Biz Crusader

 

I had on my best (only) suit sitting amongst others also in their best professional attire.  The minutes seemed to drag on forever as I constantly stared at my watch.  The magazines were outdated and uninteresting but we all rummaged through them to kill the wait.  And directly in front of me, in a $5 frame, was a printed sign that said “You Never Get a Second Chance to Make a First Impression.”

 

It was 1993 and I was waiting for my interview in a headhunter’s office vying for a corporate sale position.

 

For some reason, that cliche phrase has never left me.  I know you’ve all heard it a million times and chances are you’ve probably used it to make a point in business.  It’s 15 years later now and I have to tell you I’ve been thinking a lot about this phrase recently.  It’s not what you think.  After analyzing this statement, I’ve come to the conclusion that this readily embraced business principle is not necessarily applicable for ALL business situations.  In fact, if you apply this resilient statement to every aspect of your business, it might even actually hurt your business prospects.

 

 

When we hear this phrase from existing clients, we cringe in horror.  This is especially true if they say this to you “after the fact” or after having purchased from a competitor.  If you really think about it, it is extremely naive of us to think that our clients should know everything about our companies and what we have to offer.  In most cases, your business-client relationship originally started with a single product or service.  You might even refer to this initial event as the “First Impression.”

 

The problem is that most business owners automatically just assume their customers know all about the other products or services they offer just because they’re doing business with them.  This is what I jokingly call, add-on business through telepathy.  Your business, the products and services you offer are in a constant state of change.  It is unreasonable for you to expect your clients to keep up with your business “just because”.  If you are a B2B business, your clients have their own businesses to worry about.  They certainly don’t have the time to research what new offerings you might have for them.

 

No matter how concrete the relationship or how long it has been in place, you absolutely cannot rely on “First Impressions” to generate the constant referral and add-on business you should be harvesting from your existing client base.  You must reintroduce the business again and again for the duration of the business-client relationship.  Every time you roll out a new service or product, you must let your existing clients know about it.  Again, mental telepathy is not a known business strategy.

 

So, stop relying on your so-called “First Impression”.  Go out there and reintroduce yourself to your clients.  Unlike a corporate job interview, you have many more chances to make another impression.

 

 

 

 

Believe it or not, my little business blog has logged over 18,000 page views and just under 1,000 unique visitors in the first 3 months.  In the big world of the WWW, these stats are not that big of a deal but nevertheless, I am very pleased to see that so many of you are enjoying my posts.  If you’ve read more than a few of my rants, you already know that I have somewhat of an “inner conflict” about technology.  In many cases, use of technology will make your business better but there are times when it will encourage you to abandon the basics.  This post is about one of those times when it can hurt your business.

 

Don’t forget to say Thank You.  If you have kids, this phrase is probably very familiar to you.  I must utter these words at least once a week to our 5 year old.  After saying it again today, I thought it would be a perfect topic for discussion with my business owners.

 

In today’s fast-paced world of the Internet, e-mails and instant everything; many business owners are abandoning traditional business basics.  The bottom line is that it’s just too easy to send an e-mail or leave a VM when more is required.  Saying thanks in a proper way is a basic business etiquette that should be practiced no matter what the circumstances or economic conditions.  The good news is that so few business owners send proper thank yous these days that it will be much easier for your business to stand out above the crowd.  Unfortunately, it has become all too common for customers to spend thousands of dollars and not get so much as a thank you card in the mail.  In most cases, they might not even get an e-mail thank you.

 

 

 

1)  You will immediately elevate the positive perception of your business in your prospects’ or customers’ minds.

 

2)  You will immediately separate your business from the competition.  And by doing so, you will give your prospects and your customers a reason to remember you.

 

3)  Give your prospects and customers a positive memorable experience and watch them turn in to your business ambassadors. 

 

4)  Your closing ratios will increase.  Your repeat sales will increase.  Your referral business will increase.

 

 

 

1)  After meeting a prospect.

 

2)  Upon securing a sale or contract.

 

3)  When a customer has referred you to someone.

 

4)  Periodically with long term customers.

 

NOTE:  NEVER use form letters.  They are worthless and you might as well not send them.  Handwritten cards and notes are best.

 

 

Like all worthwhile efforts, implementing a proper THANK YOU program for your business will take a commitment by you, the business owner.  As an example, when my sales representatives secured a deal, I would not allow the processing of that order until he or she handed in a hand-written thank you card with the sales order.  It was one way to implement the policy.  Remember, when it comes to these kinds of basic business principles and practices, easier for you does not mean it is better for your business.

 

 

 

A few days ago, I was in a car with my Art Director, Albert.  As we always do, we had just stopped by a Starbucks after lunch to get our afternoon dose of caffeine.  As we were driving away, he started to tell me a story.  The story was about an experience he and his wife had at a Starbucks drive-thru.  He first tried to order an ice coffee.  They were out.  He then ordered a large coffee.  His wife ordered the same.  Unfortunately, they were in the process of brewing a fresh pot and he was told to pull forward and park while they get the coffee ready.

 

A few minutes later, one of the employees came out to the car with two freshly brewed large coffees.  As Albert reached for his wallet, the Starbucks employee in green said “It’s on the house.  Thanks for waiting.”  Obviously, this event had a very positive impact on Albert and his wife because here he was telling me all about it.  I asked him how many times he had told that story so far.  He had told the story twice before and he was pretty sure that his wife would have told the story a few times by now.  He didn’t even know it but he had now become an ambassador of Starbucks.  He was in essence an unpaid consumer salesperson because of a $4 customer service gesture.

 

Whether it was calculated or not, Starbucks deserves credit for having an employee make such a call and for having a corporate environment where an employee is allowed to make such a call.

 

Before there was My Space or You Tube, viral marketing used to be called something else—word of mouth.  As we all do our best to keep up with the “Techies”, don’t forget about the power of this important phrase.  Through your own personal actions and by encouraging a workplace culture that values customer service and superior quality, you will inevitably create ambassadors for your business as well.  There are no greater sales persons than unaffiliated third parties proudly spreading the word about your business.