Why not send each of your clients an email and ask them to keep it handy for easy contact information. (If your clients don’t use email, give them the same information in a hard copy.)

In that email give them instructions on how to reach you by phone, cell phone, text messaging, and email. Give them a link to their listing on your site, too.

Then tell them your policy and your business hours.

Let them know that you turn your phone off during the dinner hour or after a certain time of night. And don’t give excuses or reasons – just state your business hours. (Do you know of any other business that has to make excuses why they close the doors and go home at night?)

Tell them that you don’t answer calls while you’re with a client or on another call, but will return their call within X amount of time. (Of course, then you do have to do it.)

If you set your own appointments and have left them a message, ask listing clients to leave a message verifying appointment times – so you don’t have to call back.

Then, if there is such a person, give them an alternate person to call if they need immediate help.

It seems to me that many communication difficulties could be avoided if your clients knew exactly what to expect – and what NOT to expect.

Now that blogger may or may not care if people respond and post comments. But I see the same thing happening when I try to purchase something on line. And…you guessed it… by the time I get to the 3rd or 4th screen I’ve decided I really didn’t need whatever it was.

Are YOU setting up that kind of roadblocks?

It was for a specialty food item that had to be shipped on dry ice, so they only ship on Mondays. That was fine, because the man assured me that it would arrive on Thursday.

The fact that he told me the order would be here on Thursday was the deciding factor in spending way more than I personally think this item was worth. It was a special birthday treat for a dear friend who will turn 83 tomorrow. (Thursday)

Today I realized I hadn’t gotten a shipment notification, so I called the company. The man who answered said “Oh, you were next on my list to call.”

It seems they had a problem…

An employee left the box of dry ice open and it all evaporated, so they were out and unable to ship the product on Monday as scheduled.

This is Wednesday – it was late afternoon when I called. Certainly they knew on Monday that they weren’t sending the shipment. Why didn’t they let me know immediately?

Had they called me on Monday I would have had time to find the item elsewhere or to dream up some other special treat. I would have been disappointed, but I wouldn’t have been angry.

I wouldn’t have made the decision that I will never order from them again.

But they didn’t. My bet is that if I hadn’t called, I would not yet know that the shipment isn’t going to arrive. On Friday, when the angry calls started to come in, I’ll bet they’d have all gone to voice mail.

Whatever their reason, they didn’t want to tell me the bad news. And that cost them my business – now and in the future.

After discussing the situation with my husband tonight, tomorrow I’m going to call and cancel the order entirely. Obviously, we have to go shopping and come up with a “Plan B” sometime before the party tomorrow evening.

I expect I wasn’t the only one – the man said there were a dozen or so orders that didn’t go out. (As if it was going to make me feel better to know I wasn’t alone in my frustration.)

There is a customer service lesson in this: If there’s a problem, call your customer immediately.

They might be upset, they might be disappointed, but they won’t be angry with you for stringing them along, letting them believe all was well when it wasn’t well at all.

Do you remember when a 3# can of coffee was filled to the brim – so when the can opener cut into the top the delicious aroma of coffee grounds wafted up to give your nose a treat?

Did you notice when that 3 pound can was no longer full to the brim – and instead of holding 48 ounces of coffee, it held 46 ounces? Did you notice again when it went to 44 ounces, or 42 ounces?

Then did you notice when the can got a bit shorter?

Have you noticed that the “big can” of coffee now holds only 26 ounces? And that yes, it costs a bit more than the 3 pound can used to cost.

Of course coffee isn’t the only product that is being offered in smaller and smaller containers while the price rises. Mayonnaise is another one. The jar looks the same, but that big bump in the bottom means a couple less ounces inside. What still appears to be a quart is now only 30 ounces.

I could understand and even accept seeing the prices go up. We all know that it costs more to produce goods and get them to market when fuel prices keep rising. But why try to hide the fact by offering a little less and a little less while trying to pretend that nothing has changed?

Why not come right out and say “We need to charge more now” – and then do it? At least consumers wouldn’t feel like the manufacturers think we’re fools who can’t tell the difference between 48 ounces of  coffee and 26 ounces. At least we wouldn’t feel like they were deliberately trying to deceive us.

What does this have to do with your business?

As independent marketers, we need to do just the opposite of what these major corporations are doing – which is giving us less for our money than we’ve come to expect.

If we want our independent businesses to thrive, we need to give a little more service than customers expect.

This week I visited a store where every employee was on their toes, watching the customers and offering assistance any time someone appeared to be searching for something. They were busy doing other things, but with one eye on service at all times.

What a refreshing contrast to the “big box”  stores where getting help almost means tackling an employee as they hurry past with their head down – avoiding a chance at eye contact.

What you can do to give a little extra depends upon the products or services you sell. But my bet is that if you think about it, you can find a way to give an extra bit of service that will come as a welcome surprise to your customers.

If people are going to talk about you and your business – and they will – wouldn’t you rather they told friends and family how you surprised them with more, instead of with less?

This morning the Fundraising Success magazine arrived, and there was yet another article on this subject. It’s one that all too many fundraisers ignore, so all of us who write for them harp about it. The two little words that make all the difference in the world in fundraising – and in any business or personal relationship – are “THANK YOU.”

Small non-profits tend to ignore them because it costs money to mail a card – and so they lose donors.

But the value of a thanks extends to our for-profit businesses as well. thank you notes

For small storefronts and service businesses (like real estate, copywriting, insurance, plumbing, hairdressing, etc.) it can mean the difference between a customer returning or not returning.

It can also mean the difference between a past customer sending referrals or forgetting our names.

And when it comes to networking, it can mean the difference between getting referrals and being placed on a “This person is rude – don’t refer” list.

A friend wrote me yesterday about someone she knew through business who had switched careers and opened a new office. She hoped the new venture would succeed, so sent a note of congratulations and “Best wishes for success.”

And she never got a reply. Not even an email with those two simple words: Thank you.

So now my friend has decided that she won’t send referral business to this person. She no longer has that “warm” feeling that prompted the note.

Maybe that’s unfair because the woman is starting a new business and has a lot to do. But I don’t think so. A reply takes only a minute, and it can ensure that you maintain a good relationship with those who wish you well.

Failing to say thank you for past business, referrals, or expressions of goodwill can cost you business.

But going out of your way to say thanks where it isn’t expected can gain you business.

Tom Hopkins, in his book “How to Master the Art of Listing and Selling Real Estate” tells how he learned the “thank you habit” from his Mother. When she came home from a party she always sat down and wrote a thank you note to her host or hostess before she went to bed – to make sure it would be in the next day’s mail.

He advised agents to have a thank you note written and ready to drop in the mailbox after every listing presentation – whether they got the listing or not. And then he advised sending thank you notes to buyers who allowed you to show them homes. In fact, he said to mail a few notes every day, even if you had to reach a bit to decide where to send them.

When I read that book and we started the practice in our office, the effect was amazing. People called – and some wrote thank you notes thanking us for thanking them!

Why? Because so few people send those notes! When you say thank you, you definitely stand out from the crowd.

I do this often, because he placed my kitchen can lights where they shine on the back of my head rather than my counter tops. But when I really steam is when I have to change a light bulb.

The can lights weren’t cheap – they were supposed to be “top of the line,” in fact. But getting them loose to change a light bulb is a major production, and it makes a big mess.

And every time I have to do it, I’m reminded of the corners he cut to save what probably didn’t amount to $50 on a several thousand dollar electrical job. You see, these can lights have an inside sleeve, and that sleeve is held in place by 4 metal clips. Or, it is supposed to be held by 4 metal clips.

Our electrician saved time and money by installing only 2 clips per light. And that means the two clips aren’t supported as they should be, and they fall out. Today, as I used electrical tape to hold my fixture together because the clips are long gone, I thought about the few dollars he saved and what it cost him.

If anyone asks me about electricians – which they do, because my husband is a retired home builder – I tell them to steer clear of the one we used. How many $8,000 jobs has he lost because he saved perhaps an hour of labor by not installing all 4 clips on those can lights?

And how many other jobs has he lost because he no doubt has cut the same corners in other people’s homes? We talk about people who serve us well, but by the laws of human nature, we talk even more about the ones who have “done us wrong.”

I have the same feeling about the man who built my kitchen cabinets. They looked fine, but after we lived here a few short months, some of the cabinet doors were loose. Upon inspection, I found that where a hinge called for 2 screws, he had used but one. I had to go to the hardware store, buy the screws, and install them myself.

How many dollars did he save by leaving 2 screws out of each cabinet door in my kitchen? And how much did that kind of corner-cutting cost him in terms of good will and future business? You know what I say when people ask me about cabinet builders.

And of course these two men aren’t the only ones. We see examples all the time of places where someone cut corners in spots they thought the customer wouldn’t notice – or at least wouldn’t notice until they’d been paid.

Business people should be looking for ways to give just a bit extra – to leave a lasting impression of good will with every customer.

Finding ways to give not quite what was promised leaves its own lasting impression – and it is one that can eventually destroy a business.

If this has happened to you – chime in and tell your story. Or, if you’ve found great ways to give just a little extra to your customers, tell us about it!

Quite often, when real estate agents think about communicating with customers they think of what they need to tell the customers. And, most of the advice written about the subject does look at it from that point of view.

Agents do need to tell their listing clients the truth about pricing for current market conditions, even when those clients would rather hear larger numbers. They also need to have those difficult conversations about condition and presentation.

One of a real estate agent’s most difficult tasks is telling a listing client that they really must do some “house beautiful” work if they expect their home to sell.

In a down market agents must also be consistent in staying in touch with listing clients, even when there’s not much to report. That’s another difficult task. It isn’t fun to call a homeowner and tell them that there has been no interest in their house for the past two weeks, or even for the past month.

But those are all things that an agent must communicate to their client. And communication is really a two way street.

Effective communication, like an effective conversation, involves listening as well as talking.

This really came home to me a few days ago when I spent some time talking with my son’s neighbor when we were all outside watching the kids play. I commented that it was nice to have so many children in the neighborhood so close in age, so they had someone to play with. And then I mentioned that it was fun for the kids to be in a cul-de-sac where it was safe for them to ride their bikes and play catch in the street.

The neighbor told me that it hadn’t been easy to find that perfect location. He said he “went through 4 agents” before finding one who would pay attention to his “want list” and show him the right houses.

He said, “I told them I wanted a two story house on a cul-de-sac, but they kept taking me to see homes on busy streets – telling me how beautiful and well-appointed those homes were.” He related asking those agents what part of his two-item list they couldn’t understand, even after he repeatedly refused to get out and look at homes that didn’t fit.

Finally he found someone who would listen and he purchased the house.

This man had something specific in mind, and he had a good reason why he wanted it. He wanted his children to be safe. But the first 3 agents paid no attention and instead showed him the homes they wanted to sell instead of homes he might want to buy.

Experienced real estate agents know that sometimes buyers choose a home that doesn’t really fit the description they’ve given of the perfect home. But they won’t buy a home that doesn’t fit when there’s a strong reason why they want what they want.
Agents need to listen and pay attention to those reasons why. Agents must ask questions and learn the buyer’s true motivation.

And they need to learn to tell the difference between “must have” and “it would be nice to have.”

This establishment is located in a high-traffic spot and it has large windows. Anyone driving by can see when there are customers seated at the tables. I glance over there every time I go by, and the only time I see anyone dining is when I make a grocery run on Saturday. So I’d have to conclude that they aren’t doing all that well.

So what happened?

Was it the economy combined with their high prices? Was it the poor service and the small portions? Was it the proprietor’s arrogant attitude toward customers?

Or was it because he did no marketing?

I stopped in to see him the first week they were open, to offer my services in helping him create a marketing plan. He told me that they wouldn’t need marketing. Word of mouth would be all the advertising he’d need.

Well… he’s gotten plenty of that, but I don’t think he’d like it if he heard it.

I’m not going to pretend that marketing would have saved this business. In a small town there are only so many new customers to be had, and when the word gets out to “Stay away from that place,” it’s pretty hard to overcome.

So if those who go don’t go back and those who haven’t gone hear why others won’t go back …

But darn… had he done some marketing, and had he provided friendly service and reasonable portions of good food… we might have a nice place to go out to dinner.

Darn it anyway.

It was a home-made brochure and had no graphics. But that wouldn’t have been so bad if it had contained some kind of “reasons why” anyone would want their services.

Instead, page 2 was a warning: “We’ll deliver this stuff, but we’ll charge you extra for delivery. And we aren’t going to set it up or take it down. Furthermore, you’d better make sure everything is clean before we get there to pick it up – and you’d better have it stacked in one spot, ready for us. Oh, and if you lose any of our stuff… look out!”

It goes on to explain that all rentals must be paid for in full 14 days before the event. If you’ve reserved ahead and cancel within 25 days of the event, they’ll keep the 50% deposit.

Oh my…

How about a first page that entices… that spells out the reasons why renting from them is so much more convenient and cost-effective than buying those tables, chairs, glasses, etc. and having to store them when not in use?

How about suggestions for times when these items would fill a need?

How about including a photo or two of their equipment all set up and looking attractive?

How about leaving all those dire warnings for the last page? You know, AFTER you’ve convinced your readers that they really want what you have to offer?

And then, in place of a snotty “you have to do this yourself” message, (noted in all caps, by the way) how about “Sorry, we can’t do set up and tear-down, but we can give you a list of individuals who would like the job.”

I just shook my head.

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.