The Humanization of Business

Years ago, back in the days of our grandparents, most people conducted business with people they knew. Business was local and you would recognize your vendors and suppliers if you ran into them at the grocery store. Some deals were done with contracts, but all agreements involved a handshake. There was a human element to every transaction.

Today, we can pretty much run our business and personal lives without having to interact with other humans. Everything can be bought and sold online, conversations conducted via email or text. We can, however that doesn’t mean we should. For all the technology that’s been developed, humans are still wired to need physical contact and interaction with other humans. Perhaps ironically, the ability and expectation to be constantly available via electronic communications has actually created a greater importance for physically reaching out and touching someone.

How many of your clients do you know personally? Depending on your industry, you may have met with every one of them at some point in the relationship. Or you may have never even had a one-on-one conversation with them. The more of your business is conducted electronically, the higher the risk you have of customers leaving without saying goodbye. Why? Because it’s easy to walk away from someone you don’t really know, a business with which you have no real connection, even if they are providing you with a valuable service.

It’s much more difficult to change suppliers when you’ve had tangible interactions with someone. And this is why it’s so critical to take communications with your customers beyond the Internet! It’s especially important when you can’t physically meet face to face to send notes, gifts, tangible representations, because those things act as your surrogate. They are material stand-ins that aren’t likely to be ignored and can’t be deleted with a keystroke.

When you send a tangible gift, you’re telling your customer that he is important to you. He’s not getting the message that he’s just one of 1,000 people on a mass email list. He’s getting the message that he’s special, even if, in reality, you sent the same thing to 1,000 other people too.

Just last week, I received a bookmark and a note in the mail from a colleague. Her note said, “I am grateful to be connected to you,” and included a short list of her favorite books. Wow, very cool and unexpected (which is part of what makes it so cool!). Now I know I’m not the only person to whom she sent that gift, but it doesn’t matter. What matters is that she cares enough about our relationship to reach out and touch me in that way. We’ve never met in person, but she just strengthened our bond.

You can bury your head in the sand and say it’s not true, or choose to believe you and your customers are more evolved than to need such physical connections. The bottom line is humans are still wired to desire tactile interaction with other humans. Recognize and provide it to your customers and you will see the benefits in the success of your business.

Getting Customers, Keeping Customers

One of the top challenges for many business people these days is getting new customers. Finding new clients takes a significant amount of time and energy, not to mention monetary investment. And to keep that pipeline full, you’ve got to be consistent and creative in your efforts.

There’s certainly no shortage of information out there on how to attract new business. Some sources make it sound like getting more new customers is as easy as turning on the water faucet. That’s not exactly been my experience. Has it been yours?

You might be interested to know there is an easier and more cost-effective way to build your business. It’s called customer appreciation. Focusing on keeping the customers you have is a far better investment of your limited resources.

How does it work? Good question.

When you put your efforts into building stronger relationships with current clients, they stay with you longer, they buy more from you, and they recommend you to more of their friends and colleagues. Those factors equal more money in your pocket.

Think about it. Someone who is already a customer is already sold on your product or service. She already likes and trusts you. He already knows you’re reputable and deliver value. You’ve got an established relationship going, so it’s a good bet she will take or return your call. Someone you’ve never done business with before is going to be harder to reach and more skeptical of your pitch when you do get through. The sales cycle is naturally going to be longer because you have to lay the groundwork and establish the rapport.

What happens when you’re the consumer? How do you make your buying decisions? You probably turn to friends or colleagues who’ve bought a similar product or service for recommendations and advice. You likely search online for reviews and comparisons. Your prospective clients are no different. They want to make sure they’re making the right decision and will take their time to do so.

Just yesterday I needed to replenish a product I use in the business frequently. There’s no reason for me to spend time going online to search for another vendor and seeing if I can find a better price. I’m comfortable with the supplier I’ve been using recently. Even if I could save a few cents somewhere else, I’d rather buy from a reliable place where I know the guy and already have an account. In fact, I used to buy this product from someone else, but she was hard to get hold of and wasn’t very good at returning calls or emails, which made it difficult to order. She was probably always out chasing after new customers instead of taking care of the ones she currently had.

No matter what your business, look to your existing customers as one of your best sources of new revenue. The longer they stay with you, the more they spend and the higher the likelihood they will refer you new business. Sounds like a good investment to me.

Saying Thank You to Clients on Valentine’s Day

Valentine’s Day is right around the corner. Admittedly, I’m not a fan of what I consider a “Hallmark Holiday.” However, I do see this holiday as an opportunity for savvy business people to tell customers how much they love doing business with them. Reaching out on Valentine’s Day and saying thank you to clients works for a few reasons.

1. Hardly anyone else is doing it. I’m a strong advocate for going against the grain when it comes to marketing. If everyone is sending client appreciation gifts at Christmastime, then I recommend NOT doing that. The whole point of marketing is to stand out so you can catch your audience’s attention and get them to take action. So, first you have to do something noteworthy and showing up at their doorstep with Valentine’s cards or gifts is memorable.

 

1. You can have fun with this. It’s Valentine’s Day, no reason to be all serious or traditional. Remember we’re talking clients here, not romance, so use some humor. If you’re feeling creative, you can take a stab at writing some poetry. I actually stopped as I was writing this post and made my attempt at this genre. Um, it’s not exactly Emily Dickinson or Maya Angelou, but if you are one of my clients, you may have the good fortune to see it when you open your mail in a few days. I’ll share this; it starts out “Valentine’s Day is here…”

   You can certainly go with candy, nothing wrong with chocolate M&Ms, but chocolate kisses might send the wrong message. Go with a message like, “Valentine’s Day means chocolate. It’s also a great time for us to share with you how much we value you as a client.” Or how about a book – “I loved this book and thought you would too. Letting you know how much we appreciate your business.”

 

1. Some people don’t have a Valentine. Okay, I said it’s not a time to be serious, but in reality this day can be hard for people who don’t have someone significant in their lives right now. Some of your customers may not get any kind of acknowledgement of their specialness today and that could leave them feeling lonely. You can remedy that by letting them know they are important to you and they will remember you kindly for doing so.

This Valentine’s Day, make the most of the chance to strengthen relationships with your clients. Let me know what creative ideas you come up with, or what you are lucky enough to receive from one of your vendors. Share in the comments section here or on our Facebook page.

Can clients find you? And what image do you portray once they do?

My friend Jennifer is moving her home from one state to another in the next several weeks. She visualized her way to the quick sale of her current house and now she and her husband need to find a new house right away. Since she doesn’t know any real estate agents in her new area, and she’s belonged to a BNI (Business Network International) chapter in her current town, she figured she’d start out asking for referrals from the regional BNI leader there. Her contact was reluctant to recommend anyone in particular, for fear of playing favorites. Okay, but if you had to choose one over another, which one would that be, she pushed.

Finally the person gave her an answer. Like most of you reading this article, Jen then Googled the person to find out more about him. Nothing came up. In fact, none of the local BNI Realtors had an online presence. Okay, wait, some did have something, but then the links to their sites weren’t good or the information on their sites hadn’t been updated in years. Seriously, she told me one woman’s last blog post was in 2007.

With an impending trip to the new state coming up next weekend, she was under pressure to find someone who could show her houses in the town she wants to live in – someone great, a real expert, because when you’re making such a huge, life altering decision, who’s okay with just mediocre representation?!

She started Googling for general information about Realtors in the town she was targeting. One woman kept coming up. This person had a great website, lots of testimonials from different people, a professionally done head shot, and up-to-date information and resources. Jennifer found this woman mentioned favorably in several places. Plus, she has lived in this same town for years, she has kids around the same ages as Jen’s, and clearly she knows how to present herself as an authority in her area and industry.

They’ve spoken, set up their search schedule and the woman’s follow through has been impressively consistent with the expectations she set in her online presence. Here’s to the intention that Jen finds the perfect house for her family.

What’s the lesson for you in regards to generating new business and building strong relationships with clients? If you want customers who take you seriously, who are willing to pay you what you’re worth and work with you the way you like, you absolutely must present a professional image everywhere you go! From the design of your website (and yes, in this day and age, you must have one!) to the pictures you post there and in your professional materials, to your business cards, to your blog, to your social media presence, to what you look like and how you act at networking events and in public. Whether you think it’s fair or not, potential clients are watching and judging your professionalism and competency.

Make no mistake though, professional does not mean boring or plain. Somewhere long ago, in a far away place, a rumor started that in order to present as a professional, you must wear dark formal dress and scrub all distinguishing characteristics from your business world.

Not true! There is plenty of room for your personality and it’s actually imperative you add that component so you really connect with your market. People want to know they are dealing with another person, making a human connection. Somewhere in the information Jennifer saw about this real estate woman was something about her family and because she and Jen have kids around the same ages, Jen realized a common connection. On top of the professionalism, this commonality helps build trust.

And it’s okay if who you are doesn’t resonate with everyone. You’re not looking to serve everyone; you’re looking to connect and build relationships with only the right people for you.

Strengthening Existing Client Relationships

Looking to improve your revenue this year and build a bigger business? That’s fantastic. How are you going to do it? What’s your plan? Most people answer that question with “get more customers.” And typically “get more customers” means do more marketing.

You could certainly spend time and money on chasing down new clients. OR, you could invest in the relationships you have with your current customers and strengthen them. When you do that, you’ll see existing clients buying more from you, maybe more frequently. You’ll also see an increase in referrals coming from those current clients. Business grows and you don’t have to work as hard. How great is that?

Here are a few ideas you can use to fortify those bonds.

Call them on their birthday. Everyone likes to receive happy birthday wishes on THEIR day. With the advent of Facebook, you’re probably getting a lot more than you used to, but most of them are not all that sincere. How many phone calls did you get on your birthday? Mine was last week, so I can tell you it was exactly seven – four family members, two friends and my financial adviser. Since only one was from someone with whom I do business, it stands out in my mind. I’m guessing he has a list he prints out every week and he sets aside 10 minutes a day to do those calls. Doesn’t take long and makes people happy.

Send a handwritten card or small gift on their birthday. Depending on the value of a client to you, you may choose to do something more than a phone call. One of Zen Rabbit’s clients sends a small package of Gratitude Cookies to each of his clients on their birthdays. Small gesture makes a big impression. If you are going to send a card, for gosh sakes, make it personal and don’t send something printed and signed by a computer!

Surprise them with random gifts of appreciation. These gifts don’t need to be expensive or extravagant. If you have products that are physical delivered to your customers, or you’re on site with them frequently, you can include surprises in what you send out or bring with you. One vendor I know included a few lolly pops in each shipment. Otherwise you can do a special mailing. January is Hot Tea Month, so you could share your favorite tea. It’s also International Creativity Month, which begs for sharing a box of crayons or colored pens. Or how about sharing a delicious recipe or even an entire little cookbook of soup recipes for National Soup Month.

Print out or clip articles you see about your clients’ or their children’s achievements and mail them in an envelope with a note. Are you getting the drift here about delivering items in physical form via mail or other delivery service? It makes a difference! Electronic communications are fine and useful. But connecting on a more personal, tactile level is essential to human connectivity.

Going about business as usual, counting on clients to “know” you value their business is much like not changing the oil in your car when it’s time. The performance of your car isn’t affected right away. You may be able to drive for quite a while without issue. But sooner or later, that kind of neglect is going to cause major problems and will be pretty costly to fix.

Take care of your existing business connections, sincerely say thank you to customers for business, add the elements of fun and spontaneity to your client relationships and see how your business is rewarded with more.

What creative ideas have you used? Share here or come over to Zen Rabbit’s Facebook page to tell us about it.

Customer Perceptions & Going Off-Brand

Over the holidays, I bought a few things for myself, (shocking, right?!) some of which were from The Body Shop. The company was founded by activist Anita Roddick and based on “the pursuit of social and environmental change.” The Body Shop was about being ethical and green, using natural, sustainable ingredients and “reducing dependency on inappropriate and expensive modern pharmaceuticals.”

So imagine my surprise when several days after using them I happened to read the full ingredient list and find Methylparaben and Propylparabenin in there. Parabens are used as preservatives in lots of cosmetic and pharmaceutical products. The thing is, they are somewhat controversial because they may play a role in breast cancer development so many people are making concerted efforts to avoid products that contain them.

The Body Shop carrying products that contain parabens seems way off-brand. You just don’t expect a company that is all about natural and healthy to include such ingredients. It’s like finding partially-hydrogenated oil listed on any food sold at Whole Foods or being asked to bus your own table at Spago Beverly Hills.

It’s troubling from a consumer standpoint because such a finding calls into question everything the company supposedly stands for and has spent almost 40 years building. Sure, they didn’t outright lie by advertising they don’t use parabens, but the brand and reputation they’ve created implies that they wouldn’t.

Pay attention to the brand are you consciously creating as well as the extraneous attachments your customers may logically apply to it on their own. Of course you can’t control what other people think, but you do need a level of awareness around what clients expect from your brand. For best success, you need to deliver on those expectations.

Want more examples of companies going off-brand? How about when Harley Davidson created a cake decorating kit, Hooters started a commercial airline, or Barbie-themed clothing and accessories in adult sizes. Yes, all these were attempted.

By the way, I returned the paraben-containing items to The Body Shop. They quickly shared an already prepared list of their products that don’t use parabens (so clearly they’re aware people have issues with these ingredients) and then they kindly allowed me to exchange.

Questions About the Sandy Hook Tragedy Reporting – What if Our Focus was Different?

There’s no question what happened at Sandy Hook Elementary School was tragic. My question is what would the media coverage have been if someone had walked into that same school on Friday and handed out $1,000 to each of the administrators, teachers and students. How long would that story play out at holiday parties around the world?

My point is, great things happen all around us all the time. Even amidst the news of fiscal cliffs, natural disasters and horrific acts by men, the good outweighs the bad (that “good” and “bad” are perceptions is a discussion for another time). Where is the ongoing, 24-7 coverage of that? Show me the reporter sticking a mic in the face of everyone on a beach cleanup day or the person who just created a scholarship endowment to his alma mater that will benefit hundreds of students over the next decade and beyond, asking “how do you feel about what’s happened here?”

I don’t understand the media’s love for scaring people with its intense focus on every sick detail. I also don’t understand the public’s thirst to drink it all in and then seek out more.

When details or facts aren’t yet clear, news outlets will make them up or run with hearsay. Look at just a few things they got wrong in their frenzy to report Friday’s events – the name of the alleged shooter, that his mother was a teacher at the school, and so on. And people latch on to every comment as if their own children’s lives depended on their knowing this stuff. FYI, it doesn’t. Turn off the TVs and stop reading every newspaper and online article you can find.

Please don’t get the impression I think I’m so much better. Yesterday I was reading a few of the articles too, until I quickly got to a point where I thought, “WHAT am I doing?!” This information isn’t making me smarter, more enlightened, better equipped to do anything. It’s just making me want to cry.

So I stopped reading that garbage, said a few prayers and thought about what it would be like if our good deeds were covered as extensively as the horrific ones are. What would our world and our mindset be like if uplifting news dominated the headlines regularly?

Until then, I encourage you to seek out and fill your and your children’s worlds with positive stories that highlight the admirable in human nature. It’s out there in abundance, just not reported on as excitedly by the main stream news and media outlets.

PS: Let’s give gratitude for the outstanding and heroic efforts of the teachers, administrators and first responders who jumped into action on Friday and everyday.

“Despite everything, I believe that people are really good at heart.” ~ Anne Frank

Giving Thanks for Customers, Employees & All That is Good

In the craziness of everyday life, it’s easy to forget about the good things that are happening all around us. How often do you focus on the things you haven’t done? You think about the phone calls you didn’t get to, the orders that didn’t ship out today, the presentation you still need to finish.

And then you listen to the news, which rarely ever makes you feel better about your situation.  I know you listen because I hear your conversations around me. The housing market! Gas prices! Heidi and Seal’s children! Oh the horrors!

Take this moment, this day, this month to focus on giving THANKS for all the good that IS in your life. Pay attention to what the people around you are doing RIGHT. Look for and praise the employee who shows up on time and takes initiative. Say thank you to her. Think about all the good clients you have, the ones you enjoy talking to and working for. Let them know they’re special. Recognize the effort that your vendor makes when you absolutely, positively have to have your order shipped out today. Tell them you value their heroic effort.

I recently read an article that suggested people don’t say thank you because they’re afraid that if they do, somewhere down the line they’ll be asked to “pay up”. For example, if you recognize an employee’s efforts, you’ll have to give him a raise. But the writer went on to point out that if you think about the times when you’ve been thanked, you’ll realize you are not then mentally figuring out how much the other person owes you. That’s just not how appreciation works.

While you’re at it, take some time to show some appreciation to yourself. Maybe you didn’t get everything crossed off your list this week, but give yourself credit for what you DID accomplish. Here’s a nice pat on the back.

Creating a Consistent Customer Experience

I was lunching last week with new friend Carol, who helps organizations teach outstanding customer service to their teams, when she shared a story about her own customer service experience. She suggested it would make a good lesson for a blog post, so here it is.

She found a pair of shoes she really liked at a store in the mall, but they didn’t have her size in the color she wanted. No worries, the store clerks were very accommodating and said they could easily have them shipped to her home, no charge. [great customer service]

The shoes arrived as expected, but when she opened the box, she saw they’d not been wrapped properly; they were pretty much just thrown in a shipping box and sent off. There were a few scuffs on them and she was disappointed, but figured they’d end up looking like that after a few wearings anyway, so she didn’t make a fuss about it. [not so great customer service]

A company’s customer experience should be consistent throughout the process, no matter how many departments are involved.

A few days later Carol got an email from the company asking about her experience. She responded and told them about the condition of the shoes she’d received. She didn’t ask for any kind of compensation (although she really would have liked a discount or coupon for her next purchase); she just wanted them to know what had happened.

The woman responding from the company said she would send Carol a new pair immediately [great customer service] and apologized for the service she received in the store. [What? The store clerks were good.]

Carol emailed back some clarification on her fine experience in the store vs. the package that was shipped and received another email from the customer service department contact who admitted not reading Carol’s entire first email, hence the confusion. [customer service is taking an annoying turn.]

Nevertheless, she restated she would ship out a new pair of shoes right away and Carol could return the ones she had to the store.

Fortunately for Carol, she decided to wait to return the shoes she had until she received the second pair, as the replacement pair never showed up. Further attempts at communicating with the customer service person went unanswered. [very bad customer service]

What happened here appears to be a case of inconsistent training or lack of standards or both at this shoe company. From the outside, it looks like everyone is left to act on their own accord without any accountability for outcomes. If the salesperson is innately good at serving, the customer experience is a favorable. If the salesperson, or warehouse packager or customer service rep isn’t so adept at making sure his job is done well, or doesn’t have a clear explanation of what is expected, then the customer experience isn’t so nice.

There are many points of contact in Carol’s entire experience and therefore many places where things could go awry. If you’re running a business with a lot of moving parts, you’d best make sure you have clear instructions for each step and everyone knows exactly what is expected of him/her. I am transitioning over Zen Rabbit’s fulfillment to a new organization this week. I know what it’s like to have to create detailed instructions for every step of every task. It’s certainly no fun to put together. BUT, once it’s done and in place, you can be reasonably confidant everyone involved is on the same page. The customer experience will be consistently good. Spend the time and effort creating touch point templates now or pay for it later.

Do More Than You Think Necessary

With Ruth Sherman at her Charisma Event

Ruth Sherman came to the DC area last week to present her “Cash in on Charisma” program. Here are three points she shared that really resonated with me and could be of value to you.

One of the big reasons why video works so well for disseminating your message and building relationships is that humans are wired to connect face to face. I’ve been saying this for a while. All this electronic technology is great, no question, but at the end of the day, people need to connect on a more human level. They need to see each other, shake hands, reach out on a physical level. That human need is why sending thank you cards and gifts to customers is so powerful. It is a tactile form of communication.

Next, Ruth implored that when preparing for live presentations, YOU’VE GOT TO PRACTICE much more than you think you do. I’ll be the first to admit I’m guilty of not doing that enough. I know my subject matter and can deliver well, but I know I could do much better if I spent more time practicing. When I took piano lessons as a child, I hated practicing. I must have had some natural talent because I remember playing pieces such as Debussy’s Clair de lune, Beethoven’s Fur Elise and Joplin’s The Entertainer in recitals. But I hated practicing and after a couple of years I convinced my mom to let me quit.

Public speaking ranks at the top of the list of things people are scared to death to do. But I absolutely love it! So here and now, I commit to spending more time practicing my stories and material, because I realize the people in my audience are giving me their time and attention and in return, my goal is to deliver great value for them.

The lesson for you – whether or not we’re talking about practicing presentations – is you need to do and give more than you think necessary. Start thinking what you consider good enough is probably the bare minimum you can get away with. To really build those client relationships, you need to step up the game. Communicate more. Reach out to customers and potential customers more. Engage them in conversation! If they don’t want to hear from you, they’ll tell you. In the meantime, deliver more value more consistently.

Lastly, your communications don’t need to be long. Who has the attention span anymore? While there are still places for sharing in-depth explanations and details, most of your videos (or other regular communiqués) need only be a minute or two. Just pop-in, share quickly, and step out. That means they won’t take you long to put together either. Hmmm. Now you have no excuse to not do more.