Will they stay or will they go?
Customers are the lifeblood of any freelance business, so it is crucial to maximize customer satisfaction. Some degree of customer turnover is inevitable, but successful entrepreneurs will retain repeat customers.
Is your customer turnover at a minimum? It should be. Below are questions to help evaluate your success in keeping customers satisfied.
1. Do you realize the value of your current customers? These are your best customers. They are quicker to buy and require fewer “special deals.” Never take your customers for granted!
2. Do you communicate to all your customers that they are important?
3. Do you encourage customers to return to your business?
4. Do you tailor your services to your customers’ particular needs?
5. Do your customers call you when they have a tough problem?
6. Do you provide unique services that your customers would find difficult to duplicate somewhere else?
7. Do your customers feel that you are concerned about their interests and welfare?
8. Do you attempt to learn as much about each customer as possible?
9. Do you follow up to make sure orders are filled quickly and accurately?
10. Do you follow up on complaints to make sure the resolution was satisfactory to the customer?
If you answered “yes” to nine or more questions,you are a better-than-average business operator. Below six is poor; between six and nine is mediocre. A dissatisfied customer used to tell seven people, but with social media, they now can tell 7 million people.
Building a successful, positive image with your customers enhances your overall credibility. Living up to that image creates valuable word-of-mouth publicity. Customers most often base purchasing decisions on the advice of people they know and what they read.
Copyright 2012. Reprinted with permission from Barbara Wold’s Retail & Consumer Tips, mail to: bwold@ix.netcom.com.
