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Hub You - To Be - (Customer-Focused) or Not to Be - What a Question
The Truth About Condominium ConversionsAs home prices climb in major metropolitan areas, many real estate developers are converting apartment buildings into condominiums. These developers usually renovate kitchens, baths and flooring, replace light fixtures, add a coat of paint and voila! the transformation from apartment to converted condo is complete.Affordable HousingIn California, these condo conversions create affordable housing for home buyers in many areas where new single-family homes or condominiums have a median price that outpaces average income. Home buyers benefit from the developers’ savings: it costs less to convert apartments to condos than it does to build a project from raw land, particularly in areas where land is at a premium.Condo conversions generally sell at a discount compared to new condominiums. For buyers, the downside is that they are buying a refurbished older unit as opposed to a brand new one. The obvious upside is that with discounted pricing comes greater accessibility to a broader demographic of potential home buyers. In San Diego, California, for example, a flood of condo conversions over the past few years has created a large inventory of condominiums for sale, resulting in some price decreases
What is the Number 1 reason you ask?
Customer Focus is a Profit Strategy!
This happens in a couple of ways. Truly customer-focused companies have loyal customers. Loyal Customers:
- buy more,
- cost less to serve because they know your processes,
- tell you when things go wrong so you can fix the problems and
- tell their friends, family and associates about how great you are and as a result you get more customers.
Also, customer-focused companies are
A few years ago, I analysed the statistics of where one of my clients, M & M Pest Control in Sydney, generated all their leads from. As a result of this, Ray Milton, the director of the company said:“Scott measured the results we were getting from our advertising, and as a result, this confirmed my decision to eliminate over $42,000.00 in unnecessary expenses – because it wasn’t paying it’s way”$42,000 is a lot of money… in anyone’s language!What did I do? I simply analysed his advertising expenses… and identified whether or not the ads were generating a strong yield for his investment.And I’m willing to bet you could do the same for your business.Right now, you're probably thinking... in the words of Pauline Hanson...“Please Explain”Listen. I’ve met with hundreds of businesses that advertise in the Yellow Pages. And most of the time, I ask them “What return on investment do you receive as a result of your advertisement?”To which 9 times out of 10, the answer is as good as a blank stare!How much money are they burning? Investing $20,000 on an ad (or $1,000 or $5,000, or $100,000 – the same principle applies) and not even know what their returns are!Would you hire a salesperson and not ‘give a
Most of you will probably recognize this soliloquy from Shakespeare’s Hamlet
To be, or not to be: that is the question:A popular interpretation of the speech suggests that it is a debate on suicide. Hamlet considers the attractions of death (not to be), which he refers “to a sleep”, over life (to be), where pain seems unavoidable. But in the end he decides that; his fear of possible suffering in the afterlife as opposed to the known evil that is life stops him from actively ending his existence.Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,
Or to take arms against a sea of troubles,
And by opposing end them?
To die: to sleep;
No more; and by a sleep to say we end
The heart-ache and the thousand natural shocks That flesh is heir to, 'tis a consummation
Devoutly to be wish'd.
To die, to sleep;
To sleep: perchance to dream: ay, there's the rub;
What has this got to do with Customer Focus?
Based on the unacceptably high levels of poor or mediocre customer service, prevalent across North America and other parts of the globe, it appears that many companies seem to favor “not to be”. The evidence we have to support this view surrounds us. Everyone of you, that has taken the time to read this article, for which we thank you, has undoubtedly experienced poor or mediocre service personally if not today, than very recently.
If you will allow me a little poetic license, with the first few lines of Hamlet’s immortal speech;
To be Customer-Focused, or not to be Customer Focused that is the question:Customer Focus Is Not an Option!Whether it ‘tis better to do what is necessary to reap the benefits of being truly customer-focused
Or maintain the status quo and do nothing but continue to handle customer complaints, put up with customer churn and operational inefficiencies
And by doing nothing?
Commit long-term corporate suicide...
Everywhere you turn, Corporate Head Offices extol the virtues of service but when it come down to it, most of the time they are really paying accelerated lip service to this the importance of service.
This is very curious, particularly when you consider the number-one reason why that small number of service leaders, you know, those few companies where the service is almost always really great, consider customer service a.k.a. customer focus to be a critical business strategy.
What is the Number 1 reason you ask?
Customer Focus is a Profit Strategy!
This happens in a couple of ways. Truly customer-focused companies have loyal customers. Loyal Customers:
- buy more,
- cost less to serve because they know your processes,
- tell you when things go wrong so you can fix the problems and
- tell their friends, family and associates about how great you are and as a result you get more customers.
Also, customer-focused companies are
Have you ever noticed that all of the Old Navy commercials on television all have the same look and feel? How about the mailers that you receive from Staples, Office Max or Best Buy? They’ll feature different products each week, but have you ever noticed how consistent their look is from week to week? Is this an accident or just a company being cheap? Neither.Big companies know the power of establishing a consistent, recognizable brand image. Now you probably don’t have a business the same size of a Best Buy – doesn’t matter, you’ll still reap the benefits of keeping your business image and brand consistent. Whether it’s a television commercial, web blog, direct mail campaign, etc., there are inherent benefits in keeping your business image consistent. I’ve found four main hurdles that typically keep a company from keeping a brand consistent:The company isn’t comfortable or confident in the brand – they might not like itThe company elected to buy a quick, inexpensive brand with the idea of adding on later. Instead of making the initial investment in a professional brand, the company is in constant update mode. The
And by opposing end them?
To die: to sleep;
No more; and by a sleep to say we end
The heart-ache and the thousand natural shocks That flesh is heir to, 'tis a consummation
Devoutly to be wish'd.
To die, to sleep;
To sleep: perchance to dream: ay, there's the rub;
A popular interpretation of the speech suggests that it is a debate on suicide. Hamlet considers the attractions of death (not to be), which he refers “to a sleep”, over life (to be), where pain seems unavoidable. But in the end he decides that; his fear of possible suffering in the afterlife as opposed to the known evil that is life stops him from actively ending his existence.
What has this got to do with Customer Focus?
Based on the unacceptably high levels of poor or mediocre customer service, prevalent across North America and other parts of the globe, it appears that many companies seem to favor “not to be”. The evidence we have to support this view surrounds us. Everyone of you, that has taken the time to read this article, for which we thank you, has undoubtedly experienced poor or mediocre service personally if not today, than very recently.
If you will allow me a little poetic license, with the first few lines of Hamlet’s immortal speech;
To be Customer-Focused, or not to be Customer Focused that is the question:Customer Focus Is Not an Option!Whether it ‘tis better to do what is necessary to reap the benefits of being truly customer-focused
Or maintain the status quo and do nothing but continue to handle customer complaints, put up with customer churn and operational inefficiencies
And by doing nothing?
Commit long-term corporate suicide...
Everywhere you turn, Corporate Head Offices extol the virtues of service but when it come down to it, most of the time they are really paying accelerated lip service to this the importance of service.
This is very curious, particularly when you consider the number-one reason why that small number of service leaders, you know, those few companies where the service is almost always really great, consider customer service a.k.a. customer focus to be a critical business strategy.
What is the Number 1 reason you ask?
Customer Focus is a Profit Strategy!
This happens in a couple of ways. Truly customer-focused companies have loyal customers. Loyal Customers:
- buy more,
- cost less to serve because they know your processes,
- tell you when things go wrong so you can fix the problems and
- tell their friends, family and associates about how great you are and as a result you get more customers.
Also, customer-focused companies are
Call centers are created by organizations to receive inbound calls for varied day-to-day business reasons. Since companies invest tremendous amounts of money into customer- care relationships, they carefully monitor customer perceptions of their efforts to serve them. There’s a growing awareness in the business community that customers are unhappy dealing with computerized message delivery systems. Callers tend to perceive interactive voice response systems (IVR), voicemail, and even a standalone answering machine as too formal and not user friendly. Call centers and answering services that feature live phone operators are viewed much more positively by callers, and give companies a more personal, caring and relaxed image.Inbound calls to any organization generally fall into one or more categories; calls are placed to obtain information, report a problem or error, or ask for assistance. This is different than outbound calls placed by a sales agent with the purpose of selling a product. This practice is known as telemarketing, which entails a different set of methods and requirements for successful operation. Inbound call centers can be expensive to run, but they are invaluable to today’s businesses.Companies increasingly o
What has this got to do with Customer Focus?
Based on the unacceptably high levels of poor or mediocre customer service, prevalent across North America and other parts of the globe, it appears that many companies seem to favor “not to be”. The evidence we have to support this view surrounds us. Everyone of you, that has taken the time to read this article, for which we thank you, has undoubtedly experienced poor or mediocre service personally if not today, than very recently.
If you will allow me a little poetic license, with the first few lines of Hamlet’s immortal speech;
To be Customer-Focused, or not to be Customer Focused that is the question:Customer Focus Is Not an Option!Whether it ‘tis better to do what is necessary to reap the benefits of being truly customer-focused
Or maintain the status quo and do nothing but continue to handle customer complaints, put up with customer churn and operational inefficiencies
And by doing nothing?
Commit long-term corporate suicide...
Everywhere you turn, Corporate Head Offices extol the virtues of service but when it come down to it, most of the time they are really paying accelerated lip service to this the importance of service.
This is very curious, particularly when you consider the number-one reason why that small number of service leaders, you know, those few companies where the service is almost always really great, consider customer service a.k.a. customer focus to be a critical business strategy.
What is the Number 1 reason you ask?
Customer Focus is a Profit Strategy!
This happens in a couple of ways. Truly customer-focused companies have loyal customers. Loyal Customers:
- buy more,
- cost less to serve because they know your processes,
- tell you when things go wrong so you can fix the problems and
- tell their friends, family and associates about how great you are and as a result you get more customers.
Also, customer-focused companies are
With Internet use spreading across the globe, one advertising message no longer fits all. Believe it or not, Asians, Europeans and Latin Americans account for more than 60 percent of all Web traffic, and the percentage is climbing. At the same time, Internet shoppers everywhere are becoming increasingly hostile to generic pop-ups and banners. So, how can on-line advertisers get results in such a complex and demanding marketplace? A big part of the answer is geo-targeting.Geo-targeting means gearing ad content to a specific geographic market. Advertisers can identify on-line shoppers by IP address, postal code or area code; when the shopper visits the advertiser’s site, he will see an ad that literally hits him where he lives. Several geo-targeting approaches are available:Advertising on Web sites with localized content, such as on-line newspapers, yellow pages and entertainment guides; Advertising on sites such as Yahoo!®, where user registration includes geographic markers; Using third-party advertising services such as DoubleClick; and Advertising on sites with geographically specific content, such as MapQuest® and The Weather Channel.Creating ads in local languages, while important, is only one aspect of geo-targeting. Internationa
Whether it ‘tis better to do what is necessary to reap the benefits of being truly customer-focused
Or maintain the status quo and do nothing but continue to handle customer complaints, put up with customer churn and operational inefficiencies
And by doing nothing?
Commit long-term corporate suicide...
Customer Focus Is Not an Option!
Everywhere you turn, Corporate Head Offices extol the virtues of service but when it come down to it, most of the time they are really paying accelerated lip service to this the importance of service.
This is very curious, particularly when you consider the number-one reason why that small number of service leaders, you know, those few companies where the service is almost always really great, consider customer service a.k.a. customer focus to be a critical business strategy.
What is the Number 1 reason you ask?
Customer Focus is a Profit Strategy!
This happens in a couple of ways. Truly customer-focused companies have loyal customers. Loyal Customers:
- buy more,
- cost less to serve because they know your processes,
- tell you when things go wrong so you can fix the problems and
- tell their friends, family and associates about how great you are and as a result you get more customers.
Also, customer-focused companies are
The major components in any ID Card System, ID Card Printers are many and varied. An ID card printer can perform many functions while printing an ID Card, and this is what makes them so useful. For example, while printing an image, an ID Card Printer could encode a magnetic stripe, a proximity card, or a smart card.The printer comes with software that manages the data that is printed or encoded on each card. The software handles all the functions and provides the printer with the necessary tools to perform all its functions at once.Before deciding which printer is right for your needs, consider what capabilities you want the printer to perform. You have to think about both the physical and technological properties of the printer and decide accordingly. As a rule, heavier ID card printers with a larger footprint have more abilities and are more durable. Lighter printers are usually better for less-intensive uses, and may have fewer capabilities, though this isn’t always the case.More properties you should take into consideration when choosing a printer are the following:Do you want a single or double-sided card?A single sided ID card is excellent for simpler uses, like a student or school employee ID card. A double-sided
What is the Number 1 reason you ask?
Customer Focus is a Profit Strategy!
This happens in a couple of ways. Truly customer-focused companies have loyal customers. Loyal Customers:
- buy more,
- cost less to serve because they know your processes,
- tell you when things go wrong so you can fix the problems and
- tell their friends, family and associates about how great you are and as a result you get more customers.
Also, customer-focused companies are more productive. Employees are motivated, and perform their jobs more effectively.
Re-work, duplication of effort and mistakes are significantly reduced. These all cost you money in terms of time spent, money spent, loss of productivity and loss of business.
Your turnover also reduces so you keep your staff longer and don’t experience down-time, productivity losses and employee morale related issues.
If you are still not convinced, consider the following:.
- It’s 5 times more expensive to attract a new customer than to keep an existing one.
- About 75% will do business again if the problem is resolved to their satisfaction.
- 90 to 95% will do business again if the problem is resolved on the spot.
- Customers are willing to pay for quality service.
- An increase in customer loyalty will have a direct positive impact on your bottom line.
- The cost of poor service has a direct, negative impact on your bottom line.
Let’s examine these points in more detail.
It is safe to say that it is far more profitable and far less costly to keep the customers you have by building their loyalty, than it is to keep replacing them with new customers.Determining what it costs to acquire customers is a bit intangible for most people. As you can imagine, at lot goes into getting customers to walk into your place of business or call you. Advertising, merchandising, promotions, premises expense, phone systems, salaries and so on are costs associated in part with getting customers.
Someone has to pay for this. Normally payment comes through the proceeds of revenue you get from the sales of your products and services. Sometimes we tend to take this for granted.
Say for example, the cost to your company to acquire a customer was $500.00. If you lose that customer your investment of $500.00 is gone. What is of greater concern is that the cost to replace that one customer is now $2,500.00 (5 X $500.00). What is you lose 100 customers? That’s got to hurt your business!
Research has proven that once you have a customer, your cost of keeping him/her drops dramatically over time. When you lose a customer you will inevitably incur a higher cost to replace the one you lost.
Assuming your cost to acquire a customer is $250 and based on the fact that it is 5 times more expensive to acquire a new one, your new customer acquisition cost would be $1,250 for each new customer required to replace one that defected. Let’s be ultra conservation and say that you lose 20% of your customer base due to service defection, (if you are not truly customer-focused, it could be even higher), then based on the example above the annual cost to replace 20% o
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