Entry by Glenn Freezman

I am Your Customer

  7 Comments

I am your customer

I am someone that you should appreciate and hope to develop a relationship with

I don’t want to be ‘sold’, I want information

I am not an annoyance, I am someone you should be happy to educate on your business and the things you offer

I am not someone for you to match wits with

I am not someone to lie to, deceive, bait-and-switch, or otherwise treat differently than your own mother

I am your customer

I am six to seven times more expensive to acquire than to retain

I have rights – that should not be the thing that keeps you following the law

I expect to get what I pay for

I don’t forget things as easily as I used to

I am your customer

I am your customer

I am someone that you should appreciate and hope to develop a relationship with

I don’t want to be ‘sold’, I want information

I am not an annoyance, I am someone you should be happy to educate on your business and the things you offer

I am not someone for you to match wits with

I am not someone to lie to, deceive, bait-and-switch, or otherwise treat differently than your own mother

I am your customer

I am six to seven times more expensive to acquire than to retain

I have rights – that should not be the thing that keeps you following the law

I expect to get what I pay for

I don’t forget things as easily as I used to

I am your customer

I am a person, not a lead

I do not like being dripped

I do not like restocking fees

I do not like being nickel-and-dimed or being hit with nuisance fees – do better pricing strategy

I do not like being gouged – you may get me once but probably not twice (see my above comment about retention vs. acquisition)

I will grow resentful if you do these things to me

I am your customer

You should be listening to me. In fact, you should be ASKING me for my opinion. It’s valuable.

Customer service is an art. It requires more than simply answering the phone

I can’t spend money with you if I don’t trust you

I talk to my friends after I talk to you – they trust me

I have a voice – and I’m not afraid to use it

I am your customer

You need me more than I need you

I am the lifeblood of your business

I deserve your time and respect

I deserve your honesty

I am your customer

The last time you had a positive experience interacting with a business, I’m betting that the way they approached you was in line with these points. And I’m betting that you are going to think of them first the next time you have a need they can fill – and you may even call them if it’s outside of what they normally do because you want to work with them again.

It doesn’t matter if it’s B2B or B2C, this ideology is universal. People want to be treated honestly and fairly. They want you to over-deliver. They want you to be passionate, knowledgeable, sincere. They want to fall in love with you. Every customer is unique but they all have these needs in common.

I did not write this to offend anyone but if it did then perhaps you may want to rethink your business. Reread the above points as a customer. Customers are becoming more savvy, more technical, and less tolerant of businesses that don’t do what these above points convey. You are a customer. What do you do when these points are not met?

At Family Abstract, Inc, we get it!!  We have been treating our customers and clients with high ethics, morals and values over over 25 years, we know YOU ARE THE CUSTOMER and WE THANK YOU!

This article in all its greatness was originally written by Patrick Healy of  Phacient, and redistributed with his knowledge.  Thank you Patrick!  You can find his blog at https://phacient.com/2012/02/i-am-your-customer/?fb_comment_id=fbc_10150613137959138_21424985_10150621353254138#fd8267c66b959e

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7 Comments

A-freakin-MEN. Will comment more later when I'm back at my computer, but I was thinking about this exact thing this morning reading a featured blog at Active Rain...

Okay back to this. What drives me nutso at Active Rain are the blogs (often featured) where the writer basically lambasts the general public for their high expectations, lack of understanding of how our industry works, suspicion of our industry etc. etc. etc. These posts come across to me sounding as if the writer has SO MUCH business he or she has the "luxury" of turning away imperfect or demanding clients (uh, gee, I consider myself to be rather demanding, don't you?) and I'm positive that's not the case. 

It's the utter disdain that just drips from these posts for the people who PAY OUR BILLS (i.e. our customers) and we should feel honored to serve, and appreciative of their business - which, by the way, isn't a bad way to build a business... by treating customers with respect and appreciation, as described  in this post. 

Every time I see one of these posts on Active Rain that belittles, insults, patronizing or scolds the "customer" I cringe... especially when it's followed by comment after comment of approval and "you tell 'em's!" 

Yes, some individual clients are PITAs, but this pervasive attitude that our customers should show up at our doorsteps grateful for OUR attention and if they aren't yet "perfect" they better GET perfect before they're worthy of our respect.... UGH. 

Your the best!!

Two things - first, may I add to the first post "I'm not a liar, I may just not realize exactly what I want to buy yet - please help guide me to a decision that makes sense for me", and second, I am hugely surprised at a number of the blogs on Active Rain available to the public that turn around and complain about the public.  If you must rant, and we all feel the need to do so at times, please keep it private.

I agree Cathy. The whole Buyer is a Liar quip is just quick internal jargon to communicate exactly what you are saying, that a Buyer may not at the moment know what it is they want or need. 

I believe someone mentioned Steve Jobs the other day (Lestser) and I think it was Mr. Jobs who said, "Some people don't know they need something until you give it to them." Please correct me if I'm wrong on both the quote and the person.

Cathy - EXACTLY. I think of the times I've gone online to look for someone to hire and can't imagine even wanting to talk to someone who so clearly has such disdain for me, their potential customer. Pre-emptively scolding me for not knowing exactly how the system works or being 100% ready to go is NOT a persuasive sales tactic! 

Rants can be handled in a manner which helps prospective clients to believe that the agent can be a valued problem solver

http://houstonius.com/wordpress/?cat=9

 

This page contains a single entry by Glenn Freezman published on February 21, 2012 10:56 AM.

Can ACRES learn from big corporations? was the previous entry in this blog.

To Attest or Not to Attest? is the next entry in this blog.

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