Working as a virtual assistant, all of my work is digital so I don’t have much face to face interaction with my clients. This means things like business cards and free pens don’t really work for my line of business, because everything is done over emails and laptop screens; just the way I like it. However, I have been working with a number of small businesses over recent months & I know that for many of them, the current climate has been a bit of a struggle. I’m a massive fan of great customer service (that’s what 20 years in customer service job roles will do to you) so I thought I would talk about the small changes you can make to your business to make a big difference. Here are my tips for small businesses...
The Little Touches
I think that it is the little touches that make a difference – I have ordered from loads of small businesses over the last year and it is the ones that go the extra mile that have stood out for me. It doesn’t even have to be anything spectacular; one company sent me a tiny packet of Haribo with my order & it just made me smile – and it is that smile I will remember when choosing a company to use again. If you are working in mail-order then I would pay attention to the packaging you.
I went through a stage of selling my old clothes on Facebook, and I invested in bright pink mailing bags as I thought that was just a cute touch. If you’re selling to numerous customers then I think printed packaging is a really nice idea – it helps to establish your brand to the person who receives the item, which is great if they’re sending it as a gift to someone else! Of course, you’ll also want high-quality packaging and something that is affordable, so finding a company that can provide packaging that ticks all the boxes is important.
https://www.pexels.com/photo/person-s-holds-brown-gift-box-842876/
Let Me People Know Your Availability
Whether you’re a business by yourself, or you work with some others the chances are you can’t be available 24/7 – so let your customers know that! In this digital age, we’re all guilty of expecting instant replies and quick answers to questions. However, if your business clearly states the hours that they would expect to be able to reply & even how long a reply might take, people are much more likely to feel happier waiting for a reply. A big chunk of good customer service is setting customers expectations because this really does help to ensure that customers are not disappointed by setting their expectations too high.
Take Ownership
Things do go wrong and most customers will accept this, as long as you deal with the problem in the right way. It can be tempting to hide away from negative customer feedback or try to sweep problems under the carpet; however, this won’t leave your customers feeling loved. Instead, you should embrace all feedback and ensure your customers that you’re going to learn from it. Taking ownership of any issues and ensuring that you’re going to do what you can to make sure the issue is fixed is a much more effective way of leaving a customer happy, even if their whole experience hasn’t been as positive as you would have hoped. Invest into courses, for example, if you are a personal trainer or pilates instructor, you may want to extend your knowledge and skills so that you are qualified to work with a more extensive range of clientele.
If you have any tips for small businesses then please share them below!
Debz
*Collaborative Post
Debz Louise is a plus-size blogger based in Yorkshire. Behind many nationwide campaigns such as #WeaAreTheThey & winner of Best Blogger at the UK Plus Size Awards, she talkas about life as a plus-size 40-something woman in South Yorkshire.
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