Subscribe in a readerIn a world of ever increasing technology, individuals often lose touch with the humans around them. Face-to-face interactions are minimized with instant messaging, cell phones, and other communications let you talk to anyone anywhere at anytime. Technology can improve service in business, but often hinders it.
The products and services you provide must fulfill your customers desires and help them solve the problems they face. Individuals dissatisfied with their own lives seek an escape from our almost instantaneous culture, people achieve satisfaction through the things they can obtain. Does your solution address the emotional needs of the buying human?
Often technology separates people while creating a false sense of connection. How many misunderstandings have started on email? What about the nonverbal communications lost in a phone conversation? So much is lost in technical interactions.
The best way to improve your ability to serve your customer is to understand their needs by building a strong relationship with them. By focusing on business development, relationship management, and solid management strategies, you can create a bond that keeps sometimes fickle customers with you instead of your competitors.
You want to focus on selling the emotional aspects of your offer as much as the technical. Don't be afraid to invest in real human interactions to better understand your prospects situation. You'll find most buying decisions are made on emotion and justified with reason.
You can set your company apart from the competition by truly serving the customers in a personal way. When you care, your customers will be more loyal, sometimes even pay a premium price. Do your customers respect you as much as you feel they should? Where are the disconnects?
This doesn't mean you create a cult of customers who blindly purchase everything you offer, but instead earn the right to a loyal following that understands you'll protect a mutual best interest. You have to provide them with what they want in a sustainable way. Are you a commodity purchased on a whim, or do customers make a conscious decision to purchase from you?
The details you need for loyal customers, more sustainable profits, and long-term business success comes from strong business relationships. Even in this fast paced world, business relationships are still built on real human interactions. Could you pick your best customers out in a crowd? Would they even know who you are?
/ applying-strategy | strategic-relations /
By Justin Hitt at November 21, 2003 5:38 PM
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