SMART SD: Making 2019 Better For Your Business
Published December 15, 2018
If you own a small to medium sized business it may seem that it is too early to be asking this on the second day of new year. Normally the first days of a new year retailers have fairly empty stores compared to the long lines at the big box retailers and the shopping malls
I’m sure that the adage of the lowest selling price is the key factor in a buying decision. A small store doesn't have the buying power that a mass retailer does. The manufactures don’t come to you with special models and very special prices.
Yes, some customers are motivated by the lowest price. They don’t look at the real features that the model has or the features that set apart the different brands. All they see is the PRICE.
Many business don’t really want that customer. I know that means giving up on some sales. But in order to stay in business there must be an overall profitability. You may have heard the old saying “We lose money on everyone we sell but we make up for it in volume.” If that isn’t the scariest thing you have ever heard, I don’t know what would be.
Getting a customer through your door is one thing. Keeping that customer coming back is something else entirely. Is customer retention top of the list for your new year’s plans? Existing customer are the real goldmine of all businesses.
The closest you can get to anticipating the future is taking a look back and using last year's numbers as benchmarks you can add or subtract from. Analytics can provide retailers with everything from what deals and discounts worked last year to predicting how much inventory to have in stock this year. Looking at dollars and sense can be quite clear using your accounting software.
So many businesses do an excellent job of making the initial sale, then drop the ball and get complacent, ignoring the customer, while they chase more business. Your selling has actually only just begun when someone makes that initial purchase decision because virtually everyone is susceptible to buyer’s remorse.
To lock in that sale, and all of the referrals and repeat business that will flow from it, you need to strike while the iron is hot to allay your customers’ fears and demonstrate by your actions that you really care. You should thank them and remind them again why they’ve made the right decision to deal with you … and put a system in place to sell to them again, and again, constantly proving that they made the right decision. Learning how to keep in touch is what SMART Service Desk can help your company accomplish.
Looking at your customer’s experience requires a completely different metric and software tool. Today that tool can even be cloud based and sharable by different business stores and locations across town or even worldwide.
The last thing you want is for your business to be “growing broke.” Beside the need for accounting software is the need for SMART Service Desk software. Consider it the accounting for your customer interaction. Are you running in the black when it comes to how your customer feel about your business? Don’t wait for the silence in sales to be your first indication that you have inadvertently let your customers down.
Remember that it is difficult to make your customers retroactively happy. Don’t learn that lesson the hard way.
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