How To Treat Your Customers The Right Way

All business owners have their own ideas for how they are to treat their customers. In all likelihood, the one idea they all have in common is to be polite to the people who support their businesses. Treating customers with politeness is a no-brainer. But treating your customers the right way requires a lot more than being nice to them. It requires a dedication to building customer relationships.

Treat your customers as “guests”.

On Entrepreneur.com, Eric Shiffer goes as far as saying that he doesn’t even refer to people as clients or customers. “At my company we refer to them as ‘guests,’ for they are our guests, and we are their host,” he writes, “We are always happy to see them and strive to make their time with each of us a great experience.”

This mindset is important because it insists upon treating “guests” of your place of business as more than just potential dollar signs. When you put efforts into getting to know the people who visit your store, you develop bonds that can grow over time. In other words, securing repeat business – a huge part of a company’s overall success – comes, not by way of selling products but by fostering excellent customer experiences.

Honesty is the best policy.

One of the best ways to create such great experiences is to be genuine. Don’t underestimate the intelligence of your store’s visitors. They can see through disingenuous behaviour. Be honest about what you can and can’t do for your customers and take measures to satisfy their needs as best you can.

On his website, marketing expert, Neil Patel stresses the importance of being genuine with your customers. “You know, people are pretty sharp these days,” he points out, “They’ve been around the block a few times and they’re naturally skeptical. This means that your customers are more sensitive to affectations and pretense than you might think. They can sense when they’re being ‘played,’ and if they feel that way, and they’ll take their money and purchases elsewhere.”

Go over and beyond to better a bad experience.

No matter how pleasant you are, you’re bound to run into a situation or two with a customer who is irate. Don’t panic. An encounter with an angry customer is no reason to lose your cool and run the risk of worsening the impression of your brand among members of the general public. Word gets around fast – especially through social media. So be sure to go over and beyond to better a bad experience.

“82% of consumers report that they’ve left a company entirely due solely to a bad customer experience, which shows the importance of customer relationship management,” reveals Patel, “What’s scarier is that when they have a bad experience with a brand, 58% of consumers tell their friends about it — many of those on social media, where bad news does indeed travel at the speed of light.”

Offer payment options.

At Canadian POS, we have many years of experience working with Canadian business owners who have grown the reputations of their brands thanks to their switches from “cash only” to “plastic friendly”. For information about how you can begin accepting credit cards and debit cards in your store with the Poynt Smart Terminal, call Canadian POS at 1-877-748-2884 or email us at info@localhost.