It’s April, which means it’s Customer Loyalty Month. Customer loyalty doesn’t just “happen” – it comes from a company that places a priority on having well-trained, happy employees who understand how to deliver outstanding customer service. Consider the following maxim:
Happy Employees translate into Happy Customers
And
Happy Customers translate into Loyal Customers
To create customer loyalty, therefore, let’s start at the beginning: Create a workplace with happy employees. Below, we’ve outlined five essential tips to get you started.
Give your employees more variety in their jobs
Bored, restless employees are not likely to be as satisfied with their jobs as those employees who feel stimulated, challenged, and who are given new sets of responsibilities and skills. How can you offer your employees new opportunities and expand their skillsets? Do your employees feel burned-out or bored with their roles? Have conversations with your employees and see how you can expand their duties so they are satisfied with the amount of variety in their jobs.
Don’t keep your employees in the dark
Give your employees a feel of empowerment in the workplace by letting them know what is going on with the company, your products, and within the industry. By giving your employees knowledge and insight on the types of issues the company faces, you are helping them feel that they are a part of the organization, and it gives them a stronger sense of unity. Inform your employees through a weekly or quarterly newsletter, or through workplace meetings. The more you can do to make your employees feel like they are valuable team members – and not just hired hands who don’t have information about how the company works – the more loyalty and ownership you’ll get from them.
Remember, you’re the boss, not a buddy
In the interest of making employees feel like they’re on equal footing with the management, some bosses take it too far. Remember that you are still the manager, and your position needs to be one of leadership, where your employees look up to you and respect you. This doesn’t mean you can’t be friends with your staff, but it does mean you need to know when to have leadership and give guidance and instruction.
Give feedback often – not just during reviews
Do you know why many people dread employee reviews? Because it’s the only time when they get feedback; they’re suddenly faced with all of the things they’ve been doing wrong or need to improve upon, and it can be a lot to absorb. Instead of loading your employees with feedback during annual reviews, start giving your employees tips whenever you think they could use a nudge. Make sure you include positive as well as constructive feedback, but do it at frequent intervals, so that when it does come time for their annual reviews, they won’t be hit with a load of surprises about the job they’ve been doing.
Value and encourage your employees to maintain healthy lifestyles
Your employees’ well-being extends outside of the workplace; how they feel physically translates to how they feel mentally and how productive they’ll be. Encourage your employees to take long lunches where they can fit in a workout or a long walk. Give free gym memberships as a job perk. Offer financial perks to employees who bike or walk to work. Encourage your employees to take time to manage their physical health so that they don’t feel “guilty” for taking a longer break that gives them enough time to workout and shower. You’ll be amazed to see how much better employees do at their jobs if they feel they can still take care of themselves physically.
Reap the benefits that happy employees will have on customer relationships
A workplace that pays attention to and fosters the happiness of its employees will be one with better customer relationships. When employees feel valued, heard, respected, and challenged, they will be more inclined to strive harder for your customers. And your customers will reward your company with their loyalty — the ultimate prize.
