Last week, our blog pointed out that Thanksgiving was on the way – this year, it falls on Monday, October 14th. As a result, a particular blog stuck to the theme of thanking customers and, in fact, highlighted the practice as a year-round necessity. Of course, October isn’t just the month when Canadians celebrate Thanksgiving. It is also the month of another fun celebration!
As always, Halloween will be here on the 31st. So with October now in full swing, we’re reminded that the time for trick or treating is drawing near. We’re also reminded of yet another important way to thank your customers. And that is to offer them “treats” on a regular basis!
Be willing to “go the extra mile” for your customers.
So what does “going the extra mile” really mean? For your store, it may mean walking a purchased product out to the car of your customer. For your restaurant, it may mean offering a free dessert to a loyal supporter. For MeloTel, it can mean travelling long distances to tackle in-office issues onsite. Our Founder and CEO, John Meloche has been known to service customers himself – even when it requires making a several-hour drive to do so!
“Often it’s the small things that can make a considerable difference, doing something the customer did not expect,” says Newleaf Associates, “At other times it may mean pulling out all the stops to resolve an issue.”
Make your actions speak louder than your words.
Many businesses make the mistake of claiming to offer excellent customer service, but don’t actually provide it. Consumers aren’t impressed by lofty promises. It is one thing to sound pleasant when speaking to customers and it’s a completely different thing to follow through on every promise made to your customers. This is especially important when trying to remedy a problem or correct a mistake.
“Anyone can make promises, but keeping them is a different story,” says CloudTalk, “If you operate a hotel and your client is not happy, it’s not enough to say that you’re sorry. Show them that they are VIP just like any other client and upgrade them to a better room at no extra fee. These actions can calm down upset customers and even change their opinion.”
Always keep your cool.
No matter how great your company is, there’s always bound to be someone who will find fault with it. When encountering an irate customer, it’s imperative that you keep your cool. Resolving a seemingly-major issue is arguably the best way to secure customer loyalty. In fact, we’d argue that the purest form of treating customers right is showing the angriest ones just how friendly you can be!
“There’s no doubt customers can be demanding and at times downright unreasonable,” admits Newleaf Associates, “But it’s also fair to say that no-one ever won an argument with a customer. So it’s vital to maintain a calm and professional approach and to be patient with customers.”
Give MeloTel the opportunity to treat you right! For information about any and all of our cloud-hosted services, please don’t hesitate to contact us at 1-888-MELOTEL or use the Live Chat feature on our website!
