So her we are at the beginning of another year where for some of us last year is best discarded into the bin-or is it.

Happy New year to all my readers and I trust that your first day back has started full of promise.

Have you made goals and targets for yourself or do you intend to carry on drifting doing the same thing time after time and finding you get the same results.

Today I am covering the last two questions related to getting and retaining customers which may well result in you changing how you approach and deal with your customers so that you do not waste that valuable commodity.

I will spell out the seven reasons you win or lose clients  in answering the following two questions:-

1.Are you just in it for the cash returns or do you really want a Business?

2.Are you providing a service or just access to a process?

I have recently started a book in which the author questions the validity of advertising (or marketing) particularly where you do not engage with the customer where they are at or in meeting their needs or desires. So the answers to the question is phrased as further questions which I hope will help you to identify the errors or misunderstandings which can result by poor communication of your message.

When setting your budgets/targets  for the year do you think of profit or the customer? So my understanding from experience is that many organisations think first cash flow then resources. This results in an imbalance usually where resources are cut to improve profit. This is a wrong equation.

Reason 1 Customers will always see when their matter is under resourced and will complain

Reason 2 Levels of communication will drop the busier you get-the customer will walk

Reason 3 A common complaint-I can never get hold of the person who is dealing with my matter and neither can or will anyone else help. The customer feels that they are not important enough to warrant any time being spent talking to them

So are you really providing a service or using a sophisticated case management system to merely process the matter?

In my experience customers have little or no interest in how you carry out the work merely that it is done in a timely and professional manner

Reason 4  I am just another number on the page and you have no interest in my personal circumsatnces or the reason why I have asked for your assistance. I feel of no worth

Reason 5 I feel that the person dealing with the matter is not competent to carry out the work and is merely ticking boxes. I have not received the professional service I was expecting or promised

Reason 6 The charge for the service was cheap and the service reflected this. I will go elsewhere and pay more for a better experience. This complaint is often focused on factory firms hwere a stack them high sell cheap ethos permeates through the business.

And finally

Reason7  The service or product promised to me was not fit for purpose.

I am sure that there are many other reasons why you are unable to retain clients and the above list is merely to highlight the most common examples of why clients “Go elsewhere”

Remember that it costs more to attract new customers than it does to retain them-so look after them and treat them as Kings and Queens. If you do not they will tell many other potential customers why not to use your services than they will tell if they were extremely satisfied with it.

Till next time