Let Customers Serve Your Small Business

It may sound like the opposite of conventional wisdom, but as businesses strive to serve their customers better, owners should also think about how the customer is the one supporting your business. It’s an interesting perspective we’d like you to consider while examining the rest of today’s customer service related links.

Customer Focus

Do you know your customers? Your business success is built upon them, but do you know who they are and what they really expect from you? Learn more about your customers and how to meet their needs. Seth Godin’s Blog

How to focus on customers first.. No matter how large or small your business might be, keeping your customers the main focus remains critical. Dave Brock explains how to keep your focus where it belongs. BizSugar Blog

Talking Points

Do you find your customers engaging? One well-known Internet company does, and it’s working hard to be involved in the conversations its customers are having. Do you get involved in customer conversations? It’s the surest route to better customers service. Bloomberg Businessweek

Is social media really reaching your fans? If you’re thinking the answer to this question is a resounding yes, you should be aware that not everyone agrees. Some entrepreneurs are sure social media is the best way to reach customers, others…not so much. WSJ

Productivity

Not-to-do lists can help customer relations. Developing a not-to-do list helps you avoid a number of problems, especially involving relationships with customers. Making sure you have policies about when to market or advertise to your customers and generally how you treat them can be important to your success. Amsterdam Printing

Want to improve your customer service? Put yourself in your customer’s shoes. Would you want to wait for service, be unable to find something on a company’s Website, or wait to get a return call on a critical issue? No? Then set aside some time to make things better for your customers. The Washington Post

Transitions

Social media is changing everything. And that includes customer service. Here’s a post on how to look at relationships with your customers in a Facebook and Twitter era. Be sure you understand the rules of the game. Forbes

How to deal with mean people. No one likes to do it, but it’s a necessity from time to time, and remains an important skill for any entrepreneur. Here’s the tough side of dealing with customer relations. Business Insider

Customer Engagement

What the airlines can teach us about evolving customer service. What does your small business have in common with a major airline? Probably very little actually, but small business owners could learn a thing or two about how some airlines leverage human resources and technology in an attempt to improve customer service. AdvertisingAge

Using Facebook for customer service. Much more than just a marketing tool, Facebook provides resources that allow businesses to engage deeply with customers. Here’s the story of how one entrepreneur does just that. Penn-Olson.com