Creating a Positive Customer Experience</h1> <article> <h1>Creating a Positive Customer Experience</h1> <p>MySolutionSpot Editor — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 19:01:55 GMT</p> <p><strong>Providing a Positive Customer Experience Online to Promote Loyalty</strong><br /> <br /> As the adage goes, keeping a current customer is easier than acquiring a new one. <br /> <br /> Depending on your industry, customer satisfaction and its correlation to your bottom line vary a bit. However, every company relies on customer satisfaction, to some degree. <br /> <br /> Ways the customer experience affects you:</p> <ul> <li>A positive experience can prompt referral business.</li> <li>A positive experience can promote repeat business.</li> <li>A solid reputation is good for any company, of any size, in any industry.</li> </ul> <p><br /> Conversely:</p> <ul> <li>A negative experience causes cancellations and escalations.</li> <li>A negative experience halts the repeat and referral business potential stemming from that source.</li> <li>A negative reputation ramps up quickly and is difficult to overcome.</li> </ul> <p><br /> So, clearly, keeping customers satisfied and providing superior service is paramount to maintaining your company’s image of integrity of and fully tapping into repeat and referral business. Creating this environment ensures your customer loyalty.<br /> <br /> Once you recognize that this caliber of service promotes loyalty, how can you use your website and online activities to complement this endeavor?<br /> <br /> <strong>Using Your Website to Retain Customers and Promote Loyalty</strong><br /> <br /> Your website can be a great tool for increasing customer satisfaction and earning their loyalty. This is a resource that is often overlooked because online tasks seem too difficult, because navigating the Internet seems overwhelming, or a host of other reasons, but it would be a mistake to neglect capitalizing on this source of service.<br /> <br /> Your site can provide:</p> <ul> <li><strong>Availability and Access:</strong> Customers have instant access to information about you or about their accounts, can take advantage of around-the-clock ordering, and much more.</li> <li><strong>Communication: </strong>When you can’t be present, you can still have a presence.</li> <li><strong>Marketing:</strong> Use your site to proactively market to a broad audience.</li> </ul> <p><br /> Looking at each of these aspects in detail may give you some ideas about how you currently use your site (or how you might use one if you had one), or perhaps offer new ideas that you haven’t yet considered.<br /> <br /> <strong>Availability and Safe, Easy Access to YOU</strong><br /> <br /> Being available to your customers in today’s market and technological arenas is no longer a perk – it is vital. If you are a retailer, customers expect to be able to place orders 24/7; directing them to your shop is no longer viable in most markets. If your company is more consultative, your site can provide resources to help them become knowledgeable about your business. For example, a home inspection company can offer articles about what to expect, post rates, and other types of guidance. These informational pieces can help your customers feel confident about the expertise of your company and about the products or services you provide.<br /> <br /> Another issue, particularly if you sell products or take payments online, is security. Obtaining the right SSL Certificate and implementing proper security for your transactions is vital to encouraging your customers to complete online purchases through your site.<br /> <br /> <strong>Communication: Use the Content on Your Site </strong><br /> <br /> The text on your site can facilitate a positive customer experience and promote loyalty in black and white. Tell your customer outright who you are and what you do. Using the services of a professional Web designer with access to professional copywriters can be invaluable in relaying the messages you want to convey.<br /> <br /> Some ideas for the basic layout of your site:</p> <ul> <li>Include the basics: a detailed and welcoming home page, a user-friendly contact page, detailed products and services pages.</li> <li>Offer a company history or an “About Us” page.</li> <li>Make sure the navigation is easy to use and that the format is easy to read.</li> <li>Consider additional pages, such as “Testimonials.”</li> </ul> <p><br /> Each page of your site should be informative and pertinent to your goals. Implementing an Optimization campaign can further this end by helping you gain footing in the organic listings online, helping more customers find you and opening the opportunity for even more positive customer experiences.<br /> <br /> More than just telling visitors about yourself, another key element is speaking to your target customer. The text can offer solutions for common customer issues that are provided by your company or provide information about aspects of your industry. Optimized articles added to your site can offer a host of benefits for your company that will improve the customer experience:</p> <ul> <li>Adding pertinent information helps the spiders crawling the Web recognize your site as credible and therefore more customers will find you</li> <li>More information to the customers will help them feel comfortable with your company</li> </ul> <p><br /> <strong>Marketing Activities with Your Site: Reach Out to Your Customers</strong><br /> <br /> Having a trusted website offers the opportunity to branch out into many areas of marketing that may remain untapped, such as email alerts and company newsletters posted on the site or emailed. Keeping in touch with current or past customers further solidifies your commitment to repeat business and referrals.<br /> <br /> Another recent idea that is fast becoming widespread is adding a blog to your website. This allows customers or potential customers to ask questions, make comments, and generally interact with you. This personal connection fosters another layer of loyalty. It also allows you to post information about recent company activities or address any topic that you want to associate with your company.<br /> <strong><br /> Conclusion</strong><br /> <br /> The ideas identified here are a high-level overview of the different ways you can work with your website to turn it into a machine that promotes customer loyalty and grows your business. The possibilities are endless.<br /> <br /> <br /> </p><div style="clear:both;"></div> </article> <article> <h1>How Providing A Customer Support Forum Can Boost Online Business</h1> <p>Jonathan Bentz — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 17:10:49 GMT</p> <p> <p style="margin-bottom:0in;">In today’s age, nearly every consumer is doing something online. Researching, reporting, and buying are probably some of three of the most common things. But one thing companies can’t quantify that potential consumers are doing online is passing judgment. And the way consumers go about passing judgments about companies is something that can be controlled… but most companies have no idea how to control it.</p> <p style="margin-bottom:0in;">Customer reviews are a powerful tool on the internet. They are one of the most one-sided, subjective ways consumers evaluate companies online, and therefore might not seem to be a valid form of company review. However, there’s no doubt that these emotional, anonymous customer reviews are often the most influential form of copywriting your business is going to receive. What these online reviews say can often have a major effect on the success of your business.</p> <p style="margin-bottom:0in;">What can companies do to provide a home base for their customers? Both happy and unhappy customers appreciate having a place to offer service suggestions, vent their frustrations, and have their legitimate questions answered in a controlled, professional manner. The solution: open a message board that serves as a customer support forum.</p> <p style="margin-bottom:0in;">Most websites have detailed FAQ sections that answer customer questions and some even offer 24-hour chat lines that can provide live support. But by opening an online forum, companies can put their customer support staff to work in the same way they do with live support. At the same time, forums also allow active customers to answer questions, offer advice, and provide realistic solutions to other customer issues.</p> <p style="margin-bottom:0in;">Support Forums have been most commonly used on software websites, where users and developers often have specific questions that require the posting of coding examples. Most recently, message board support forums have been utilized by companies that offer subscription-based services online like <a href="http://heroes.getmyhomesvalue.com">GetMyHomesValue.com</a>, an Inc. 500 real estate marketing services firm, and online games like <a href="http://forums.worldofwarcraft.com/board.html?forumId=11110&sid=1">World Of Warcraft</a>. Online subscription companies often use these forums as a way to provide transparent, real time communication with subscribers.</p> <p style="margin-bottom:0in;">Forums are great for providing answers to commonly asked customer questions. In opposition to live chat or FAQ’s, forum threads are indexed by search engines and easy to read when looking for an answer quickly. Often, providing an easy answer on a support forum to a competitor’s frustrated customer can lead that customer to bring their business to your company. Message boards also present information in a non-intrusive way on the customer’s time, saving them the hassle of having to wait for an available service representative by phone.</p> <p style="margin-bottom:0in;">When a customer takes issue with your service, support forums are also a great way to take the power away from the many negative review websites. Customer service representatives can review a customer’s comment and refer other commentors to your support forum. Start a thread on your forum addressing the negative review, tell your side of the story, and provide documentation of a solution to the customer’s gripe.</p> <p style="margin-bottom:0in;">With the development of social media networks like Facebook and Twitter, message boards may seem very outdated to online businesses. But the benefits of message boards to companies that rely on internet success are too great to pass on. If your company is considering adding social networks into a marketing plan, consider adding a support forum to your website as a way to benefit your customer service department.</p> </p><div style="clear:both;"></div> </article> <article> <h1>Using Twitter to Improve the Customer Experience</h1> <p>MySolutionSpot Editor — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 18:57:17 GMT</p> <p><strong>Building Customer Loyalty: Using Twitter® to Improve the Customer Experience</strong><br /> <br /> A lot of fuss is being made in the media about Twitter (www.twitter.com), the microblogging service and social networking tool whose name stands for Typing What I’m Thinking to Everyone Reading. The truth of the matter is that tools like Twitter are not just a passing fad, and a modern business with an online presence should at least be aware of the ways Twitter can help or hurt a business. <br /> <br /> Accessible via the World Wide Web or the latest generation of smart cell phones, Twitter® allows its users to type quick entries (140 characters or less) that are updated in real time. These are called “Tweets”. Users may follow the tweets of other users, and receive these updates as they are added. Many popular tweeters, such as celebrities, news services like CNN®, and other high-profile bloggers have thousands or tens of thousands of followers being updated on every entry they make. <br /> <br /> Businesses use Twitter for a number of purposes. Advertising new products or service offerings, reputation management, and responding to customer queries (a Canadian service called Bluefur even does technical support via Twitter) are all made easier through the quick connectivity of the Twitter service. For a small- or medium-sized business, there are three keys to using Twitter to improve customer experience:</p> <ul> <li>Being Available - Creating a profile and establishing a recognizable presence</li> <li>Being Proactive - Using the search function to locate potential customers</li> <li>Being Reactive - Addressing less than favorable information in a positive way</li> </ul> <p><br /> This article will explore briefly these three avenues.<br /> <br /> <strong>Being Available</strong><br /> <br /> To take advantage of Twitter, a business should have a profile. There is a link to join from Twitter’s homepage, or you can skip straight to https://twitter.com/signup. You will need to provide the following:</p> <ul> <li>Full Name (Company Name if not an individual)</li> <li>Username (Should be related to Company Name)</li> <li>Password</li> <li>Valid Email Address</li> </ul> <p><br /> Once you have joined, you will be taken to a page to fill out your profile. There you can add a location, a URL (great place to link to your business’ current website), and a bio (a great place for company info). Once your profile is set up, you can begin Tweeting, as well as following other Tweeters.<br /> <strong><br /> Being Proactive</strong><br /> <br /> One of the major benefits of Twitter is its powerful, real-time search function. Located on the right of your Twitter page once you’ve logged in, the search will pull up the most recent Tweets containing the keywords you’ve typed in the search bar. Below the search box “Trending Topics” are listed. These are the most popular topics on Twitter at the moment, and are often marked with a # sign, (e.g. #michaeljackson). This is called a Hashtag. When writing about a specific topic that many people might be searching for in your Tweets it is good to add the # and topic to the end of your Tweet. For example, a review of the new iPhone might read as follows: “Like the new interface, but unhappy with the speed of my connection. #apple”.<br /> <br /> You can use these searches and trending topics to locate potential customers. Once you have, follow these customers, and they will likely follow back. It is important, if you have set up a profile, to begin Tweeting regularly, or else you may look like a spammer. Do not just Tweet advertisements for your products; provide useful information to your client base as well, for free. This will enable you to gain trust.<br /> <br /> Services like Twilert (www.twilert.com) and EasyTweets (www.easytweets.com) are popping up all over the Web, offering the ability to track searches of your name, brand, products, and relevant keywords. Using these helps you track the “noise” about your particular business or market, and you can respond to current and potential clients in real time.<br /> <br /> <strong>Being Reactive</strong><br /> <br /> Once you have begun Tweeting, providing information to your clients, RTs (retweets) of relevant news articles, and links to your products and services, you are in a position to begin managing your online reputation via Twitter®. Gauging the “noise” about your brand on Twitter is made easy using the search function, trending topics, and services like Twilert and EasyTweets. But if that noise is bad, how do you respond?<br /> <br /> Often, reputation management in the past has not been about directly addressing critiques, but in today’s profoundly social Web 2.0 world, directly and honestly addressing critiques is exactly what you should do. Reply (using the @ symbol) to Tweets that negatively portray your business. Honestly answer questions that are brought up about the way you do business. Speak to potential buyers in their language. Do not attempt to use trickery: On the social Web, this will quickly be recognized and will likely result in more bad noise.<br /> <br /> Furthermore, respond to negative thoughts about your business by earning the attention of your current and potential customers by providing links to relevant, helpful information free of charge. This goodwill will come back to you tenfold if done properly.<br /> <br /> <strong>Conclusion</strong><br /> <br /> This is just the beginning. Many businesses are still working out how best to use Twitter to their advantage. For more information, here are a few helpful resources:</p> <ul> <li>35 Twitter Tips from Twitter Users - http://www.problogger.net/archives/2008/01/25/35-twitter-tips-from-35-twitter-users/</li> <li>TwiTip – Twitter Tips in 140 Characters or More - http://www.twitip.com/</li> <li>25+ Incredibly Useful Twitter Tools and Firefox Plugins - http://www.noupe.com/tools/25-incredibly-useful-twitter-tools-and-firefox-plugins.html</li> </ul> <p><br /> There is a lot to keep in mind. Contact your expert at Network Solutions® for help any time.<br /> </p><div style="clear:both;"></div> </article> <article> <h1>Keeping Customers During Tough Economic Times</h1> <p>Terri Schepps — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 19:22:39 GMT</p> <p>Businesses are getting hit from many directions. Expenses are climbing and revenue is shrinking. Typically a business may have to deal with only one issue, but now they are dealing with several. In addition, they are being forced to cut human resources and put more demands on retained staff. There doesn’t seem to be a difference between large and small businesses as it relates to this economic crisis. There is little difference in how a business can prevent the unthinkable-not being in business. There are proven ways to protect your #1 Asset, your customers during these challenging times. <br /><br /><b>Keeping Customers Loyal During Tough Economic Times:</b><br /><br />1. <b>Preserve relationships with your current customers-even those who are not buying from you.</b> The problem is you may have loyal customers, but those loyal customers may not have the ability or the luxury to make certain purchases. Those who reach out now, without the expectation of a purchase, will find an even more loyal following down the road. If your customer goes out of business or the contact goes to another business, they will potentially bring you new business. Let customers know they are valued. This is the best time to make friendly contact without necessarily pushing for sales. <br /><br />2. <b>Sell to the right customers.</b> This is not the time to go after anything that moves. You have two choices: Either focus on those interested in your current products/services or create new products/services to bring to a new target market. This is the time to be creative. Many businesses are thinking of innovative ways to reach new markets. Bringing the right product/service to the right market is better than trying to sell to those who won’t fully appreciate nor utilize what you have to offer.<br /><br />3. <b>Cut expenses; but not at the expense of good customer service.</b> When making decisions on where to cut; think through the eyes of your customers. Customers will forgive you for cutting corners, so long as they are not left to fend for themselves. Choose wisely and make the cuts seamless to your customers. <br /><br />4. <b>Use your web site and emails to keep customers and prospects up-to-date.</b> By staying in touch with your customers, they won’t be wondering if your business has survived. Many people may assume, if they don’t hear from you, you’re not in business. Make sure you are providing useful information, not just pushing sales. Keep the “Open For Business” sign out through communications. <br /><br />5. <b>Partner with strategic allies, customers, vendors, and employees.</b> You should know who your closest allies are in business. These are the people you should include in your recovery. Chances are they may need your help as well. It requires being creative. Find out how you can further strategic alliances with other businesses. Perhaps you can market one another’s services to an existing client base. Vendors can be surprisingly supportive. Ask them for their recommendations on cutting expenses. If they want your business long-term, they should look for ways to keep your business, even if it is scaled back. You should be doing the same for your customers.<br /><br />6. <b>Keep your employee’s morale high.</b> You’ve got to make sure you have your best employees well placed in the organization. Recognize employees who go above and beyond. If you are looking to make cuts, you may find a more productive position within the organization. Employees may also consider reducing time or take on additional responsibilities to stay on-board. Set customer service as the highest priority within your organization and share with your staff the steps the organization is taking to continue customer loyal initiatives. <br /><br />7. <b>Don’t rush to cut consulting or professional development.</b> Depending on your needs, you may need it now more than ever. What you need to weigh is which expense is going to get you where you need to be. Before signing any vendor contract, make sure the service is scalable; make sure you have the ability to turn the service up or down based on your economic reality. <br /><br />My favorite cliché is “what doesn’t kill you, will make you stronger”. This applies to your business as well. If you can get through this crisis, your business will emerge stronger than ever before. Those you work with will appreciate your resolve. Once you have the business stable, you can begin to rebuild your business. The value of knowledge obtained through such an ordeal is priceless. While it’s not a situation any business would want to experience, those who have experienced hardship in their business and survive, come back with such vibrancy. </p><div style="clear:both;"></div> </article> <article> <h1>Building Loyalty in Trying Times</h1> <p>jen mercer — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 18:19:52 GMT</p> <p> </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial">It is hard to build customer loyalty during a recession because your customers are holding on to their hard earned money. But now is a great time to strengthen your customer loyalty. You do not need a high priced marketing campaign. Just remember to go back to the basics - customer service.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial"><o:p>Customer service is the distinguishing factor during this economic time. Best of all, it does not cost you anything. Most customers will enjoy their experience with your business if you know them and call them by their name, do not interrupt them when they are speaking to you, and if you are understanding when they have a complaint and let them vent before responding. A great experience will bring them back to your business and cause them to generate positive word of mouth about your company.</o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial"><o:p>Identify your best customers and work with them to meet their needs. This will help you keep them as your best customers during and after the recession. The cost of targeting new customers is high, so work on the customers you already have. You can cross-sell to your existing customers and also reach out to former customers.</o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial">Your customers are just as concerned about the economy as you are. Listen to them, identify and understand what they need, and then react to it. One way to identify what your customers need is by asking them to fill out a survey. Customers will be more likely to return to you if they feel that they are being listened to and see results to their comments.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial"><o:p>You must know your products. Customers tend to frequent those shops that are knowledgeable about what they are selling and can help guide them in their decisions. If you do not understand what a product does and why your customers should purchase it, then it will remain on your shelves for a very long time.</o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial"><o:p>Now is a great time to take a look at your processes. What can you do to make their buying experience more efficient to save your customers time? Are your hours 9-5 but your customers’ shopping hours are not? E-commerce will give them easy access to your store. It will allow them to shop your products when it is convenient for them.</o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial"><o:p>Increase your communication with your customers, but don’t over-do it. Start a monthly or quarterly newsletter to let them know what new products you have and any upcoming sales. This is also a chance to let them know you are there for them and willing to help. Make your communication about them and show them the value it has for them.</o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial"><o:p>Loyal customers are built by creating an experience they want to come back to again and again. It is less costly to work on building customer loyalty with your current customers. Personalize their experience, listen to them, understand their concerns, and provide useful information that will help guide them with their purchasing decisions. In return, they will continue to come to you in the near and long-term future.</o:p></span></p> <p> </p><div style="clear:both;"></div> </article> <article> <h1>TRUST: Your Most Vital Product</h1> <p>MySolutionSpot Editor — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 18:41:13 GMT</p> <p>Whatever product or service you offer on your site - or even if your site is purely informational - its most important aspect may well be the trust it creates for your visitors.</p> <p>Visitors to your Web site arrive with certain expectations, every one of them related to trust. In other words, your visitors bring the same expectations to your site that you bring to your own visits to businesses and financial institutions, both on-line and in the real world. These include assurances that:</p> <ul> <li>Your site is authentic and legitimate </li> <li>The information presented on your site is accurate and up-to-date</li> <li>Links embedded in your site are equally authentic, and virus and worm-free</li> <li>Customers' personal information will be protected, their financial information kept secure, and their identity safe; any use of customer information such as e-mail addresses should be spelled out in advance</li> <li>Any products or services purchased from the site are honestly represented, will be delivered or contracted as promised, with clear recourse and resolution paths should there be any problems</li> <li>They will come away from the site receiving only what they expected - any additional adware or customer-tracking tools must be clearly identified before being delivered to the customer's browser</li> </ul> <p>If you don't deliver the highest level of trustworthiness on all of these fronts, it won't matter how good your products or services are your customers will lose confidence in your business.</p> <h5>How do you do this?</h5> <p>A good starting place is to review the security policies and practices of all the companies involved in your Web presence. Any problems or breaches of security and trust on their part will reflect on you, your site and your business.</p> <p>Insist that your service providers - Web hosting company, Web site designer, software used on your site, and so on - provide a written list of their own security, privacy, and information-use policies. Where appropriate, find out how often the company updates its firewalls, anti-virus tools and other elements of a robust security profile.</p> <p>Make sure your site designer places any security certificates prominently on your site.</p> <p>If your site accepts credit card and other financial transactions, post the processor's name, logo and policies on your site. Insure that the highest standards of data encryption are employed. Review your transaction processor's policies on use of customer information and insist that it meet your standards.</p> <p>If you employ an external business for fulfillment of goods sold online, review their policies and practices as carefully as those of all other businesses involved in your online presence. Pay particular attention to fulfillment company guarantees, return policies and subsequent uses of customer information.</p> <p>Finally, don't forget the small details that can affect a customer's overall impression of your site and your business. Watch out for spelling errors, out-of-date information and other inaccuracies, as well as broken or incorrect links.</p> <p>Every aspect of your Web site contributes to your customers' trust in you and your business and any problem with any element can begin chipping away at that trust.</p> <p class="bottom-line"><strong>The Bottom Line:</strong> Trust itself may be intangible, but constant review of the security and marketing practices of your Web service providers can help insure that your site is trustworthy and that your customers recognize this every time they visit.</p><div style="clear:both;"></div> </article> <article> <h1>Customers for Life</h1> <p>MySolutionSpot Editor — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 03:39:22 GMT</p> <p> </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">It seemed not too long ago that making a customer for life was not too difficult in the real estate business as long as you stayed in touch with as little as two contacts a year. A small note or card annually and a telephone call once in a while. Those traditional relationships are changing. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Why? The Internet, of course.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">You can still make customers for life. But, you need to earn it! It is still not difficult, but systematic and certainly service-based. The days of you getting a referral from someone because his or her mother used you several years before are virtually gone. So, how do you make these customers for life?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><strong><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Knowledge</span></strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Learn everything you can about using technology and information gathering methods using the computer. You want to be able to give your customers as much information as you can to help them make a selling or a buying decision.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Send them by email an updated CMA on their home every year at the same time. Send them by email a recap of the current market conditions every 6 months. Keeping them informed without them asking for it.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Have a website that also serves as a community bulletin board. Let your customers access this to post a garage sale, or to sell a personal item, to inquire about a good gardening service, and so on.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Make sure your customers know that your website has valuable information on it about the community and events that are going on during the year. Make sure that your website always has the latest, up-to-date information on services available in the community at reasonable rates or at least where to find these services. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><strong><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Follow-up</span></strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">You need to be in touch with your customers’ current and past all the time. No longer will you be remembered by sending a Christmas card annually. You should be in touch monthly with something of value in the mail.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">You need to be in touch monthly or more often by email with something of value. Let them know about a listing of yours before it comes on the market. Let them know about a special promotion your company is having before it hits the papers.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">You need to be in touch with a personal note to let them know that they are special to you. It doesn't have to be fancy, just a quick handwritten note to let the<span style="background: #ffffff none repeat scroll 0%;">m</span><span style="background-color: #ffffff;"> </span>know that you are thinking of them. DON'T FORGET THIS PERSONAL TOUCH! It's just as important as knowing technology.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><strong><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Services</span></strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Your goal should be to be their source for information on after move-in services. Do you know who is a great painter? Do you know who does a fantastic job in landscaping? Do you know a plumber who is service-oriented and reasonable?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">If your customer is new to your area, why not take a couple hours and introduce your customer to various service providers that you do business with; e.g., a hairdresser or barber, cleaners, shoe repair, etc.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">How much more will they think of you when you took the time to personally introduce these people to shops that you also frequent?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Do you have copies of menus from your favorite restaurants for your customers? Do you have the schedule of after school or summer programs for kids in the community? Do you have the schedule of any performing arts in your community for your customers?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Go out of your way to help people feel good about working with you.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><strong><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Bottom Line</span></strong><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">People are going to the Internet to find out information and possibly select a Realtor for their next transaction. They aren't going to do that if you are already providing it! Earn their loyalty by being loyal to them!</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><strong><em><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"> </span></em></strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><strong><em><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Copyright</span></em></strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">Copyright© 2002, Patti Brotherton. All right reserved. Patti Brotherton is President of PAB Performance Partners. Patti’s company was formed to reach a broader base of agents, managers and companies to help them in any way possible to do more business, to improve their business, to help them balance their business and generally improve the quality of their professional life. Patti believes in individualized marketing programs, including graphic design, as well as business systems that have proven to work in many different market places. For additional information about Patti’s presentations and company services, contact the FrogPond at 800.704.FROG(3764) or email <a href="mailto:susie@FrogPond.com">susie@FrogPond.com</a></span></p> </article> </main></body></html>