You’ve also had some clients who couldn’t be pleased no matter what you did, but this isn’t about them.

This is about the ones who had a genuine complaint. Once the transaction was closed, you gave a sigh of relief and tried not to think about it. But that’s the wrong approach.

A better idea is to call them, or send them a feedback request and let them get their frustrations off their chest. Then ask what you can do to make it up to them. Or ask what you could have done differently. Ask what would have made things easier for them.

In other words, ask for their advice in making your service even better.

They’ll see that you are genuinely interested in doing your best, and they’ll very probably call you the next time they need an agent.

If you have a pen, a piece of paper, an envelope, and a stamp, you can do just that. You can write a thank you note.

In fact, you’ll do even better if you write a dozen thank you notes. And if you make it a daily habit, you might just be amazed at the results.

Even if your business is already doing well, those notes will give it a boost.

Taking the time to send a hand-written note of thanks will set you apart from your competitors, and it will lift you up in the minds of every person who receives one. That’s because hardly anyone does it, and because a hand-written, well thought-out note shows that you actually thought about the recipient – and that you do appreciate whatever they did.

Your notes don’t need to go just to people you do business with, but can be just as effective when sent to people who perform services for you.

Why? Again, because this has become an unusual practice. So unusual, in fact, that people will talk about it. The mechanic who repaired your car might be sitting at the lunch counter visiting with other patrons and start to brag about getting your note.

“Hey, I got a thank you note today – you guys ever get one of those? Mrs. Jones wrote to thank me for getting her car in and out of the shop so quickly – and for not leaving any grease on her carpets like the last guy did. You know Mrs. Jones don’t you? She runs the …. down on ….”

A thank you in person does leave a warm feeling – and you should hand one out at every opportunity. But a written thank you is something people can show their spouses and friends. It’s something that gives them bragging rights along with that good feeling.

Thanking customers and would-be customers…

Remember that there is a difference in thank you notes. A printed card that says “Thank you for your business” and bears your signature is not very special.

A blank card with “Thank You” printed on the front or a hand-written note on a blank sheet of paper is special – but only when it contains a specific thanks.  So think before you write.

What did that person do? Did they give you some of their valuable time to present your product or service? Did they follow your recommendation about something? Did they refer a friend to you? Did they alert you to a problem in your business? (Yes, that one deserves BIG thanks!)

Try it right now – and you’ll be glad you did.

Not only will you feel good right away because you know you’re making someone else feel good, you’ll be activating the powerful law of attraction. That law says that when you feel gratitude and give thanks for something, you’ll attract more of the same. So the more people you thank, the more people you’ll have to thank.

A few days ago my oven started acting strange. I have a gas range and sometimes it would come on and sometimes not. I’d have to turn it on and off a few times to get it going.

Finally, last night it refused altogether, so today we took it apart so my husband could see what was wrong.

After laying on the floor with a flashlight and a screwdriver for a while, and testing everything my husband could think of, we determined that the igniter was burned out.

So… armed with the make and model, I headed for the phone to look for the part.

Since it’s a GE Range, I decided to go straight to the GE Parts Distributor. That seemed like the logical thing to do.

Well… A machine answered. Did I want to check on an existing order, did I want to order new products, did I want to hear all about their new products, and finally did I want to order parts. Yes, press 4.

That brought me back to the same menu again.

Already my brain is starting to think “grrr…”

But I pressed 4 again – and got a new recording. This one wanted to tell me all about some wonderful new frequent buyer program that would …

I don’t know “would what,” because I hung up.

Next I called a generic parts supply house. And I got a live person. And she transferred me straight to the right department. And he knew exactly what I was talking about.

Even better, when he came back on line he offered me 2 choices. I could have a “genuine” GE part, or choose a generic igniter for half the cost. Then he told me that repair people always use the generic – it’s the same part and just as reliable.

Then he promised it would go out UPS today.

So… in spite of my irritation, I’m sure glad that the GE place made it difficult for me to buy from them. They saved me about $50 by not offering good service.

And I made a note in the phone book that will cause me to call the same store the next time I need any kind of appliance parts.

I’m sure you’ve had this same kind of experience in the past, but do you stop and look at your own business occasionally to see if you’re making it easy for your customers?

It’s good to check now and then – especially if you have employees answering your phones.

So, I called. What I got was a recording telling me that I should leave a detailed message and they’d call back.

After 2 days, and just out of oneryness, I called again. This time I said “If you want customers, why don’t you return calls?”

A few hours later I got a call back, but you know that after that kind of service my son isn’t going to use that company. No customer wants to beg someone to do business with them!

I really don’t understand this. If it happened only once in a while, I could see that maybe someone just messed up. But any more, when I make a phone call or send an inquiry by e-mail, I don’t really expect an answer.

Other people don’t either. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve returned a call from a prospective client and they’ve sounded surprised to hear from me. When I return e-mail inquiries people almost always say “Thank you for answering me.”

Since being in business means looking for and welcoming new customers and clients, why wouldn’t I answer?

And why do so many companies not bother to answer?

I called, and after giving the message to the gentleman (?) on the other end, he said l “Have your husband call me.” I was a little annoyed by that, but left a note and my husband called him.

Why did he insist on a second phone call? Because he wanted to talk to a man and not take a message from a woman.

He didn’t ask any question that I hadn’t already answered, but since I was placing an order for a couple thousand dollars worth of roofing trusses, he needed to hear it from a man before he would go ahead and put the order in to be processed.

Obviously this employee didn’t respect the convenience of having a secretary – and that in the small construction business that a secretary and a wife are often the same person.

But you know what? I don’t care about the excuse. So it was a young employee – so he didn’t know better – so what? The boss should have taught him.

He annoyed me by treating me as if I couldn’t convey a simple message, and he annoyed my husband by insisting that he make the phone call himself.

He won’t get the opportunity to do this twice. And the firm he works for will lose any future orders that would come from us.

Think about that – and check on how your employees are treating people who call in orders. If they’re practicing this kind of discrimination it could be a reason why your revenues aren’t higher.

Because of the price of fuel, truck sales are down – way down.  But they aren’t giving up. Instead, creative officer David Lubars was quoted as saying “We know the amount of people out there who are going to buy a truck is going to shrink. It’s a smaller group than usual, and we have to get all of them.”

Wow. That’s an ambitious goal. But why not adopt it for your own business?

Does it sound mean, or even greedy? I don’t think so, because you couldn’t help your competitors thrive even if you tried.

You know that when times get tight, a whole lot of them are going to curl up in a ball and hide, afraid to spend a dime on marketing because they think there’s no use. So when you take the opposite attitude, and begin to market aggressively, you aren’t hurting them, you’re only helping yourself.

AND – you’re helping your prospective customers. They’ll be dealing with an up-beat positive person, and that will help them to be more up-beat and positive as well. Energies do rub off on other people, you know.

Start thinking about that. You aren’t Chrysler and (I assume) don’t have billions to spend on a media blitz to market yourself.  What can you do instead?

Of course I believe that sharpening your message to show your prospects the positive benefits of doing business with you comes first. The words you use make all the difference in any marketing effort – be it yours or Chrysler’s.

Then consider all the places you advertise and focus only on those places that have given you a good return in the past.

Then reach out for all the low or no cost marketing opportunities on the web. Craig’s List comes to mind, and there are plenty of others.

Get your web site up to speed with search engine optimization – and strive to come up on the first page in an organic search, so you don’t have to pay for clicks. Make sure your landing page reaches out to visitors with the benefits you offer them. Give them something in exchange for their email addresses.

Then implement a solid email marketing campaign using an autoresponder to stay in touch with all your customers and prospects – and encourage them to forward your messages to their friends. Give them a reason to do so by including valuable information – or even a tasteful joke or two.

In short, stretch the marketing dollars you do have by focusing and using them wisely.

You can do it! And if you need help making your marketing message sparkle, write me. Helping other people make more money is what I do.

Yours for success,

Marte

Send out Cards is an Internet Based contact manager that allows you to send real physical greeting cards from the Internet. These are not “E-cards” but real cards that arrive in the mail with a First Class stamp.

You can send postcards

You can send 3 panel brochures

You can send gift cards from merchants like: Starbucks, Bed and Bath Beyond, Wal-Mart, Home Depot, I-tunes, etc.

You can send gifts like brownies, cookies, nuts, coffees, and books

You can create custom cards by downloading your picture, logo, etc.

You can upload all of your contacts and send thousands of cards at the click of a mouse

You can program the system to send out cards at a scheduled time

The cards cost less than $1.00 and they are of the highest quality

You can scan your own handwriting into the system and give the card a personal touch

You never have to lick an envelope, stick a stamp, or make a trip to the store or post office

Which sales person would you remember the most, the one that sends you a birthday card every year or the one you never hear anything from?

Its been proven that people who stay in contact with their clients on an ongoing basis (not just trying to make a sale) are the ones that get the customer!!

Our system makes it so easy to stay in touch and increase your client base.

You can have as little as one name or thousands, the possibilities are endless. You can go to my website http://www.sendoutcards.com/40631

OK, me again – I did go to her site, and sent a sample card to my little grand-daughter. Now I need to think about the business contacts I have who should be in this system.

Why not go visit, send a sample card yourself, and see what you think of it?