Customer Service or Dis-service?

Just this past week I’ve experienced two separate situations where service businesses lost out on a willing-to-pay customer because of lack of good customer service. For example, I am on the Board of a homeowners association and we have a concrete step that has become dangerously loose. So we’ve marked the steps with signs as a warning. In the meantime, I contacted a company to replace the step. They told me that they did not have the correct step in their warehouse and would need to order it. I then was told that it would be installed on Wednesday. Well Wednesday came and went and no contractor. I called and left a message…no answer. I tried to follow up the next day and still no answer. I called on Friday morning, left a message asking for them to call and give me an update. I’m a reasonable person, if there was a delay in shipment, all they had to do was let me know. Now it’s Saturday and I still have not heard back. Here we were willing and able to pay for the service and there was no follow through on the side of the contractor. They just lost a good customer who would have paid that same day services were performed. My other experience was with an insurance guy. We spoke and he told me to email all of the information he needed in order to give me a quote that he swore would be cheaper than my current policy. I took the time to look at my policies and include all of the detail that he needed. I used the email address he gave me so I know it was the correct one. Here it is a week later and I have yet to receive an email or follow up call. Both of these recent experiences made me realize just how important it is, especially for a small business owner trying to make it in this economy, to really make yourself stand out by communicating with your clients. Providing good service to your clients is essential to having a successful business, especially if you are a home based business. Currently I have over 30 clients, but I make sure to treat each one as though they were my only one. Good customer service has become a rarity these days, not to mention great customer service. It includes simple things such as responding to a telephone message or email, remembering their first name and keeping your client updated about the progress of a job. Hey I’ve been caught up with a project that pushes me a little behind schedule, but I always communicate with my clients and keep them posted. This way they feel in the loop. Put yourself in their place and think: What would make this experience feel like I really got what I paid for? What would make me feel like I really matter to them as a client and not just a checkbook? For instance there is a sandwich shop that is about 10 miles out of the way for me. I have gone there for years. The owner knows me by my name and greets me each time. Other than fact that the chicken salad sandwiches there are unbelievably delicious, I feel like I am welcome at his shop. He seems to enjoy seeing me and I enjoy eating his food. Long story short is: Make your Client or Customer feel like they matter, communicate with them, be honest if there are any hiccups during a job and just show some common courtesy in your business and you will build a loyal client base of people who appreciate the service that you provide.