methods to
your employees, specifying exactly the responsibility and authority that each
has.
Communication with employees is essential, both by
instructions and example. I believe that if you hire intelligent employees,
give them the instruction, training, and equipment that they need to do their
jobs, and then give them the authority to fulfill their responsibilities, they
will be happier, more confident, and professional, performing as you wish. If
your example is in line with your instructions, and you conduct your business
and personal lives professionally, there will be no conflicts.
Of course, if you find out there is someone who cannot
follow instructions, either due to the inability to learn or to care about your
business success, them you must deal with that problem. An employee who does
not understand, or does not care about Appreciation Marketing, should not be allowed
to continue to destroy your business relationships, whether those relationships
are with customers or anyone else.
Appreciation Marketing can turn customers into
clients, non-customers into referral partners, and everyone into relationships
which benefit all parties. You must lead by example, require your employees to
follow your leadership, and foster an atmosphere of client service that
surpasses all other businesses. Please leave me your comments, or email me at Jim@SOC4Now.com, or call me at 360-314-8691. You should not
have to go “undercover” in your business to discover what type of client
relationships your business has. You should also appreciate your professional
employees as must as you do your clients.
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