How To Improve Customer Satisfaction

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StrategyDriven Customer Relationship Management ArticleOne area of your business you should pay special attention to and make more of an effort is your customers. After all, they’re the ones handing over their money to help keep your business afloat so never underestimate their importance.

Your company will begin to thrive once you can ultimately improve your overall customer satisfaction scores. When clients are happy, then the entire business will experience less mayhem, and your employees start to like their jobs better. However, you first need to accept that you can always be advancing in this area and then put measures in place that are going to help you pick up your performance.

Ask for Feedback

Improve customer satisfaction by proactively asking for and seeking out feedback from your clients. Send out surveys, pick up the phone or meet one on one and confront them about what it is they do and don’t like about how your business operates. Dive deeper into the specifics so you know exactly what it is you can change that will truly make a difference and draw in more customers. It’s common for companies to make assumptions about what it is clients are looking for and then head in the wrong direction. It’s a wise idea to have the data to back up your claims and only commit to certain modifications if you know your customers are onboard.

Be Available & Responsive

In this day and age, it’s important always to be available to your customers and ready to help. Not only do you want to be available to answer questions and inquiries during your regular business hours, but it’s also a wise idea to provide support across multiple channels. What will help you out the most is to make sure you’re staffed appropriately by using an online employee shift planning software. You can read more here about how you can get this going in your workplace, so you’re always properly staffed and no customer is left wanting.

Train Your Employees

Your company culture should include making customer satisfaction a top priority if you’re going to succeed in this area. It’s worth you taking the time to train your employees and make sure everyone understands how to interact with clients properly. Pay special attention to your customer service department and confirm that your staff knows best practices and how to handle all sorts of difficult requests and inquiries. Create policies and procedures that both your employees and customers are to follow to make your jobs easier.

Listen on Social Media

One place where you can actually learn a lot about your customers and get a better idea of how they feel about you is on social media. Assign staff members who are in charge of this responsibility and can spend a good amount of time listening and jumping into conversations where appropriate. Use this as a way to collect a lot of valuable data and then have these individuals report back to everyone in the company about what they’re discovering. There may be aspects you’re unaware of that are hurting your business and causing customers to feel dissatisfied. If you need more clarification about a specific topic or complaint, then reach out to that individual privately and collect more information on the matter.

Build Relationships

Communicate to your team that you want them to work on building relationships with customers and not simply thinking of each person as a number or transaction. Get to know your clients on an individual level and show that you care about them as people. Encourage staff members to create an open dialogue with customers and find out more about why they do or don’t enjoy doing business with you. Be able to recognize and reward your most loyal customers and be sure to treat everyone with respect no matter how much money they’re spending with you. It doesn’t look good for your business when you don’t remember people by name who are consistently making a lot of purchases from you and are loyal advocates of your brand.

Exceed Expectations

You can improve customer satisfaction by not only delivering on your promise but also going above and beyond on a regular basis. Work to not only meet expectations but to exceed them time and time again. Instead of aiming for mediocre, shoot for the stars and show your customers that you truly want to see them satisfied after having made a purchase with your company. Not only take care of any problems that come your way but offer up a freebie or discount code they can use the next time they shop with you. Throw in an element of surprise once in a while and watch how quickly their faces light up and they’re willing to share their positive experiences with others.

Track Your Progress

You’re not going to know how well of a job you’re doing or how satisfied your customers are unless you track your progress. Set goals, keep score and monitor how you’re performing as a team throughout the year. Hold meetings that revolve around this topic specifically and get input from your employees about how you could be doing a better job. The only way to improve is to set goals and define metrics and then be diligent about observing how you’re performing and making changes where necessary. You should eventually notice an upward trend. Otherwise, you may have to adjust your approach and regroup about how you want to proceed.

Conclusion

Customers aren’t automatically going to be impressed with your business just because you have a solid product or service in place. They’ll want to be wowed and impressed in their interactions with you and see that you’re putting forth an extra effort each time they reach out or spend money. The good news is that you can use these tips to help you improve your customer satisfaction scores and make sure your business is offering your clients an unforgettable experience. It’s important you never stop learning and growing in this area if you want to guarantee a bright and steady future.

5 Strategies, Tactics and Traits to Support Diversity in the Modern Workplace

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StrategyDriven Diversity and Inclusion Article
 
Whether it’s embracing differing cultural backgrounds or bringing in workers from abroad, modern businesses are becoming more diverse than ever in terms of talent.

However, bear in mind that today’s companies aren’t adopting a sort of “melting pot” mentality “just because.” In fact, there’s a strong argument to be made that embracing more diverse backgrounds is a net positive for modern businesses.

Think about it. Beyond data that supports that more diverse companies reap higher profits, casting a wider net in terms of backgrounds and culture means dipping into a deeper pool of talent. In other words, hiring the absolute best people possible to meet your business’ needs.

Also consider the need to expand into new markets and connect with other cultures from a business standpoint. The more diverse your team, the easier it is to tap into those markets.

And if nothing else, diversity can ultimately lead to a more connected, open-minded workplace. Fresh ideas and perspective can be powerful motivators, if nothing else.

That said, it takes a thoughtful leader with strong attention to detail to ensure a positive, diverse work environment that products results. Below we’ve broken down a list of strategies and traits necessary to make sure that your team thrives while also supporting workplace diversity.

Conduct Individual Check-In’s

Perhaps one of the most important aspects of creating a stronger team is taking the time to understand your workers on an individual level. This is especially true of workers who are coming from abroad.

According to Gallup’s most recent State of the American Workplace, many employees feel like their concerns, strengths and needs completely go over the heads of higher-ups. On the flip side, having stake in your workers’ personal lives alongside their professional ones ultimately makes you more approachable in the long-run.

In other words, take the time to have one-on-ones to understand the motivations of your employees. Perhaps they could only climb the career ladder in a new country. Maybe they regularly send remittance payments to family back home and therefore have a huge stake in their jobs. Either way, regularly one-on-ones create that ever-so-important bond in the office.

Collect Frequent Anonymous Feedback

Consider that not all workers will be so forthcoming in one-on-one meetings, particularly those who might be nervous about concerns over discrimination or bullying.

To address such concerns, collecting anonymous feedback is a must-do for any office. Providing multiple avenues for feedback gives you a more comprehensive view of your teams’ strengths and weaknesses, while also holding workers accountable.

Whether through anonymous email surveys, engagement surveys (think: a employee net promoter score) or a digital suggestion box, you’d be surprised at what you can by asking the right questions. Feedback received from workers serves as valuable insight as you strive to continuously improve your company’s working environment.

Encourage Group Collaboration

Allowing employees to frequently work in groups, whether through an open office setting or on their own terms, is a smart move. This does double duty of helping people from different backgrounds assimilate while also driving home a “team” mentality. Rather than allow departments to become siloed, collaboration can be the catalyst your company needs for fresh ideas.

Be Aware of Bias

The epidemic of unconscious bias in the workplace is a serious issue that is overlooked simply by nature. In short, people don’t realize that they might have biases against someone’s background until it becomes an outright problem. This not only opens companies up to legal trouble, but could ultimately lead to improper treatment of workers which is unacceptable.

Acknowledging bias is a must-do, and anyone found to display bias should be held accountable. A company culture of empathy and open-mindedness is a good starting point, yet also think about biases that occur during hiring such as disregarding someone for their background or perceived lack of experience.

Rethink Your Onboarding Process

A huge factor in making any team member feel welcome and comfortable is how you onboard them. There is no “right” way to onboard employees, but there are ways to ease people into your company without overwhelming them, all the while celebrating their diversity. For example:

  • Introduce your new hires to current team members in “waves,” ideally allowing them to mentor or be shadowed by someone who they can form a working relationship with
  • Convey your company culture of acceptance from the word “go”
  • Make their success a priority, with frequent check-in’s as per usual in addition to giving them multiple points of contact for questions and concerns

While the concept of diversity in the workplace is nothing new, many companies struggle when it comes to adapting to new backgrounds, cultures and experiences. By emphasizing these tactics and traits, you can manage your team with more peace of mind while also embracing diversity.

Making the most of your brick and mortar premises

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StrategyDriven Entrepreneurship ArticleIn the digital age, most business strategies are focused solely on the importance of a strong online presence. While there’s no disputing the fact that making use of social media is a proven way of reaching new people and encouraging sales through a variety of online strategies, it’s important that you don’t neglect your real-world business premises as well. Your premises are just as important as your Facebook page, and for those customers that prefer to buy in person, your physical store is even more critical. Making sure that your store reflects your business branding, your business ethics, and your commitment to your customers is a solid business strategy that you should not forget about.

Making sure of curb appeal

The frontage of your business premises is perhaps the most important thing to consider when establishing the persona of your business. So-called ‘curb appeal’ is a realtor term that applies to the outside of a home that’s up for sale. Just as homeowners hoping to sell a property need it to look appealing from first glance, so too does your business. That’s why you should make use of banners and flags on the exterior of the business property. These are not just eye-catching, they also act as advertisement too. This can have long-lasting positive effects on your business, with the branding that you choose on personalized banners outside your premises being seen on a regular basis by potential customers.

Customized interior

No matter what your business sector is, having the right lobby or reception to greet customers is essential. It doesn’t matter if it’s a retail outlet, a restaurant, or an office space, you want customers to be inspired by your interiors. There are a number of ways that you can personalize your initial interiors, and they needn’t mean costly refurbishments or total redecoration. Instead, invest in indoor banner displays from suppliers like New York Banner Stands, with your logo and slogans printed across them. These are very useful because not only can they be moved as and when needed (especially useful if you plan on using them for external events like trade shows), but they can also be moved around the property as necessary. If you have a reception system in place, it is also worth looking at backdrops as well, so that your branding is as prevalent as possible.

Be more easily seen

Billboard advertising is expensive, but there is a much better solution. If your premises takes up a number of floors, then you have the fantastic opportunity to attract passing trade by using window decals. These come in both solid and transparent designs, meaning that you don’t have to compromise on either customized designs or lighting. These are highly visible forms of advertising, and can help to make your real-world awareness much more impactful.

With so much attention paid to online advertising, promotion, and marketing, it can be very easy to forget that your real-world presence offers a variety of options for a better business model. Make the best use of your premises, and you have an untapped resource that may provide many more benefits than you expect.

3 Huge Customer Service Mistakes You Could Be Making

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The majority of customers prioritize good service when they’re choosing a company to deal with and they certainly won’t become repeat customers if they don’t feel that your customer service is up to scratch. That’s why it’s vital that you know how to make the customer experience perfect every single time. There are a lot of things that you should be doing, but it’s equally as important to understand the things that you shouldn’t be doing. These are the biggest customer service mistakes that you could be making right now.

StrategyDriven Customer Relationship Management Article
 
Not Taking Advantage Of Technology

Technology is a great asset for businesses and you’re really letting yourself down if you’re not taking advantage of it. Good technology can massively improve your customer service department if you know how to use it properly. One of the major benefits of technology in customer service is that you can make yourself available 24/7 on a wide range of channels. Head over to www.bpmonline.com for more information on implementing customer service help desk software. You can set up a live chat service which is more convenient for customers and also easier for your staff to manage. It’ll also help to improve your phone systems and give you email alerts when customers are trying to get in touch. Good customer service software will help you to respond to queries a lot quicker and offer better resolutions that keep everybody happy.

Ignoring Negative Comments

People base a lot of their purchasing decisions on reviews these days. Most businesses have an online review service and that’s the first thing customers are going to look at. Hopefully, you won’t have too many negative comments on there but every company is going to get a few. That’s not a problem as long as you deal with them properly. Some companies think that the best thing to do is ignore them, but it isn’t. If you ignore those comments, other potential customers will assume that’s your response to customer complaints. What you should be doing instead is coming up with good resolutions and then posting a reply, apologising for the problem and outlining how you’re going to deal with it. Customers don’t expect your company to be absolutely perfect but they do expect you to deal with any problems in a timely manner. Visit www.fundera.com for more tips on dealing with a negative comment.

Excessive Company Policy

Company policy is important and it’s there for a reason. It helps you to maintain a level of consistency across the board but sometimes, it can be a big problem. If you’ve got too many different policies that aren’t logical, and you’re not willing to bend the rules a bit, customers are going to get annoyed. You should let your employees use a bit of initiative and go outside company policy in certain situations where it makes sense and it helps them come up with a resolution for the customer. Don’t let company policy get in the way of good customer service.

These 3 mistakes could cost you dearly if they ruin your customer service and send your valuable customers elsewhere.

Enhancing Your Small Business’ Curb Appeal

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StrategyDriven Managing Your Business ArticleA lot of business owners underestimate the importance of their curb appeal. This is what people see when they first approach your company. You know what they say – first impressions count! You don’t get a second chance to make a first impression, which is why the curb appeal of your business is of paramount importance. You want to give off a professional and strong impression, and there are a number of different ways you can do this. So, let’s take a look…

Consider the front door – There is only one place to begin, and this is with your front door. After all, this is arguably one of the most visible parts of your company. If your business’ front door is starting to look a bit dirty and dull because of pollution from the street, it is certainly time to make some changes. Getting the door professionally cleaned is the minimum you should do. A replacement is usually the best solution.

Paint new lines on the parking lot – This is something that is very simple to do, yet very effective. This straightforward DIY job can give your business a new and fresh look while also making sure the parking lot is a lot easier to navigate. It is a good idea to seal your coating of paint to ensure that potholes and cracks do not occur.

Invest in landscaping services – There is no substitute for enlisting the assistance of professionals like the local tree experts in Eau Claire. If you have a considerable outside space surrounding your business, commercial landscape design is a must. Landscapers do much more than creating an attractive outside space. They create a space that is easy for you to maintain and represents your brand identity. They will take the time to get to know your company so they can create a design that fits in with your brand and will impress your target consumer based.

Visible signage – What is your business signage like at present? Is it bold and striking? Is it easy to read and see? If not, then you have a big problem! Make sure the signage is easy to spot, easy to read, and big in size.

Add a few plants – Last but not least, do not underestimate the power of a bit of greenery. A lot of business fronts look dull or plain. This is where plants come in. They can bring your outdoor space to life, making a massive difference. Go with potted plants because they are a lot easier to maintain. You may even want to consider fake plants if you do not want to deal with the maintenance side of things.

As you can see, there are many different ways that you can enhance the curb appeal of your business. If you follow the suggestions that have been presented above, you will notice a considerable difference in terms of how your business appears and, consequently, what potential customers think of it. Do not undervalue just how critical this is.