Small Business Owners: Wow Your Clients with These Techniques
Running a small business is very different to having a larger company. There are many things that you can’t do without the right resources. However, as a small business owner with creative skills, you also have several advantages. You can deliver service in a way that many big businesses can’t. No matter how hard they try to be personal and human, they still can’t get away from the fact that they are huge corporate entities. When you have a small business, you can provide more personal and intimate service that is much more authentic. If you want to wow your customers with limited resources, here are some of the techniques you can use.
Use Your Creativity and Others’
One of the advantages you have is that you can be creative. Not only that, but you’re also part of a creative community. Larger businesses have creative people too, but they can often fall into the trap of being too corporate. They end up being out of touch with what their clients are looking for or what their clients’ audiences want. As a small business owner, you can get closer to your clients and deal with them personally. You should have lots of creativity, whether you’re a web designer, graphic designer or perhaps even a photographer. As well as thinking creatively yourself, you can tap into the network of other creatives you know. You can hire them or just look to them for inspiration.
Take a Personal Approach
Being a small business allows you to take a much more personal approach. You can treat each client as an individual and get to know them properly. You have time to engage them in conversations and get under the skin of what they really want. While many larger businesses can do this, a lot of them don’t take the time to. However, you can learn from those who do. For example, Zappos holds the record for the longest customer service phone call. Their customer service representatives will talk to customers about whatever they want for as long as they want. If you want to wow your customers, you can take a similar approach. Treat your clients like friends. Friends who pay you, though.
Be Super Responsive
One way to take a personal approach is to be as responsive as possible when dealing with clients. Many people complain that larger companies don’t get back to them when they complain or even just ask a question. As a small business, you have the opportunity to do things differently. Reply to people’s queries and complaints as soon as you can. Allow them to contact you through different channels too so they can do it in their own time. You can also take the time to write personal responses, not just stock replies like larger companies send. Huge corporations often aren’t able to reply to people individually but you can.
Use Virtual Services to Expand Your Business
Your small business doesn’t have to stay small forever. Even without hiring anyone, you can still expand your company. The easiest way to do it is to use virtual services, which can allow you to add a variety of services to your company. For example, www.yourvirtualofficelondon.co.uk provide virtual office support. You can use services like these to have someone else answer calls to your business. Virtual offices can also provide meeting rooms if you need them, so you have somewhere professional to meet your clients. Other virtual services can include a virtual address for a more professional image, as well as mail forwarding. You can also look into hiring a virtual PA, who can help you keep your business organized. There are also other creatives you can hire as freelancers, plus people who can help with SEO, marketing, and other tasks.
Surprise Them with Freebies and Gifts
Everyone likes free things. Even if it’s not something you wouldn’t have paid for, you can still appreciate something free. In fact, sometimes it’s better if it’s something you wouldn’t have paid for. If you want to add a personal touch to your customer service, giving clients an unexpected treat or gift is a great idea. There are lots of ways you can do it, and it doesn’t have to cost you much at all. You could send them a card on their birthday or at Christmas. You could give them a pen or a cupcake with your brand logo on it. Use your creativity and imagination to come up with something fun. You can put your name on almost anything, from cookies and marshmallows to frisbees.
Go Above and Beyond
If you have the time, you can pay extra attention to your clients. Being responsive when they reach out to you is just one way of treating them well. If you’re up for it, you can go even further to help out your client. For example, perhaps you design a website for your client, but they don’t know how to manage it once it’s online. You might take the time to walk them through some basic steps so that they are able to do it. Perhaps you might make an effort to answer phone calls whenever and wherever you are. Or you could help a client find additional services for their website. That could also mean teaming up with other small businesses to help each other out.
Let Your Clients Have a Say
People like being able to influence the services they use. They want to know that you are listening to them if they make a request. It’s always a good idea to ask for feedback that you can use to improve your service. However, you might find that some people are reluctant to tell you what they think. One option is to provide an anonymous survey that they can fill out whenever they want. When you read feedback from your clients, think carefully about whether it should change the way you work. Asking for feedback works best if you’re willing to respond to it.
If you want to wow your customers, you should deliver a personal service. Use your power as a small business owner to do things differently.
