Improving customer relationship is meant to keep customers for life latched to your product or service
. Businesses coast to coast are learning at a great cost how great customer relation can be for their survival. In today's world it is of huge importance that existing customers are happy and you do not forget them after having made a successful sale.
But to keep the relationship strong right from the beginning, you should follow some steps. If you don't, there are other businesses like yours that would benefit as customers are great in sourcing the right place from where to buy their requirements.
Your first step would be to stick to your promises. Many irate customers complain that a company promised them the moon before the sale, but the actual product and service fell way short of expectations. It may sound funny, but many businesses work on marketing losing sight of improving their products and keeping it in tune with the expectations of customers. You cannot expect long term loyalty from the customer if you don't deliver as you promised or advertised during your marketing programs.
Customers have very little patience and are not going to wait for you to take the first step. You should not leave it to the customer to approach you with a problem. As a successful business owner you should remain focused on the customer's needs and aspirations. In a way, you have to sense the problem before he or she does and set about to resolve it. Instead of waiting for the customer to come to you, you should go several steps ahead to cement a relationship. And in doing so, you should not distinguish between your customers as all are the same in your eyes.
Anyone of them could be a potential lifer to your business and improving customer relationship is an impartial and continuous process. If you want to be ahead of others in improving customer relationship, then you have to go beyond their expectations.
One online seller of soup mixes won kudos for placing orders for some of the items that were not listed in their online catalogue. That was a classic case of providing much more than the customer could have bargained for. Think about your customers first and your bottom lines later on.
Profit is primary, but it will come automatically if your customers are happy. Your business and its future depend on whether the customers stay in for the long haul. You should always take regular feedback from your customers and know if they need upgrading or changes.
Customer loyalty can also be achieved through sales employees and the better you look after long term staff the higher you can expect from them. They feel part of the set up and give their best while servicing customers. Your business environment should be responsive as well as supportive for improving customer relationship.