I’m crazy for great customer service. It’s what I promise anyone who does business with me and it’s an important factor for me in choosing where I spend my money.

I know one of my pet peeves is shared by a lot of people – crappy customer service. Spending your hard earned dollars and being treated with indifference. People who act surprised when you expect them to do what they said they would, when they promised. I mean, how hard is it really? You’re committed or you’re not.

How can you give your customers a great experience? How do you make them feel valued and important? How can you tie that into your business and your unique selling proposition (USP)? Is it something you care about? Could you use that to set yourself apart? If it is something you care about – it’s a killer USP because so many people just flat-out don’t get it or don’t care, or both!

Recently I needed some new people to outsource web and graphic design to. I put an ad on Craigslist and was promptly flooded with resumes, websites and samples. My first pass was for the style I was looking for; my second pass was for customer service. In this case I was looking for people who could commit to a deadline and stick to it and who really cared about doing it with a great attitude and were easy-going. Finding great style was easy –great customer service was much harder to find.

I didn’t end up choosing the people whose work was the least expensive, although many people put that front and center as their USP – they would get the job done for less. I tried one of those for-less guys –his customer service was great – for about a week. After the first job he suddenly lost his interest in being diligent and had a real attitude. Another ‘price guy’ disappeared. Apparently he was cheap for a reason.

The people I ultimately chose and am working with and will continue to bring my business to are the ones who deliver great quality when they say they will with a great attitude in the bargain.

OK – I admit it – I deeply value doing what I say I will and others who do the same – it’s hard for me to work with people who don’t. People who don’t drive me nuts. Even people I really like. Even if they’re friends. It’s become a USP for me – my clients know they can count on me to deliver great marketing copy – on time and with no prima donna attitude. Ultimately, they’re always right. Reminds me of a question we ask a lot around here: Would you rather be right or be happy? For me, it’s happy.

If killer customer service is something you value, think about using it as part of your marketing platform – you’ll really make yourself stand out and get more business from the kinds of people you want as clients. It’s win-win.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

It seems everyone is rushing around trying to get caught up and capitalize on their social media presence – that’s a sound idea. You can’t turn around these days without seeing Facebook, Twitter or YouTube somewhere. No doubt, they’re hot.

Guess what’s even hotter for connecting with your customers, clients and prospects? Email. Yes, email. Email that is engaging, well written and sent consistently, is your biggest opportunity to make an impact on the people interested in what you offer. According to eMarketer.com, 7 out of 10 people would rather communicate by email than any other medium.

It’s profitable too. The DMA reports: Email’s ROI in 2009 was $43.52 for every dollar spent.

Social media has not and will not render email obsolete – certainly not from a marketing standpoint. The inbox is still the best place to get the information and correspondence you’re actually looking for.

Chris Brogan, best-selling author and President of New Marketing Labs reports that 93% of email users have opt-in relationships with a consumer brand as opposed to 15% with Facebook and 4% with Twitter. That’s compelling, and perhaps surprising, but it’s a good indication of where you need to be – right now.

Consistent, meaningful email communication lets you connect with people who like (or love) what you offer. Social media has changed our expectations – we want easy access to and information about the companies we do business with. The companies and brands that engage us effectively and communicate with us compellingly have our top-of-mind consciousness, attention and eventually, our business.

If you want to read my full report on this topic – shoot me an email – amy (at) amyposner (dot) com and I’ll send it your way.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

December passed quickly with lots of writing for clients and none for me. Finally today I had time to climb back up the slippery slope. Seeing how muddy it is here, that was almost literal walking in the woods this morning, but I’m talking about the slippery slope in my mind.

I was thinking about that old maxim: works expands to fill the time allotted. Last year I spent quite a bit of time on business development, thanks to my brilliant business coach, Mary Jane Pioli. As a result, Q4 last year I really spent time thinking about how to be more efficient and spend more time on the projects I enjoy and are most profitable and steer away from the things I enjoy less or make less money.

My pal Jan told me the other day I desperately needed to update my status on Facebook to something more generic so it didn’t like I had posted it last fall (my bad….). I decided that the phrase “working hard at working less” summed it up. I actually love my work, but I love doing lots of other things too. Therefore, the more efficient I am, the more I can do more things I enjoy – work-related and not.

It’s not easy to be careful with time – there are so many things pulling for some of it. Spending time chronicling what I was doing every hour – actually writing it down – was a bit painful but a real eye-opener and it became immediately apparent where I could make some changes.

Less time on email – checking it less frequently and responding only a few times a day was a big one for me. Finding out what activities take what kind of energy and brain power and scheduling those for my most productive time – usually in the morning enables me to get more done more quickly. Saving the more mundane tasks for late afternoon when my brain isn’t as sharp makes those things less onerous and they don’t feel as pressing when I know there’s time allotted to do them.

Finally, I’ve learned how and when to outsource. I learned from my great friend Jillian at Savvy Sponsoring how to delegate and outsource. It’s a great use of resources (financial on my side and skills and talent on someone elses) and effort and it makes me more efficient, happier and more productive. 2011 feels like it’s off to a good start.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Things seem to move at an ever quicker clip these days. Christmas and Hanukah promotions start before Thanksgiving dinner is even digested. I like to savor the day or the moment just a little more. Oh well! I wanted to share a little more of what I learned from the brilliant Dr. Bendapudi:

I shared in the previous post Dr. Bendapudi’s idea that your brand is your promise. Whether you provide products or services for the B2B or B2C market, it’s important to understand that for your consumer, your brand is functional (or rational) and emotional. When you capture the customer’s emotion, they are truly engaged with your brand. When people are attached to or moved by your brand, it’s when they’re likely to share information and stories about what you offer with others – word of mouth is still the holy grail of marketing, if I may say so….

Think of customer and client awareness of your brand as a kind of ‘shelf space’. It’s actually ‘mind space’ which is arguably the most valuable commodity. Bendapudi points out that your brand is brought to life by your people, or if you’re a solo-preneur, by you. The experience your customers and clients have with you and your company is the bottom line to determining how they feel about you. How they feel about you is more important than you might think. Experience trumps the marketing every time. It doesn’t matter what you say, it matters what you do. Just like in every other relationship we have.

In talking about loyalty, Dr. Bendapudi employs the acronym R.E.A.L.  The letter R stands for Respond – are you doing a good job responding to customers concerns and problems? E is for empathy. Respond to customer and client concerns by listening with empathy and really hearing them. Don’t try and contradict or explain, just listen and use phrases like “I understand why you’d feel that way” or “I’m sorry you had that experience” – don’t jump in and offer explanations – and certainly never correct them or find them wrong. Finally, A is to remind you to advocate for customers and clients. Anticipate their needs and serve them.

Dr. Bendapudi used the example of taking her (then) 8 year old daughter’s soccer team to a restaurant after a game. They were cranky and hungry and she was exhausted. Her experience was not a good one. No one anticipated her needs by empathizing with her situation and getting her a table right away or even telling her how long the wait would be. She was disenchanted with the experience and never returned. What she would have preferred is what all of us would like: someone to simply say – WOW – I bet you’d like to get those girls seated and have some snacks and drinks right away – let me see what I can do.

Even if there had been a wait, she would have felt heard as a customer, hers need were anticipated, she was understood and the restaurant chain could have won her loyalty, instead of her disdain. Remember, it’s not about being right 100% of the time; it’s about taking care of what arises thoughtfully and quickly 100% of the time. We’ll allow a lot of latitude for mistakes IF they are handled well and easily resolved.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Last Wednesday, I had the privilege of attending the Seattle Women Presidents Organization evening with Dr. Neeli Bendapudi, co-sponsored by American Express OPEN Forum Program. Dr. Bendapudi is engaging and funny and just plain smart and practical. I love when people are passionate about their topic – they’d be happy to stay and talk about it all night and they have ready answers and top-of-the-mind cases studies they can use for examples. She was a kick and I learned a ton.

Here are some quick high points. Dr. Bendapudi spoke about branding and emphasized that your brand is a living entity. It’s the experience your customers and clients have when they interact with you, the people your employ, anyone that represents your company in any way. Bottom line: your brand is a promise. It’s something that you need to work on constantly. A brand isn’t an idea you create and call it good. You have to live up to the promise your brand makes. Every day; with every interaction.

Consumers have a certain experience of your company and they expect to have that experience consistently, time and again. When you’ve done your branding right, your brand occupies a place in your consumers mind (arguably the most valuable business real estate in existence). Ask yourself every day what you’ve done to build your brand – remember – it’s a dynamic entity, just like your company is. If you’re not building your brand, you’re remaining static. Know what defines your brand and be ‘about it’ in everything you and everyone associated with your company does and says.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

LinkedIn is a great place for making business connections. It’s decidedly less social than Facebook, and for some people that makes it easier and more straightforward. Like any other social networking site – approach it like a new neighborhood you’ve just moved to. Ask some questions to find your way around and the best place to ‘do business’. In your brick and mortar neighborhood that means learning how to move around and get the products and services you need. Same applies here.

Keeping that in mind, here are some key points:

Build your profile and make sure it’s 100% complete – LinkedIn will walk you through the completion process and suggest what you need to do to finish your profile. A profile that isn’t complete isn’t looked upon favorably by those in the know.

Get Recommendations. At least three is standard. These have to be from people you know who are also on LinkedIn. There’s a simple form you can send to request a recommendation. Be sure to add a personal note and tell the person you are asking what you want them to focus on. Expect to write them a recommendation in return and offering to do so in your inquiry email is a nice touch.

Search for and join groups of interest to you and start to participate. Think of the brick and mortar community analogy and imagine its like showing up at a networking event – only more quickly and more often. Be courteous, pay attention, ask questions, get to be known like you would in any situation where you’re new and want to make a good impression.

Link to your blog (if you have one) through the WordPress widget – it’ll keep your blog posted on your page automatically, it even updates when you make changes through your dashboard – pretty cool.

Use the The Reading List by Amazon widget to comment on what you’re reading – it’s a great way to share info, showcase your interests and your personality in a simple, straightforward way.

Decide whether you want to connect with as many people as possible (be a LION) or whether you want to restrict your contacts to people you know and eventually broaden out to people you meet, and the contacts of your contacts. There are differing philosophies on each strategy.

Some believe the more people you can connect with the better, and those people tend to be power networkers offline as well as on. Some people think LIONs and dilute their efforts – because no one KNOWS that many people, so they view those connections as less valuable overall. Generally, some solid contacts and serious recommendations will stand you in good stead and are enough for most people. Decide what suits your personality.

Participate in the conversation by going to the ‘answers’ found under the more tab. Here you can participate in conversations, network, get answers to your questions. Lurk here a bit and get the feel of the etiquette. Before you post a question, check to see whether this question has been recently asked and adequately answered. Share what’s working for you.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

1. Don’t write long run-on sentences. Keep paragraphs short and concise. If paragraphs are longer than about 5 lines in a document that’s only a few pages long, create a new paragraphs. Look for where a new idea begins and break there.

2. Use plenty of white space. People are intimidated by dense looking copy. If they see lots of small, dense text, they might not read your piece at all.

3. Use headlines and subheads. People often read the headlines and scan the subheads. If you organize your headlines and subheads to read like a bulleted list, they’ll automatically know if your piece is of interest to them.

4. Use your headline to address the main point you want to convey. Use the subheads to further expound. For example – if your headline is Anyone Can Write Great Copy, your subheads might read:
• 3 Things You Must Include in Every Piece You Write
• How to Use White Space to Get More Readers
• The One Word to Always Avoid

5. Make sure your headline speaks to the readers’ self-interest. Touch on the problem you go on to solve in your copy.

6. Make a list of features and benefits. Turn those into sentences and play with putting them together in different order.

7. Edit like crazy. Read everything over several times and let it sit overnight so you can get perspective. If something pops out each time you read it, get rid of it. Read carefully to see which words don’t serve a purpose. Get rid of them. There are always plenty and you’ll get better and better at finding them.

8. Keep past versions so you can compare with newer versions. Sometimes a blend of the two is the perfect piece.

9. Be confident that your writing will improve. The more you do it, the better you’ll get.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Social media has changed the game forever. It’s made people more accessible, writing more personal and the playing field more level.

A couple of months ago, I was showing my mom some pictures I had taken and was about to upload to my website. Most were taken outdoors around my property. She really didn’t get why I didn’t want to use the ones taken in my office. In her world business still means a suit and a tie and a more buttoned-up demeanor than I prefer to portray.

Even as little as five years ago, showing your personal side and pictures that weren’t the standard head-shot-in-a-suit wasn’t that common – it bordered on unprofessional. Not anymore. Look at the people you follow and enjoy, I’m willing to bet money that people you like best not only have great offerings, but offer something about themselves as well.

The people I enjoy the most are the ones that mix it up, business and personal in reasonable doses. I don’t want to know too much and I couldn’t tell you the exact tipping point between just enough and too much, but I know it when I see it/read it. I want to know who you are and what you stand for. I admire people who do that well and I’m working on emulating them and bringing more of that to what I do. It’s not easy for me, but I value it.

These days, working at home is (mostly) an enviable situation and being who you really are and showing it, is a plus. When I started my business 20 years ago, that was SO NOT the case. A friend actually sent me an audio of phones ringing and office background noise – so no one would know I was in my Manhattan loft and not a cubicle in an office somewhere. Times have changed….

Bottom line: we want to know who you are and what you’re about. So, yes, use your personality. Think about sticking to the mother/boss rule and say anything you wouldn’t want your mother or your boss to hear. Your prospects and clients don’t necessarily need to hear about your Saturday night (of course that depends on your clients, your Saturday nights, your business….) but they do want to know what else you’re up to – what you participate in, what your interests are – it adds dimension to your business profile – it’s a way to attract the exact right people to you.

When you have lots of people to choose from, many of us choose the person we know and trust. Showcase your personality and become that person to your prospects. It’s good business.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Here are a few things to keep in mind if you’re going to write your own marketing pieces. First, step back from your business or service and try and see it through the eyes of your ideal patient, customer or client. What problem do they have that you solve? Write to that.

That’s the only thing your marketing should do. Illustrate their problems and challenges and provide your solutions. Remember that we all do more to avoid pain than we do to gain pleasure and good marketing taps into that psychology.

Let’s take a quick look at an example. I wrote a website for a woman who helps people buy cars – particularly for women. When I researched the topic, I learned that women do in fact pay more than men for new cars and they do fear being ripped off and rightfully so; it happens fairly often.

The site owner helps people negotiate car buys all the time, she’ll even do the entire deal for them, so all they have to do is walk in to the dealership, take the car for a spin and sign the paperwork (it’s a pretty cool service). She’s also written a guide that teaches people exactly what they need to know to negotiate like a pro.

She regularly gets great car deals for people (women and men alike) and can almost always save them money. We chose not to focus on the savings, but to make that a secondary point. Instead, we focused the copy to tap into the pain felt by her target audience. That’s their fear of getting ripped off and having to deal with a high pressure salesman who will hype them into spending too much money or making a decision they’re not ready for or. Being helped through the car buying experience and feeling confident and knowledgeable is very compelling for her audience.

Her website speaks to their fear and how she can help her clients avoid it – by educating them, thereby empowering them to get a great deal themselves, or by doing it for them. I’ll say it again, because it’s the lesson here: we did NOT focus on the money savings, but on the fear her clients experience at the car dealership.

She gets great feedback from people who are so relieved to have found her. Clients say that her eBook makes them feel empowered and confident and takes away their fear, hence solving their problem.
Spelling it out clearly gets results. For the business owner AND her clients.

Solve problems and you’ll get more business. You can visit her site at: http://carbuyingsos.com and get her Free Report about getting top dollar for your car when you’re ready to sell it: What You Must Know to Get Your Car Sold.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

I’ve talked recently about knowing the revenue per customer – let’s dig a little deeper on the profit equation. Keep in mind that anyone who buys from you once is more likely to buy from you a second time. It’s much easier to make subsequent sales than it is to make that first sale. Once they buy your product or become a client or patient, the chances of them sticking with you if you provide good value is very high and of course there are things you can do to maximize that possibility (that article comes next…)

I write a lot of marketing for dentists. Dental practices, like other professional practices, need a steady influx of new patients to keep their bottom line healthy. An average new patient is estimated to be worth $900 during their first year. A patient that stays with a dentist over their lifetime is likely to spend much more than that each year, especially if they have multiple family members seeing the same dentist, which is often the case. That patient is potentially worth thousands and more likely tens of thousands of dollars over their lifetime as a patient of that dental practice.

Let’s suppose the patient pays the dentist just $1000 each year for 15 years, that’s 15 thousand dollars over the “lifetime” of this patient. Many patients will have years where they (and/or their families) will spend significantly more on dentistry and oral health care. If the dentist has 100 patients that are similar, that will net the practice $1.5 million dollars in 15 years or $100,000 per year.

Do you think it would make sense to spend $5000 to create a great website and $500-1000/month to keep steady traffic coming to it and new patients coming in every single month? If you understand the lifetime value of a patient, you’d be crazy NOT to! Yet, professionals and business people tend to think in terms of financial output when it comes to marketing and NOT the exchange of value.

You need to understand these numbers for your business. And you need to assess whether you’re getting the results you need, want or know are possible. If you’re not, you need to think about hiring someone who can help make that happen.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.