PD Strategies Blog

It is no accident that two core competencies of human resource professionals, for example, include consultation and relationship management. And this is no different for other professionals whether internal company consultants or external sales consultants. Trust is vitally important, and this is built on credibility and respect. With this new understanding, internal and external consultants can help in the decision-making process using information all parties have readily available, thanks to the Internet. They days where one side (usually the seller) had all the information is over. If you are not selling a product but selling your service, your trust, your reputation, and your relationship management skills. A client will be looking for your ability find a problem and develop a solution. The information is out there already, and the buyer can also easily obtain information on the seller. In today’s environment we need to understand that we are all in sales...

People do not buy your company. They buy you. You need to know what you do that keeps them continually buying you? What is the best way to have a steady stream of these loyal customers?   Under promise and over deliver. Nothing is more important to a business than a loyal customer. Loyal customers are a leading indicator for the growth and success of your business followed by an engaged staff. Customers generally have a level of expectation when they engage your services. It is important to start by managing those expectations. Do that by being truthful about your procedures, deadlines, and outcomes. Failure to meet expectations of your customers will result in a lost customer. Doing exactly what you say will satisfy your customer but little more. They got what they expected but no more.   They are a satisfied customer. This is like getting a C “average” grade. Kick it...

How can you predict future business success? The answer is a steady predictable pipeline of customers. Peter Ducker has said that the purpose of business is to attract and keep customers. You do this by creating a loyal customer base. This is done by creating an emotional connection between you and your customers. Have you included goals for customer loyalty scores in your strategic plan?   Creating a customer is done through a clear message and marketing but keeping a customer is based on performance. Don’t spend all your time on marketing for new customers while neglecting your current customers. A loyal current customer is the cheapest and most effective form of marketing. A company that says it separates itself from others by service usually does not know what that really means. As an example, it seems that most businesses are focusing on customer satisfaction to determine their customer service measurements. This...

People may not remember exactly what you did, or what you said, but they will always remember how you made them feel. Maya Angelou Those are wise words. People do not buy what you sell. They buy you. If they truly buy us they are a loyal customer. Nothing is more important to a business than a loyal customer. You can be making a lot of sales and have a good income, but you will not have that for long if you don’t have loyal customers. What is the best way to have a steady stream of loyal customers?   Under promise and over deliver. Customers generally have a level of expectation when they engage our services. It is important that we manage those expectations by being truthful about our procedures, deadlines, and outcomes. Failure to meet expectations of our customers will result in a lost customer. Doing exactly what we say...

As a business owner wouldn’t you agree that the main purpose of a business is to attract and maintain customers? If that is true then managing and measuring the voice of your customer becomes one of your most important functions. A customer service focused business will make certain that its customers get what they want and come back for more. That is critically important to the long-term success your Westchester County business. All factors that impact negatively on the customer, (unfriendly policies, inappropriate response time, untrained employees, etc.) must be identified and corrected if you wish to compete effectively and profitably now and in the future. The success of your business depends upon building and anticipating the future. Your current sales and profit are NOT indicators for the future. They tell what is happening now. The true indicator of future success is measured through your customers’ emotional attachment to your brand....

If you have had profits in the past there is no guarantee you will have them in the future. To quote investment company advertisements, “past performance is no guarantee of future results.” You need to have a leading indicator. A leading indicator would show current business conditions which would lead to continued success. Two very important measurements are employee engagement and customer loyalty. While sales and profits are very important measurements, they tell you what has happened. Employee engagement and customer loyalty tells you what will happen. When you have engaged employees they will do their best work which will result in loyal customers. You should measure employee engagement at least once per year. The ultimate employee question is, “How likely are you to recommend our company as a great place to work?” When you have highly engaged employees you have promoters of your workplace. A measurement called The Net Promoter...

A very important leading indicator is your loyal customer base. If it is growing the you can expect your sales to grow too. Peter Ducker said that the purpose of business is to create and keep a customer. Have you included goals for customer loyalty scores in your strategic plan?  Creating a customer is done through a clear message and marketing but keeping a customer is based on performance. Don’t spend all your time on marketing for new customers while neglecting your current customers. A loyal current customer is the cheapest and most effective form of marketing. A company that says it separates itself from others by service usually does not know what that really means. As an example, it seems that most businesses are focusing on customer satisfaction to determine their customer service measurements. This measurement is flawed and often falls short of actionable expectations. Companies also make a mistake...

The best measure of business success is the loyalty of our clients. People do not buy what you sell. They buy you. If they truly buy us they are a loyal customer. Nothing is more important to a business than a loyal customer. You can be making a lot of sales and have a good income, but you will not have that for long if you don’t have loyal customers. Peter Drucker said the main reason for a business is to attract and retain customers. What is the best way to have a steady stream of loyal customers?   Under promise and over deliver. Customers generally have a level of expectation when they engage our services. It is important that we manage those expectations by being truthful about our procedures, deadlines, and outcomes. Failure to meet expectations of our customers will result in a lost customer. Doing exactly what we say will...

Regardless of what we sell we are all really in a service business. People do not buy what we sell. They buy us. If they truly buy us they are a loyal customer. Nothing is more important to a business than a loyal customer. You can be making a lot of sales and have a good income but you will not have that for long if you don’t have loyal customers. What is the best way to have a steady stream of loyal customers?   Under promise and over deliver. Customers generally have a level of expectation when they engage our services. It is important that we manage those expectations by being truthful about our procedures, deadlines, and outcomes. Failure to meet expectations of our customers will result in a lost customer. Doing exactly what we say will satisfy our customer but little more. They got what they expected but no more....

People remember when they have been wowed in their experience with your company. What is the difference between average and being wowed? To wow your customer you must exceed their expectations. When you wow your customer by exceeding expectations your customer creates an emotional bond with your company and your services. They become loyal customers. But there is more to this. Sometimes you will disappoint a customer. No one is perfect but how well you react to make it right can create an even bigger emotional bond. Here is the way one of my Westchester County Businesses handled critical customer situation. They are an HVAC provider. There had been a spike in temperatures in our area causing an unusually large number of air conditioning units to fail. The company received a large number of calls and the service team was working overtime. They were honest in telling clients that they could...

Having a unique value proposition will differentiate you from your competition. Most people are at a loss to really articulate their unique value proposition. Many companies say that their service is what sets them apart from their competition. They will say, “Our Service is what sets us apart. We give great customer service.” If that is your answer I would ask you to think about that. Doesn’t everyone claim to give great service? What is unique about yours? You really need to go a step above that by exceeding your customers’ expectations. One way to do that is create a product, a service or an experience that is innovative in your customers’ eyes. What would really wow your customers? Steve Jobs achieved that wow when he created the iPhone, an invention that was less of a phone than something holding most of our needs that we can carry anywhere. According to...

Regardless of what we sell we are all really in a service business.  People do not buy what we sell.  They buy us.  If they truly buy you then they are a loyal customer.  Nothing is more important to a business than a loyal customer.  You can be making a lot of sales and have a good income but you will not have that for long if you don’t have loyal customers. What is the best way to have a steady stream of loyal customers?   Under promise and over deliver.  Exceed your customers' expectations.  Here is an experience that I just had. Due to a spike in temperature in the Northeast this week my central AC was working overtime.  I realized on Thursday evening that the system was not cooling.  I called the after-hours number at my HVAC provider.  The person at the other end told me that the service team...