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Education
Keep customers Include a note saying, "You're probably close to
running out, so I'm sending you this first refill with
happy, improve your my compliments." These kind gestures don't cost
much but can repay many times over in customer
loyalty and word-of-mouth referrals.
bottom line • Keep your customers informed: No one
likes being kept in the dark. It's important to
By Mike Ackerman keep merchants informed of shipment delays,
changes in interchange pricing, and trends in
DigiPay Solutions Inc. the ever-changing compliance and regulatory
environments. Let them know immediately
ompetitors may try to copy your business whenever an expected delivery is delayed, and
model, products and pricing, but they can't try to compensate them for any inconvenience by
copy you and your unique style of doing busi- providing an extra product or service. Your efforts
C ness. That's why it makes sense to cultivate to keep merchants up to date will demonstrate that
your customer relationships. It's well known that it costs you care about them and value their business.
more to acquire new customers than to keep existing
customers happy. It's also true that customer loyalty is • Stay in communication: Isn't it nice to be
directly tied to customer longevity. Simply put, the lon- appreciated? Take time to thank your merchants
ger customers stay with you, the more loyal they become, for doing business with you. Get in the habit of
making it less likely they will leave when your competi- saying thank you after every sale. And after the
tors try to lure them away. initial sale, it's even more important to stay in touch
with your customers. Make a point of checking in,
When you continuously delight your customers, they will if not every month, at least once a quarter with a
keep coming back. When they are really delighted, they phone call to thank them and ask if everything is
won't think of you as a vendor; they'll think of you as a going OK.
partner.
Melissa Christensen, who heads up relationship
Tips to foster longevity management at DigiPay Solutions, has a quarterly
call plan in place. "Our clients appreciate the
Here are additional ways to foster long-term relationships call to not only catch up, but also to warn us as
with customers:
to potential problems to fix, or opportunities for
• Respect your customers: Whether your customers cross sales," she said. "We've found that the more
are global retailers or mom-and-pops, they deserve products a client has with us, the less likely it is for
an elite experience. Be respectful of their time: them to leave us."
react quickly to their calls and give them your full
attention in face-to-face meetings. Be proactive, • Under promise and over deliver: In our industry,
perception is real to your merchant. Let's say your
too: check in routinely to ensure everything is
working smoothly. It's often the little things that merchant orders a new terminal that usually
takes three days to deliver. You quote a three-
make a big difference in the way your merchants
think about you. day delivery, and the goods arrive on time. The
merchant gets what's expected – but nothing more.
• Practice random acts of kindness: Make What if you quote a five-day delivery? That way,
thoughtfulness a habit and a part of your culture; if the goods arrive in three days, as they normally
encourage your staff to perform at least one act of do, you can arrange for early delivery, and your
kindness every day. For instance, call one customer merchant's perception of your service will go up.
each day and thank them for their business, or call
your vendors and thank them for their support. Remember, it's harder to sell a new merchant than to retain
These feel-good things don't take much effort, but one. And your existing merchants are already bringing
people remember them. you residuals – something to always think about.
• Go the extra mile: Delight your customers with Mike Ackerman is President of DigiPay Solutions Inc., which specializes
unexpected small rewards. Thank them for in high-risk, high-volume, card-not-present and business-to-business
their business, and remind them you are a small
business owner, too. For example, if you've sold a merchant services. Contact him at mike@digipaysolutions.com.
merchant a new POS system, give the merchant
a free toner cartridge refill after three months.
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