One Chance To Get It Right

The recent difficulties associated with the flawed roll-out of the Affordable Healthcare Act should serve as a stern reminder that your organization or business has both a responsibility and an obligation to the customers whom you are privileged to serve to get it right… the first time.

Regardless of the products that you may sell or the services that you may render, your organization’s #1 job is to render them with excellence. As they say in the cookie business… You can’t allow your work to go out “half baked”.

As you know only too well, it’s tough out there in the New Economy. And just as important is the fact that it is more competitive out there than ever. Your organization simply can’t afford to take a cavalier attitude about anything thing that it does.   

When was the last time that your organization really took the time to identify exactly how many ways there are for your potential customers to have some form of contact with your business operation? Believe me when I tell you, that there are far more points of connection than you may realize. The same thing holds true for your organization as it does when you personally meet someone new, as there is only one opportunity to make a first impression.

It’s important to realize that you’re never going to make the sale at the time of your first contact. In fact, the latest research states that on average it takes nine contacts with a prospect before he or she makes the decision to do or not do business with your organization.

While you won’t have the opportunity to earn your prospect’s business at the time of your all important first impression, you will definitely have the opportunity to lose their business in those first few seconds of your initial contact. It may be as simply as a broken link on your website or a staff member who doesn’t have their game face on that particular morning.

You’ve heard me say this before and I’m going to say it again… because it’s important. What ever business you think that you are in, you’re not. Your organization is first and foremost in the people business. Secondarily, you are in the relationship business. You need customers who are more than merely satisfied. You need customers who are going to be genuinely “loyal” through the years. And that can only occur if you and your people are willing to invest in the process of building long term mutually beneficial relationships that stand the test of time, service and competition.

Otherwise, prospects and customers will continually come and then go. The result outcome will be that your organization will ultimately plateau and then fail to grow any further due to customer migration.

Several years ago, one of the national accounting and consulting firms performed a research study on customer satisfaction. What they were surprised to discover was that 88% of all “satisfied” customers were willing to switch to another company for just about any reason. While the issue of price was not the prevailing quantifier, 80% of satisfied customers indicated that they would do business elsewhere next time for a lower price.

If your organization is going to truly capitalize on its opportunities to develop meaningful customer relationships, then you must first define “who” your ideal customers are, “what” it is that they want, what their “needs” are and exactly what it is that they “expect” from you. When your organization and your people learn how to appropriately respond to the wants, needs and expectations of your ideal prospects and customers -- You will stand a far greater chance of building customer loyalty and solid relationships that can stand the test of time.

In the event that you’re not convinced of just how critical this issue is in the New Economy, then consider the following fact:

On average, U.S companies currently lose 50% of their customers every 5 years.

Secondarily, your organization would also be wise to consider the observation of the Gallup Organization of nearly ten years ago, which stated that “Regardless of how high a company’s satisfaction levels may appear to be, satisfying customers without creating an emotional connection with them has no real value.”

The only way your organization will ever make an emotional connection with its prospects and customers is the day that the organization commits to creating customer relationships that are based upon “value”.

Until then, your prospects and customers will have no other way of quantifying their relationship with you except to default to the age old measurement of “price”.

Copyright © 2013 Developing Forward | Thomas H. Swank, CBC | All Rights Reserved.