SUCCESSFUL FRANCHISING – A QUESTION OF RELATIONSHIPS

Part 2 of a 4 part series)

Advice on franchising by Pieter Scholtz, Master Licensee for ActionCOACH SA. ActionCOACH is one of the fastest growing and most successful business coaching franchises in the world today.

In part one of this four part series on customer relationships, we discussed external relationships and ideal customers. In this article we investigate the concept of winning customer service and how to achieve this state.  

Ask yourself this question, how do your customers feel about doing business with you? Do they leave your establishment feeing satisfied, dissatisfied or delighted? This is an important question that requires a great deal of consideration.

The first thing to understand is that customers expect to be satisfied. They have identified a need, have gone to the trouble of finding out which business can satisfy their need and followed through either by phoning or calling on you at your place of business.  What happens next will determine the impression they are left with and whether or not they will ever return.  Remember that while customers expect satisfaction, they will actually talk to others about your business if they get more than they expect. So give them something to talk about. 

Good customer service is proactive. Actively seek ways give your customers something more than they expect and don’t wait until a problem arises before you act. This is the first step in creating great customer relationships that will result in their becoming, what I call, longstanding ‘Raving Fans’.

The search for new ways to satisfy your customers and get them talking, should become a way of life and part of your routine. Brainstorm, consult with your salespeople and be innovative. Think outside the box. Customers actually expect you to keep getting better, so keep your eyes open, watch what other businesses are doing and keep innovating.

‘Moments of truth’ are those occasions when it really counts to impress someone with your service. Do you know what yours might be? Take the time now to list as many of them as you can.  Start with your customer interactions and be ruthless. Once you have jotted down some of your “moments of truth”, you will start to develop an idea of why it is that customers jump ship you for a competitor, and what to do to stop it in its tracks.

Before we go any further, here are some statistics about why customers leave that may startle you:

·         One percent due to death

·         3 percent due to a house move

·         5 percent due to support a friend by buying from them

·         9 percent to buy from a competitor

·         14 percent found a better product or price

·         68 percent due to perceived indifference on your part

Sixty eight percent of your customers leave because they perceive your business as being indifferent to their needs. They feel you just don’t care.

Comparatively, the number leaving because of your opposition’s efforts is so small it is almost negligible. Only nine percent were swayed by the active efforts of your competitors, while a mere 14 percent found a more attractive deal elsewhere. 

Remember the 80/20 rule? If you were to really look after only 20 percent of your customers, you’d be looking after those that account for 80 percent of your revenue.

So, how hard would it be to hang on to the 68 percent of customers who leave due to your perceived indifference for their wellbeing? Put another way, how easy would it be to retain the 20 percent of customers who contribute the most to your bottom line, just by showing you care? Why embark on difficult and costly exercises to shore up your bottom line, when simply offering great customer service will remedy the situation for you?

Winning Customer Service

So you have decided that the level of service your business delivers could be better. Now, how do you go about making it the talk of the town?

Here are three steps:

1.                   Aim for consistency. Customers want to be assured of receiving the same exceptional service every time they visit your store.

2.                   Build trust. Consistency breeds trust. Build consistency into your sales process and you will systematically surpass your customers’ expectations every time they buy from you. If customers receive the same pleasant greeting, the same efficient and courteous service, their questions are answered accurately and honestly and there are no unpleasant surprises, they will begin to trust your business. Do everything you can every time a customer visits, and they will return again and again.

3.                   Now introduce the WOW factor to create ‘Raving Fans’. Having satisfied customers implies you have given them all they’ve wanted and nothing more. Surpassing their expectations requires systematically going beyond what is expected. It requires that you commit to improving your service every day. The Japanese have a good term for this. They call it Kaizen - constant and never-ending improvement.

In the next issue we discuss customer service plans and the ladder of loyalty. 

Pieter Scholtz is the Master Licensee for ActionCOACH in South Africa. Pieter acquired the master license in 2007 and successfully launched what was an unknown brand into the South African market, establishing 18 franchises in only four years. In 2008, Pieter was honoured with the ActionMAN award at the ActionCOACH EMEA Conference. Pieter is a member of the International Business Coach Institute and COMENSA.

Phone: 086 122 6224

www.actionscoachsa.co.za