Are Your Customers Passionate About Your Brand?

It’s every marketing leader’s dream that the brand they represent is adopted by customers as their own.  The former CEO of Harley-Davidson®, Richard Teerlink summed up branding and loyalty marketing best when he said “There are very few products that are so exciting that people will tattoo your logo on their body.”  How does a brand create a passionate almost cult-like following?  I’m going to share with you some famous brands and what I believe is the secret to this phenomenon.

Harley-Davidson has successfully created a community of loyal customers.  They come from every walk of life, but have one thing in common – they love Harley-Davidson motorcycles.  Not only do H-D customers tattoo the logo on their bodies, they have H-D logoed leather jackets, pants, helmets, gloves, boots, wallets, jewelry and the list goes on.  H-D customers more than relate to the brand.  They are the brand.

Starbucks® has successfully transformed the way we think about buying a cup of coffee.  Starbucks is more than coffee, it has become meeting place with friends and a status symbol.   I believe that it’s not the coffee that makes Starbucks special, it’s the experience that they created with their brand. They have even transformed our language.  What ever happened to ordering a small, medium and large coffee?  The sizes at Starbucks are Tall, Grande and Venti.  You will commonly hear people order a Venti Caramel Brulée Crème Frappuccino® Blended Crème with extra whipped cream instead of a large black coffee.  By transforming the Starbucks brand into an experience, they can charge a premium for a cup of coffee and customers gladly pay it.  Customers walk around with their Starbucks logoed coffee cups like a badge of honor.  The café is more like your family room than a coffee shop. Starbucks has created a community.

Starbucks took their successful model into the tea market by purchasing Teavana®.  They replicated the Starbucks model with Teavana, which allows them to charge a premium.  Teavana customers will pay it because they love the brand and the experience when you go into a Teavana store.  You can taste tea samples and smell the different aromas.  Is Teavana the best tea brand in the world? Some may think so but Twinings™, Celestial Seasonings®, Lipton® and Bigelow® might disagree. Teavana has made the experience the brand.

Another example of a brand becoming an experience is Jeep®.  In 1954 when Jeep was owned by Willys Motors, they started an off-road tradition called the Jeep Jamboree.  Jeep 4×4 owners have the opportunity to join off-road adventures in various locations across the US. It is more than just owning a Jeep.  It’s a community of owners who love the Jeep brand and want new experiences with like-minded owners.

Building brand communities are what these successful companies have done.  It’s more than just a product, it’s an experience. When your brand becomes part of your customer’s identity, you have a customer for life.

If you want to learn more about me, visit my LinkedIn profile, my Twitter account, my website and my blog.

Photo credit: Daniel Y. Go via Foter.com / CC BY-NC

Do You Know Your Customer’s Story?

From the moment you are born until the day you die, your life is jammed packed with stories. The first time you rode a bike, your childhood adventures with friends in the park, your first date, the death of a loved one – these are all chapters in the story of your life. Your customers have similar experiences that make up the stories of their lives.

In a world of sales objectives and quotas that need to be met, it’s very easy to lose sight of the humanity of customers. By understanding your customers’ stories, you will be able to relate to them on a deeper level.  If you listen closely to them and understand their challenges, you can help solve them together as a team.

Customers Are People Too

Forget for a moment that you are selling or marketing for a minute.  It’s easy to see customers as check marks on a spreadsheet or targets on a dartboard. Keep in mind that your customers have families, relationships, issues and challenges just like everyone else. They have to get up in the morning and go to work with all of the pressures and stress that go with it.  They may have a spouse and children or perhaps they are single. Some sales people treat customers as nothing more than a sales objective for a firm, failing to see and relate to the humanity of each person with which the firm interacts. This is a profound mistake and one that companies cannot afford to make.

Relationships  

Understanding human behavior is a key to success in business. I spoke with an entrepreneur once who told me that when you make customers your friends, the dynamic between seller and customer changes significantly in the business transaction. Successful business is all about relationships. Customers like to do business with people they trust.  When you want to buy something online, do you go to e-commerce websites that you have never heard of before?  If you do, don’t you first check them out through customer reviews, people you know who have used them, or the BBB?  It is unwise to do business with people that you don’t trust.

Be Real

I have found throughout my career that honesty is still the best policy. My success has been directly connected to being honest and open with my customers. If my colleagues and I made a mistake by unintentionally shipping the wrong product or a defective product, we quickly admitted to that mistake and rectified the situation, which in turn strengthened our relationships with customers who saw us as honest and reliable. Being open and honest in business builds trust and long-lasting relationships.

Early in my career, I went on a sales call with a seasoned advertising professional.  When he sat down with his customers to solve a problem, he was very careful what language he used when talking with them.  He didn’t say “you” or “your” once. It was always “we” and “our”. He acted like one of them and was accepted as one of them, not an outside agency.

Technology

There are several Customer Relationship Management (CRM) platforms that can help sales and marketing people “manage” their customer’s stories.  Capturing birthdays, anniversaries, special events, customer concerns and solutions in this platform are very helpful especially during transition times when a sales or marketing person moves on and another may need to take his or her place. Documentation is very important.  I have a beautiful wife and 5 wonderful children.  With all of the activities in everyday life, I struggle remembering birthdays and key dates. Multiply that by 50 key customers and that’s a ton of information to retain.  Leveraging technology to organize this information is very helpful.  Remember, technology will not replace personal contact, but it can help keep you organized so you can be more effective.  IBM has released a series of commercials that show celebrities interacting with IBM’s Watson.  Watson is a technology platform that uses natural language and machine learning to reveal information and insight.  Their commercial regarding storytelling with Stephen King is a unique and entertaining way to tie storytelling with technology. Leveraging technology to help you manage your customer’s stories should be strongly considered for your business.

Do You Know Your Customer’s Story?

How much do you really know about your customers?  Do you know why they like doing business with you? Do you know their needs and expectations?  What are their challenges in business?  Can your company help them achieve their goals? Do you have a personal relationship with them or are you just another supplier to them?

Knowing each of your customer’s stories is important, however being part of your customer’s story is critical to your success.

If you want to learn more about me, visit my LinkedIn profile, my website, my Twitter account and my blog.

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Social Media – A Game of Strategy

Monopoly is a game of strategy.  When you play the game, you need to evaluate different options and understand that the choices that you make are critical to your success.  Social media is also a game of strategy.  The social networks that you use can help your company grow through brand awareness, promotions, and customer feedback.

When determining which social media networks work best for your company, there are a number of things to consider.  Before we go there, let’s make social media a bit easier to understand by categorizing the various types of networks. By doing so, we can more easily determine what social media networks work for your company and which ones you don’t really need to invest time in.  It’s time to play the game of social media to keep up with your competitors.

Social Networks

Social networking sites fueled the rise of social media. These networks were designed as a platform for online social interaction and means of sharing similar interests, connecting with artistic groups, and personalizing Internet space. Facebook, Google +, MySpace, and MeetUp are a few examples of these networks. Social networks are an effective channel for business to build credibility, and company and product awareness. Here are some examples of successful business Facebook pages. Zappos uses discussion posts, wall updates and Fan of the Week contests to engage with their customers. Burt’s Bees uses spotlight videos to build product awareness and allows customers to buy products from their Facebook page. Skullcandy leverages music, videos, and blogs to encourage customers to purchase their products.

Professional Social Networks

Unlike the original social networks, professional social networks are focused more on business-related networking and information sharing.  LinkedIn, SlideShare, Xing and Viadeo fit into this category.  You typically wouldn’t share family photos at the zoo on these sites, but would instead reach out to expand business relationships. Businesses create LinkedIn pages to build brand awareness, share corporate information and announcements such as Coca-Cola, Mashable and Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts.  Like many social networks, the lifespan of professional social networks is sometimes short, so be sure to pick a reputable and established networking site.

Private Social Networks

Although the name sounds like an oxymoron, private social networks – or private enterprise networks – are a useful tool that an increasing number of companies are utilizing.   Private social networks operate like normal social networks but can only be accessed behind the firewall within companies – hence the term “private”.  Yammer, Salesforce Chatter and Ning are examples of these networks. These networks enable companies located in numerous domestic and international locations to share sensitive information and collaborate on projects more effectively.

International Social Networks

Similar to other social networks, international social networks have originated outside of the US.  These sites offer networking platforms in multiple languages and are customizable to the user.  These networks include QZone (China), Netlog (Belgium), Vkontakte (Russia) and Sonico (Japan).

Social Media Monitoring, Management and Tracking

Social media monitoring is a method of tracking what is being said on social media about an individual, product or company.  These networks or software have become very popular to help companies dispel rumors, bad press and incorrect information.  Some of these networks are Tracx, BuzzBundle, HootSuite, Postling and Lithium.

Content Discovery and Curation

Content delivery and curation networks offer interesting and entertaining content for the purpose of sharing information and providing news content outside of traditional news networks. Sites include BuzzFeed, Reddit, StumbleUpon, Digg and HubPages.  Often users will forward these stories to their networks via other social networking sites, facilitating the quick dissemination of information through multiple Internet platforms. Use these networks to reach younger demographics (millennials) by creating funny and entertaining content that can go viral, which can become an effective branding tool for your company.

Blogging

Blogging sites allow their users to write and post articles and share information relevant to specific topics.  Some networks like LinkedIn have incorporated blogging within their site to allow users to share opinions, new trends, and current affairs in the business and professional world.  There are several blogging sites on the internet, but the most well-known are WordPress, Posthaven, and Blogger.  Even though I post articles on LinkedIn, I also use my blog on WordPress to share my information on different platforms including Facebook, Google + and Twitter.  These articles can contain links to your products driving traffic and sales to your website.

Microblogging

The only difference between blogging and microblogging is the limitation of content.  Microblogging involves sending short messages, announcements and links instead of paragraph-long posts. Twitter, Tumblr, Posterous and Disqus are best known for these applications.  Three companies that use Twitter very effectively are McDonalds, Delta Airlines and Nike.  McDonalds promotes new items on the menu and have giveaways when followers tweet about what they love about McDonalds.  Delta Airlines introduces their latest offers and special packages.  Nike doesn’t use Twitter for sales.  They send out tweets that motivate and inspire their followers, which strengthen the Nike brand.

Photo Sharing

It is said that “A picture is worth a thousand words.”   Photo sharing networks allow individuals or companies post photos including images of products, family, personal interests, hobbies, and so forth.  Instragram, Pinterest and Flickr connect communities of various interests and allow them to post images.  SnapChat is a similar platform for photo sharing and also allows you to post short videos. Photo sharing networks are an important tool for improving branding and marketing images of your company. By connecting with influencers and innovators, sharing their posts, using hashtags, tag names, comments and links in your posts, you can expand your brand visibility quickly.

Video Sharing

YouTube has put video sharing networks on the social media map.  Since its inception, YouTube has transformed into a global repository of videos that are searched like Google.  Other video sharing sites that have grown in popularity include Vimeo, DailyMotion and Vine.  Businesses use this network to show corporate, product and how-to videos.  According to Wired.com, YouTube is one of Google’s biggest successes outside of search and YouTube now reaches more 18 to 49-year-olds than any single US cable network.

Which Social Media Network Should You Use For Your Company?

Determining which social media network to use for your company is important for your marketing and branding strategy. Choosing only one network is not sufficient for your company to get noticed.  I believe that every company should be, at the very least, on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Pinterest or Instagram and HootSuite.  These networks or their competitors will provide you with networking and blogging opportunities (LinkedIn); microblogging (Twitter) to announce new products and company updates; social networking (Facebook), which expands your audience to a wider variety of  potential new customers; video sharing (YouTube) to post product and corporate videos, including community service; photo sharing (Pinterest) to expand your brand by providing images targeted to the appropriate communities that buy your products and services; and social management and tracking (HootSuite) to monitor what your customers, prospects and competitors are saying about you on social media.  Even if your business is more service-oriented, you can still take advantage of these networks.

Conclusion

Like Monopoly, social media is a strategy game. You need to decide what social media networks are right for your business.  Research options, see what your competitors are using and make sure that you have dedicated resources (internal or external) to respond to the market conversations that are happening on social media about your company and industry.  This is a strategy game that your company cannot afford to lose.

If you want to learn more about me, visit my LinkedIn profile, my website and my blog.

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Why Isn’t Your Entire Company On LinkedIn?

LinkedIn is best known as the place where professionals network with other professionals.  With over 400 million members, LinkedIn has built a very large network that you can take advantage of.  The concept is pretty simple.  I’m sure you’ve heard of the six degrees of Kevin Bacon.  The concept is that any two people are six people or fewer acquaintance links apart from each other.  By creating this large network of professionals, you have the opportunity to connect with any professional that you want to using LinkedIn.  This tool allows you to easily find contacts at other companies and discover who you are connected with that may be able to introduce you to those contacts.  Here are some suggestions on how you can benefit from having a LinkedIn presence for your company and how your employees can help your company grow using LinkedIn.

Create Your Own Company Profile   – If you haven’t done so already, create a company profile on LinkedIn.  It’s really easy to do and along with your other social media networks, you will have more visibility to more customers.  If you don’t know where to start, I recommend reviewing some very impressive LinkedIn business pages including Microsoft , Google, Salesforce, and Harvard Business Review.  According to LinkedIn, these companies have a few things in common that have made them very successful.

• 99% of the top global brands have employees sharing their content to their networks
• 97% of the top global brands have employee posts contributing to their content efforts
• 99% of top brands regularly share updates on their Company Page
• 73% of top brands are utilizing Sponsored Updates
• All of these top brands post an average of 12.6 updates per week

Although you don’t need to have your content machine in place on day one, these are great practices that should be emulated.

Sales – It is a very good idea that each of your sales staff has their own LinkedIn profile. Companies like to do business with people that they know.  Having a professional photograph and information about each sales person will help your company’s professionalism online and help them by having an “online business card”.  By the way, having a LinkedIn profile URL on your salespeople’s business cards is another way for your customers to learn more about them and you.

Sales should use LinkedIn to find key contact names of targeted prospects.  A word of caution –  many salespeople say they want to network and connect with professionals, when all they really want to do is turn that networking opportunity into a sales pitch.  Presenting your products and services to targeted prospects subtly is one thing, but don’t use LinkedIn as a tool to hound them for sales.  The better approach might be to see who you know on LinkedIn who might be able to introduce you to that contact.  Referrals are much more effective than cold calling on LinkedIn.  LinkedIn offers advertising opportunities to present your company’s products and services which is respectable way to get noticed.

Marketing – As mentioned above, there are some successful companies using LinkedIn very effectively.  Your marketing team should research these LinkedIn companies for best practices.  There is much to be learned about effective methods of leveraging LinkedIn and other social media networks.  The more updates that you can post on LinkedIn, the better.  Keeping your updates flowing, keeps your customers and prospects interested and updated on what is going on with your company.  I also recommend that your marketing team sign up for different LinkedIn Pulse channels.  There are millions of marketing professionals on LinkedIn and these groups love to share ideas that have worked for them.

Human Resources – Job seekers use LinkedIn as an online resume with the added value of providing recommendations from colleagues, skills, endorsements, volunteer information, blog posts, videos, photos, slide presentations, and documents. Your HR department should comb LinkedIn to find new talent.

Administration, IT and Production Staff – Having your administration, IT and production staff on LinkedIn can help build the company profile to your prospects and customers.  Not only is it important to have them create their own profiles, but also having them provide content for your corporate LinkedIn pages and sharing that information with their contacts spreads the word exponentially on social media.

Executive Team – The average number of connections that CEOs have on LinkedIn is 930.  Executives need to leverage LinkedIn for peer and new business relationships, partnerships and strategic alliances.

If you don’t have a corporate LinkedIn profile, build one.  Encourage your staff to create their own LinkedIn profiles and whenever you have a company update, make sure that you get your staff to share that information with their connections.  Leverage the power of LinkedIn to give your company more visibility and to expand your brand through networking.

If you want to learn more about me, please visit my LinkedIn profile, my website and my blog.

Photo credit: A Name Like Shields Can Make You Defensive via Foter.com / CC BY

Statistics: LinkedIn and DMR

How to Acquire New Customers

The challenge that many companies face is acquiring new customers.  You can “shotgun” your marketing by mailing tons of direct mail to a large, untargeted database, but I recommend having a different tactic.

Profile Your Customers

Who are your customers?  Who is buying from you?  Have you looked at the types of companies that purchase your products?

Do some analysis as to the types of companies or consumers who are your best customers.  I recommend that you look at demographics, SIC codes, company size and other attributes. If you understand the profile of our existing customers, you can match their profile and find other prospects that look just like them.

Building Your Acquisition Database

There are several database management services that you can hire to pull company names, addresses, contact names and phone numbers. Some databases may have accurate mailing addresses, but contact information may be dated.  Utilizing LinkedIn is a good resource for verifying up-to-date contacts.  Find the supplier that can provide you with the best list to reach your target prospects and hire them.

Some database companies also offer email addresses, however it has been my experience that email databases for rent are unreliable.  A better way of capturing prospect and customer emails is to offer downloads on your website like white papers that web visitors can get by just entering their email address.  You will need to make sure that you offer an opt-out process from marketing emails due to CAN-SPAM compliance rules.

Create a Customer Acquisition Campaign

Some companies really like to use direct mail like postcards, letters and fliers to acquire new customers.  Others like to use email, banner advertising on other websites and social media, and Google adwords.  I am a strong believer in synchronized marketing campaigns utilizing multiple acquisition techniques. Certain programs may work better than others.  A/B testing is another great way of finding out what works and what doesn’t.  Keep doing what works and stop doing what doesn’t.

Finding New Customers Outside of Your Existing Customers’ Profiles

In addition to matching existing customer profiles with prospects and attempting to acquire them, there might be a group of prospects that you never thought would be your customers. Market research through surveys is a great way to find out what types of companies or end consumers buy your products or who want your products.  For those who have purchased yhour products, ask them to explain how they use your products, possibly even provide prizes for the best ideas. This information might help you target new customers.

You can also do some testing pulling contact information from other SIC codes and mail or email them as well.  Track the response and conversion rates for each test.  If you discover that a new customer segment is interested in your products or services, expand your reach within that segment through brand and product marketing using direct mail, email, social media and the web.

Conclusion

Profiling your customers to find new prospects, building the prospect database for both direct mail and email, launching the campaign to include the new profiled targets and testing new market segments are all very important steps in acquiring new customers.

If you want to learn more about me, please visit my LinkedIn profile, my website and my blog.

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Be Thankful For Your Competitors

Why should you be thankful for your competitors?  That’s easier to answer than you might think.  Competitors make you better because you are challenged all the time to up your game.  You can’t lose your edge when you are the hunter or the hunted.

The Chess Game

If you have ever played the game of chess, it’s a strategy game where you have to out-think your opponent.  They make a move and you have to make a counter move.  You have to always be one step ahead of your competitor.  One wrong move can dramatically affect the outcome of the game.

Knowing your competitor’s next logical move can help you beat them.  You have to get into their head.  Think the way they think.  Understanding your competitor’s strategy is only part of the game.  You also have to understand what your customer’s needs are.  That too can affect the game.  If you are focused too much on what your competitor might do, you might lose sight of what your customer’s needs are.  Too often I got caught in a pricing war with competitors.  If they dropped a product’s price by 10%, we would drop it by 15%.  We found that didn’t dramatically impact our sales.  When talking with our B2B customers, they were more interested in finding the products they needed as quickly as possible versus saving a few dollars.  Their time was more valuable than the potential savings sifting through promotions.  To the competitors, it was all about promotional pricing.  However, to our customers, it was all about saving time.

Be Aware of Your Surroundings

When you have strong competitors, it makes you much more aware of everything that is going around you.  You become more sensitive to your competitor’s messaging in emails, print and online.  Your competitors are fighting for the same customers that you are.  What is your differential advantage?  Do you offer better customer service?  Are your hours of operation the same or better than your competitors?  Is your website search engine optimized and easy to use?  Find your weaknesses and fix them to make them strengths.  If you don’t know what your weaknesses are, ask your customers.  Your competitors probably already know your weaknesses.

Keep your eyes open for new competitors.  The competitive landscape is always dynamic.  If you are profitable in your market, rest assured someone else is going to figure that out.  IBM owned the computer market for years.  Dell, Gateway and Compaq went hard after that market and upset the balance of power.  Today, Apple, Lenovo, Acer, Asus and HP to name a few are in the ring.  It is difficult in today’s marketplace to stay on top of the mountain.  Look around.  You’re not alone and don’t be surprised if companies that you never thought would ever be competitors are now.

Competition Can Make You Stronger

Look at the constant battle for market share between Coke and Pepsi.  They are always taking swipes at each other and try to “one up” the other in their marketing and advertising.  Coke introduced “Share A Coke” using personalized cans and bottles.  Customers were looking for soda cans with the names of their spouses and friends to share.  This was a very successful branding campaign.  Pepsi did a counter television ad where two women are standing in front of Pepsi and Coke vending machines one holding a bottle of Pepsi and the other a bottle of Coke.  The voice over announcer tells the women that this summer they can win tickets to the concert of their choice every hour, but only with Pepsi.  The happy woman holding the Pepsi bottle says to the other woman “At least your name’s on the bottle” and the women holding the Coke bottle says “Do I look like a Larry to you?”  Punch…counter punch.

The battle between Coke and Pepsi has made both companies stronger because they are constantly reinforcing their brand and introducing new products.  Sometimes it is very successful and sometimes it is not.  Take “New Coke” for example.  Coca-Cola decided to introduce a new recipe that tasted more like Pepsi and retire the original Coke on April 23, 1985.  It was a huge marketing disaster.  Loyal customers revolted against Coke.  Doing damage control, Coke reintroduced the original Coke as “Coke Classic” on July 11, 1985, but the damage was done.  Despite the focus groups and 200,000 taste testers of New Coke, Coca-Cola didn’t realize how attached their customers were to their brand and the original Coke. Pepsi took advantage of Coke’s marketing blunder and launched a new commercial “Why did Coke change?” using a teenage girl questioning why Coke changed  She then drinks her first Pepsi, smiles looking into the camera and says “Now I know why.”  Competition has made both companies stronger and better.  The ultimate winner is the customer who gets a better product often at a better price.

Although many companies don’t want to admit it, competition makes you better. They make you much more aware of your strengths and weaknesses so you can improve and keep your eyes open for new competitors.  Your products and services are constantly being compared by customers and competitors, so you need to be the best you can be.  Isn’t that what we all want?  Thank you competitors.

If you want to learn more about me, please visit my LinkedIn profile, my website and my blog.

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Marketing Research – The Voice of the Customer

Doing marketing without research is like flying a plane without a flight plan.  Marketing research is a critical part of building a successful marketing plan.  You need to know what the customers want so that you can build your plan to meet their needs.  Here are a few suggestions of ways to gather this critical information.

Surveys  – Email customers with short yet pointed surveys.  Customers don’t like long surveys with tons of questions.  Make sure your surveys are short and to the point.  There are several online survey tools like Survey Monkey, Survey Gizmo, Survey Planet and Smart Survey that you can use.

Focus Groups – Gather together your best customers for a free lunch and conversation of what they like and don’t like about your company.  It is best to have skilled focus group moderators as they have a unique way of gathering necessary information.  I worked with a focus group moderator who had an amazing ability to make participants feel that their suggestions and ideas were the most brilliant they have ever heard, although they have heard those suggestions a dozen times before.

Social Media – Social Media is a great way to get the pulse of what’s going on in your market.  Customers talk to other customers all the time on social media.  You need to join in the conversation.  You’ll learn a lot about your customer’s perception of your company from the conversations that they have on social media.

Google Alerts – Set up Google alerts so you are notified whenever your company is mentioned online.  You’ll be amazed at what your customers and competitors are saying about you.

Visit Your Customers – Pick some customers to visit.  Go see their facilities and learn more about what they do and what they need.  Personal visits can make a huge impact.  When customers see that you really care about their business and building relationships with customers is key to long term success.

Solicit Feedback – Ask your customers on your website and via email to provide you with feedback regarding your products and service.  Assign staff to follow up with every customer who responds.  I learned early in my career that when customers have an issue with your company that you can increase customer satisfaction more if you handle issues quickly versus never having an issue to being with.  Customers like to have issues resolved quickly.  Go above and beyond and your customers will respond positively.

Talk to your customers and find out what their needs are.  Develop products that meet their needs and exceed their expectations.  If you don’t ask customers what they need, you can’t help them.  Guessing and assuming what the customers’ needs are is fruitless.  Ask them and give them what they need.

If you want to learn more about me, please visit my LinkedIn profile, my website and my blog.

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What Are Your Customers Saying About Your Company?

When your customers call your company or go to your website, what is their experience?  Do they get their questions answered by friendly, helpful customer service representatives?  Do they feel that your customer service representatives are smiling over the phone?  Can they easily find the products they are looking for on your website?  What about their experience when they are disputing an invoice with your accounting department?

In our digital world with instant information and social media that can make or break your company by negative posts about your company, the customer experience is extremely important.  Here are some key things you can look for to give your customers the best experience they can possibly have and more importantly, they will tell other prospects about their stellar interaction with your company.

Positive – Was every customer touchpoint with your company a positive experience?  Whether they called your customer service or accounting department, looked for products on your website, emailed an inquiry to your company or opened their order once they received it, you need to make sure every time you touch the customer, they have a positive experience.

Memorable – What has your company done to make the customer’s experience memorable?  You want them to remember their positive interaction with you over your competitors.  Customers are busy and don’t want to deal with bad customer service.  There are too many competitors that can take your place. Make every time you touch your customers a memorable one.

Friendly and Helpful – Customers need to feel that you want to make their lives easier.  There is nothing better than talking with customer service reps who love what they do and you can feel that they are smiling while they are talking with you.  Everyone to talks to customers need to be professional, friendly and helpful.  Do your customers feel better about their experience with your company after they talk with your customer service reps?

Elevating Customer Experience  – Is everyone in your company committed to making the customer experience the best it can be?  Attitude is a very powerful ally. In several places where I have worked, getting everyone in the company on board with customer service that is “over the top” is mandatory.

How Likely Will Your Customers Recommend Your Company – Do your customers recommend your company to others based on their positive experience?  If you don’t know, ask them.  Customers normally have no problem telling you and anyone else who will listen about a bad experience they had with you.  Find out how satisfied they really are and fix what isn’t working right.  Social media is a great place to listen to your customers.  They are talking about your company, your products and how they were treated.  Listen to the conversation.

Relationships Build Lifetime Customers –  One of the keys to building lifetime customers is to create relationships with your customers.  People buy from people they know.  The more they know you, the more they trust you.  Ensure that your company is committed to having the best customer experience and the relationships will come.

If you want to learn more about me, please visit my LinkedIn profile, my website and my blog.

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