by Daria Steigman on September 30, 2009
It’s not often that I spend a full day listening to other people talk–and sit through it all (or at least most of it). But the GrowSmartBiz conference yesterday held my attention.
There was a lot of terrific content, and I’ll post more fully over time. But I thought I’d pass along 3 tips from SmallBizTechnology’s Ramon Ray on how to turn prospects into customers | clients:
- Be flexible about what you are offering (and don’t nickel & dime people).
- Follow up. You should “date your leads and marry your customers,” said Ray.
- Be a true resource (including educating customers & providing value).
What would you add?
Tagged as:
Customer Service,
Customers,
GrowSmartBiz,
Ramon Ray,
SmallBizTechnology
by Daria Steigman on August 6, 2009
Interesting takeaway from the Interbrand survey of consumer attitudes toward 32 major banks and financial services companies.* Turns out that the survey of 2000 households found that 53 percent don’t trust their own bank; and even more–64 percent–don’t trust financial service providers.
What consumers want:
“integrity, transparency, responsibility, and empathy”
What the heck were we (consumers) putting up with before?
This should also be another warning sign to companies, especially big brands, about the need to rethink their business operations and how they tell their story. What do you think?
______________
*From Interbrand New York CEO Alan Bateman in remarks yesterday during a Webinar hosted by Thomson Reuters.
Photo by takomabibelot. Flickr Creative Commons License.
Tagged as:
Customers,
financial services,
Interbrand,
Thomson Reuters
by Daria Steigman on October 28, 2008
My car dealership called me to ask about my recent service experience. It went smoothly, and I told the customer rep. that. He asked me what I liked about their service department, and I gave him two specific reasons why I keep bringing my car back. And that was that.
After I hung up, I realized he didn’t ask me what I didn’t like or what I thought they could change. If he had, the dealership would have learned that I find the “miscellaneous charge” junk fee insulting, and that I tell people to steer clear of their body shop, which lost my business after they lost my front license plate and lied about it.
Are you asking your clients or customers about the good, the bad, and the ugly? If not, you’re missing a big opportunity to get invaluable feedback from the people who are already invested in you.
Tagged as:
Customers,
marketing,
PR
by Daria Steigman on October 23, 2008
Estee Lauder has raised the bar on its purchase “giveaway” from $1.00 below the price of not-so-cheap-to-begin-with moisturizer to $1.00 above. Which means you either leave without the extras or spend money on something you don’t want. Or option 3: change brands. There’s a lot of competition out there.
Let’s be clear: Although cosmetics companies put a dollar value on their giveaways, it doesn’t cost them that much. The aim of the promotions is to generate sales and customer loyalty.
So why would a company risk alienating customers, especially during a recession?
Tagged as:
Customers,
Estee Lauder,
marketing,
Sales
by Daria Steigman on October 20, 2008
I received an absentee ballot in the mail the other day. Only one problem: I didn’t request one. I used one in September for the local (non-presidential) primary, but planned on trekking to my polling site this time. I guess I’m voting early this year.
Before you anticipate your customer’s or client’s needs, it’s useful to make sure those needs haven’t shifted over time.
Tagged as:
Business,
Clients,
Customers
