Archive for the ‘Customer Service’ Category

PowerTip: What to Say When Something Goes Wrong

Tuesday, October 4th, 2011 by victoria

Conflict Management

One of the most challenging parts of running a successful company is dealing with conflicts.  We are in a people business which means that conflicts are inevitable.  Because most people simply don’t like dealing with unpleasant issues – issues that could potentially mean loss of business or tension in the office —  a common response is to ignore it and hope it will go away!  Experts say that this is exactly the wrong approach. They recommend an immediate response which clears the air and keeps relationships moving productively.

How you handle conflict makes has a major impact on the overall health and productivity of your company. Handle it correctly and your company thrives. Handle it poorly and the it can fall apart.

Here are some tips for handling conflict effectively:

Maintain personal ownership of the problem.

Keep the initiation mild, not threatening. Don’t say, “You do X and it’s wrong!” Instead, start the conversation with a request for help. “Bill, do you have a few minutes? I have a problem that I’d like to discuss with you.” Indicating that it’s your problem helps diffuse any defensiveness – a common barrier!

Use the X-Y-Z Approach to stating a problem

“I have a problem. When you do X (a very specific behavior), Y results (consequences), and I feel Z (emotion).”

Here’s an example:  “Bob, I have a problem. When you don’t show up on time at the client’s house . . . they get rightfully angry since they were expecting you. This makes me feel very frustrated because we try so hard to deliver top customer service. “ Then simply wait for the response.

Don’t make accusations.

Stick with the observable behavior.  Don’t supply solutions. The first step is to agree that there is a problem. If you jump to a solution, you’re assuming that you know what’s going on in their heads and you don’t.  So wait until they acknowledge the problem and then work on a solution together.

Persist until understood.

If you state a problem and they don’t want to listen, don’t understand, or try to change the subject, go back at it again in a different way, still sticking with the XYZ approach.

Encourage two way discussion.

Ask them for input and their view of the issue.

Keep the initial comment short. A rule of thumb is that the longer it takes you to tell them about the problem, the longer it’ll take you to work through it. When someone keeps going on and going on about something, we get defensive and once someone gets defensive, they stop listening and begin to think of a rebuttal making it very difficult to develop a productive solution.

Have the guts to start the conversation! If an employee or trade contractor continually takes actions that are upsetting, bring it up immediately.  Remember, they can’t read your mind so slamming doors and dirty looks aren’t getting the message across. Chances are they are totally oblivious to your frustration.  Plus, if you don’t say anything when rules are broken, what do you think  your other employees are thinking? They’re saying, “Why is Joe getting away with that?” Bringing up issues is may not be easy but speak up early before you are so mad that you’re ready to blow.  And remember the tips above to help you through it.

The more you practice effective conflict resolution the better you will become! This is a managerial behavior that can be learned and the more we learn, the more our customers, employees and subs will appreciate us!

Posted in Business Coaching, Business Management, Customer Service, Employee Retention | No Comments »

Does Soft Marketing Really Work? You Bet!

Wednesday, November 24th, 2010 by victoria

When money is tight, it can be hard to invest in what some business owners might consider soft marketing like relationship building parties and events. But for longtime Roundtables member, Steve Rehder, it was worth every penny. Here’s his story.

When Rehder Construction, Inc., turned 30 this year, company president and CEO Steve Rehder and his staff celebrated the anniversary with a catered party that united long-time clients and trade contractors in toasting the company’s longevity—and garnered the company some leads, too.

Well before the August 27 anniversary date, Rehder’s staff printed invitations and mailed them to all of the company’s past and current clients and key suppliers. “We made sure to invite our subs, too, because some of them have been with us 30 years,” says Rehder.

The party was staged at the company’s office in Campbell, Calif. Rehder secured the building owner’s permission to extend the party into the parking lot, if necessary. Good thing he thought ahead, because twice the number of people who had RSVPed showed up. “We were amazed at the turnout,” Rehder recalls. “We’d hoped for 30 or 40 people—and instead 80 guests attended.”

There was plenty of food for everyone and lots of giveaways and door prizes, too. After guests wrote their contact information in a sign-in book, they were each given a raffle ticket. During the party, Rehder and his staff gave raffle winners coupons for free dinners at a local restaurant, free carwashes, bottles of wine, company shirts and vouchers for 3 hours of handyman work.

Guests mingled and chatted with each other—and provided testimonials about the company to new clients. “We invited a brand-new client whose kitchen we redid,” says Rehder. “She quizzed people at the event about the company and later told my secretary, ‘Thanks so much for inviting me. This really solidified everything I’ve heard about your company.’ ”

After the party, Rehder wrote personal thank-you notes to each guest and mentioned the company’s referral program. “We got one lead right off the bat,” says the remodeler. “After she received the thank-you letter, a client called me up and said, ‘I have a friend in Palo Alto who wants a second-story addition, too.’ ”

The good will continued after the event. “My staff and I had a blast at the party and the crew enjoyed visiting with the clients,” says Rehder. “It wasn’t originally in our budget to have an anniversary party. I thought, ‘It’s going to cost some money, but it will be worth it.’ And it was.”

Posted in Business Growth, Customer Service, Marketing, Sales | No Comments »

Pass the Baton and Delight Your Clients While You’re At It!

Tuesday, September 28th, 2010 by victoria

Being the savvy business people that we are, we all know that our money is made in the planning stage of a remodeling project, not in the production. By this I mean, that the more organized and complete our planning process, the more quickly we complete high quality projects for delighted clients–and the more profits we keep.

In today’s tough economic climate however, it’s more common than ever for business owners to slash preparation time in half so that the job can start quickly. However, when enough time isn’t dedicated to planning, mistakes happen, orders aren’t complete, and the client can experience a deep sense of frustration instead of the delight that we all want.

I know that planning time means additional costs and no homeowner is beating down our doors to pay more, but I also know that the companies that are going to stay strong are those that are delivering top quality client experiences — those that I referred to before.

Remodelers Advantage business coach, Paul Winans, earned his stripes as the owner of a remodeling company for many years. Through the school of hard-knocks, he learned how to delight his customers and build a strong, highly profitable business because of it.

One of the processes he used to set expectations, keep clients informed, and avoid misunderstandings was the Pass The Baton process. This isn’t a process that he went into unprepared. Instead, he planned this meeting carefully. He was a true believer in the idea that planning is essential to profits.

Listen into a recent teleseminar as Paul explains how to use this essential process to set your company apart from the competition.

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Posted in Business Management, Customer Service, Production | No Comments »

Don’t Ask: Recommend!

Tuesday, September 14th, 2010 by victoria

The last blog post I created focused on the need to become a great salesperson if you are really interested in maintaining a successful business. Boy, the hits to the web site were off the charts! So obviously we hit a nerve with that discussion. So, I decided to give you more information on sales and to do this, I”ve asked our Director of Business Development, Ted Dubin, to share a few of his pearls of wisdom from his many years as a sales professional.
“One of the techniques that I recommend to all salespeople is that they need to be able to recommend the best option to their prospects, ” he says. “Too many salespeople will invest tons of time coming up with a great idea, developing an effective plan, working for hours to fit the budget, and they, they’ll turn it all over to the prospect and say ‘What do you think?’”

“Instead, be the professional you are, be confident in the solution you created and say, ‘This is the solution I recommend. . . ‘ and then go on to support your recommendation.”

Ted says, “People like to buy but they don’t like to make decisions by themselves. They look to you to be the leader and to tell them what’s best for them. If you know you have a great product, you’ve done your job and qualified them well, you’ve built the customer’s interest through a series of open-ended questions, then you should feel very confident in what you’ve developed and what you’re recommending.”

He goes on to say, “To feel that confidence. . .
1. Qualify the prospect with a series of open-ended questions designed to help the client recognize that they should accept your recommendation.
2. Be sure that the client can afford the recommendation.
3. Be sure that you’ve spent the time needed to really come up with the best solution that truly fits their need.
If you’ve done these things, then be the leader and tell they what they should do and why they should do it. That’ll be the key to also demonstrating why they should do it with you!”

Posted in Customer Service, Marketing, Sales | No Comments »