Since
1992,
NSPG has been providing the tools that allow contractors to
increase profits and minimize business hassles. With our
simple-to-use-tools, you can make being a business owner
what you always wanted to it be -
successful, profitable and rewarding.
Customer Loyalty
in Hard Times
 Jim Cramer
on CNBC has mentioned his "Danny Meyer Hospitality
Index" more than once in the last few weeks. This
is essentially a group of stocks in companies that have
built their business brand on high quality service
that leads to high customer loyalty. These
companies include Apple, Google, Southwest Airlines,
Costco, and Whole Foods. So far, these companies
have outperformed the usual low cost picks in a down
economy. Rather than cutting costs and reducing
service quality, they have maintained their business
philosophy, and have been rewarded with only small drops
in business levels.
These companies reflect
the trend for successful service businesses.
Building a company that offers higher quality at a
profitable price has been a successful strategy in just
about every market. Even in the current market,
businesses that sell quality seem to have higher
customer loyalty, and have been able better maintain
their sales.
Even a business based on
high quality must recognize the current market
situation. What they need to do is maintain is
their perceived superior level of service while
intelligently cutting costs. In a tight
market, the things that your customers perceive as high
quality are often not expensive to provide, and could
even cost nothing.
Using a system to assure
that your customers know when your tech will be there
can cost little more than the hit-or-miss "systems" used
by your low price competitors. Once your system is
set up, it costs little to run. Let me describe
what I'm talking about.
 Many
companies are now instituting a system similar to the
doctor's office model. The day before the
appointment, the office contacts the customer and
reminds them that the tech will be there during a
specific time window the next day. They confirm
the general nature of the work to be done, and what the
customer will need to supply. This includes things
like access to the site, and putting the dog in a
separate area.
They let the customer know
that they will receive a call the next day to confirm
the arrival time of the technician. This reduces
the feeling by the customer that they are being
inconvenienced by waiting for an uncertain arrival of
your technician.
 A
multi-contact system like this adds very little to the
cost of each service call, but can pay big dividends in
customer loyalty. Combining this with other low
cost details like clean shirts for your technicians,
booties and/or carpet runners to keep the job site clean
and job site clean up, plus a high level of competence
on the job, all combine to create the impression of a
high quality business. Most of your customers will
interpret your extra efforts as a sign of respect that
they will reciprocate in the form a loyalty to your
business.
Building customer loyalty
will benefit your business just the way it benefits the
big companies mentioned by Cramer.
 Building
customer loyalty can involve a list of everyday
principles that most successful businesses utilize.
The two illustrated above, communication and
customer service, are just the start.
Communicating with your customer base should not be
limited to specific service calls. You need to
keep your name in front of them on a regular basis.
Newsletters, reminder cards, calendars, emails, and
whatever works for your business are critical.
Doing the little extra
things to meet your customers' needs will be remembered.
People remember being treated well.
Some of the other tools
for building customer loyalty include:
-
Employee training.
Train your employees in how to interact with your
customers. Give them the tools they need to
give your customers what they want.
-
Give them a reason to call.
Good-customer discounts, extra "free" services like
safety inspections, and seasonal specials can all
prompt your customer base to call you now and keep
you in mind in the future.
-
Reliability.
If you say you're going to be there, be there.
No one wants to do business with a company they
can't count on. Your business needs to be the
opposite of the stereotypical cable guy. Be
there when you say you will, and do the job right
the first time. If there is a problem,
communicate. Let them know the tech will be
late, and let them know it bothers you that your
business has let them down.
-
Be an expert. Customer
loyalty relies on the confidence your customers have
in your business. Show them that you know what
you're talking about. Little things like
pointing out how they can save money with the new
stimulus rebates is not only a good sales tool, but
it shows that you know what is happening in your
world. Make it easy for them by providing
literature that explains exactly how it works.
Here's the government site that details the latest
energy tax credit information.
http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=products.pr_tax_credits
 Difficult
times require belt tightening by everyone. They
also provide an opportunity for any company that is
dedicated to growing larger through a high quality and
high value model. Customer loyalty, that can help
carry a business through a downturn, is built using this
model. Low prices alone do not build loyalty, and
may hurt a business' prospects during a downturn.
If your customer buys on
price alone in good times, what will happen when times
are tough?
 By all means,
Crunch
your Numbers to be sure your prices are as low as
possible while making a profit. But you
may want to recognize a slow down as an opportunity to
put in place the systems you need to build customer
loyalty.
If you have fewer calls
now, use the extra office time to set up an improved
system for communicating with your customers. If
you have fewer service calls, use the time to train your
technicians to present your own high quality service model to
your customers.
View slow times not only
as a challenge to be overcome, but as an opportunity to
build for the future. Now is the time to get your
numbers right, print your new
flat rate books,
and implement
those ideas you've been working on.
- - - - - - -
Give Mike Conroy a call to
discuss your business, your numbers, your performance
benchmarks, or your flat rate
books. Take advantage of his experience working
with hundreds of companies like yours to help you achieve your own business success.
Measure Monthly, Adjust Quarterly
& Achieve Your Annual Profit Goals
On-Line
News
Interactive Kohler
Toilet Demonstration
Manure Powered Fuel Cell
Another Millionaire Plumber
Electrician Is an Electric Car Dealer Too
Energy Star Tax Credits
Call 800 841-8542 today to learn about our
easy, no interest, multi-payment plans for NSPG software
products.
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In This Issue |
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Phone 800 841-8542
Call today to get your own Flat Rate Price Books
printed by the experts at NSPG.
No software needed.
800-841-8542
Numbers Cruncher
National Standard
Price Guide
Performance Dispatch Plus
Call 800 841-8542 today to learn about our
easy, no interest, multi-payment plans for NSPG
software products.
Keep your company name
where they can find it!
Magnetic Calendars
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The freebie of the month is a web site or
product that we feel gives you something worth looking
at or using that costs you little or nothing.
This
month's freebie is really a benefit for your customers.
It's the
Energy Efficiency tax credit site. This site
spells out the credits that may help you sell your
services to potential customers.
The site
lists credits for homeowners, home builders, and
businesses.
Recent
changes in the tax credits include extension into 2010
plus increases in the maximum credit amount. Also,
some
geothermal and
solar improvements
tax credit have no
limits now.
If you have
a favorite Free site, let us know.
nspginfo@nspgweb.com
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Quotations
To err is
human--and to blame it on a computer is even more so.
Robert Orben
Income tax
returns are the most imaginative fiction being written
today.
Herman Wouk
I told the
doctor I broke my leg in two places. He told me to quit
going to those places.
Henny Youngman
Baseball
is 90% mental, the other half is physical.
Yogi Berra
A
conservative is a man who sits and thinks, mostly sits.
Woodrow
Wilson
The whole
problem with the world is that fools and fanatics are
always so certain of themselves, but wiser people so
full of doubts.
Bertrand Russell
All work and no play makes Jack a dull
boy and Jill a rich widow.
-
Evan Esar
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Series
VIP Meeting in Scottsdale, Arizona, March 12 to March
14, 2009
