How ‘easy’ are you? How do you know? Please don’t say that our customers would tell us – lots don’t… they just get frustrated and go elsewhere!
Here are 12 simple actions you could take to ‘get the basics right’ in your business. A word of warning – they’re simple, but not necessarily ‘easy’! Pick the ones that work for you, and then crucially DO SOMETHING with what you experience!
So, let’s go… 12 Simple Actions….
1: Ring up your own business…..
- How’s the phone answered?
- Is it answered?
- How quickly?
- How courteously and welcoming was it?
- What’s your ‘first impression’?
2: Ring up yourself at work…..
- Is someone covering for you?
- Do they know where you are?
- Do they know who you are?!!!!
- Do they know when you’ll be back?
- Is your ‘out of office’ message ‘updated’ or ‘out of date’?
3: Ring up your mobile…..
- Is your ‘Sorry, I’m not here’ message ‘updated’?
- Is it personalised or just ‘robotic’?
4: Email yourself…..
- What’s your out of office email like?
- Is it ‘up to date’?
- Is it ‘boring, dull and standard’ or is it ‘personalised and relevant’?
5: Visit your website….
- Is it ‘easy to use’ and customer friendly?
- Is it ‘up to date’?
6: Make a website enquiry….
- What’s the automated response like?
- Is there one?
- How long does it take?
- How quickly does it get ‘followed up’?
- Does it actually get ‘followed up’?
7: Sit in your own reception / visit the office / shop / depot….
- Do you get a warm welcome?
- Do you get a welcome?
- How does it ‘feel’?
8: Organise a ‘delivery’ to your home…
- Does it arrive on time?
- Does it arrive?
- What does it look like?
- What’s the ongoing communication like?
- Is there any?
- Is there a ‘follow up’?
9: Ring up your accounts department (Hey this is radical stuff!!!) …
- Are they courteous?
- Are they ‘customer focused’?
- What sort of a last impression do you get?
10: Visit your Linked In / Twitter / Facebook profiles….
- Do they reflect who you are and what you do?
- Do they represent you well?
- Are they updated?
- Do you really look like that?
- What’s the first impression?
11: Google yourself and your business….
- What comes up?
- Is it good, bad or ugly?
- What are people saying about you?
12: Ask ‘what do people think of ‘your business name’?’ on relevant forums and groups
- What do people say?
- Is it good, is it bad, is it ‘who’?
- Do they know anything about you?
Alternatively, do NONE of these things…..
But get someone else to do it!
If you do ‘do’ any of these things, then please ‘do’ something as a result.
