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Marketing your service or product and finding new customer can be one of the greatest struggles for a business. So when one of these customers is lost, the business cost is so much more. Customer turnover can be greatly reduced by simply focusing on customer service. Implement these 6 habits into your business and watch the results.

1. Set reasonable service expectations – then exceed them. If you advertise a particular service, but fail to deliver, the customer is going to be disappointed. Align your business branding and be very specific about what you are advertising. Then make sure that your pricing is accurate. Keep in mind that higher priced items imply quality, so be prepared to deliver that quality. Falsely implying a product or service is the greatest setup for losing a customer.
2. Employees ARE the business – happy employee’s equal happy customers. People like to do business with people who are happy. Your customers are dependent on your employees. Create a work environment that is desirable to work in. Employees that love their job will also love to work with your customers. This becomes obvious to your customers, making them want to return for more.
3. Be visible and easy to reach. Let your customers know that there is no business hierarchy – all employees are accessible and ready to help. This will communicate to your customers that no matter how busy the business is, the customer is far more important. This culture will not necessarily increase the workload, but simply relay the importance of each individual customer.
4. Use focused marketing – follow-up. The customer has sought out your business and even finalized a sale. Follow-up marketing can be a simple, targeted and inexpensive way to maintain sales. Ask the customer questions on the sale and product, and then use the information to guide the business and to show the value of each customer.
5. Stay ahead – evolve with the industry. Constant communication with the industry vendors, customers, and peer markets will keep your business in the know. Stay attuned to shifting markets and be prepared to adapt. Make sure your customers know that you desire to maintain your edge position.
6. Ask for your customers business. The simple art of asking has been lost. There is an implied expectation of entitlement in many businesses: “if you want it, you’ll come find me.” Change your business approach to a more humble venue – ask the customer for their return business.

A return customer is the most efficient and exponential form of marketing; especially in a world of social networking and instant information distribution. Focusing your business energy on retaining customers is the fastest and most consistent way to grow your business.

Image credit :  Garry Knight

Used with permission from Article Aggregator