“A man without a smiling face must not open a shop.” Chinese Proverb
Since when did it become a thing to make a client jump though hoops to engage with your business? I am watching a disturbing trend unfold right before my eyes that astounds me and I while I have blogged on this topic before, here and here, I am inspired to share again. Why? Because I care, and even more because I know many are not even aware they are doing this.
As a business owner, our responsibility is to make the client experience the most awesome possible, online and off. This means several things. But here are just a few…
If you want me to engage with you, make it simple + easy.
And by easy, I mean make it easy for me. Be mindful of my needs and my process. Create a system that works for me, and of course, if it works for me, that means it will work for you. The harder you make it, the more likely I will choose to go elsewhere.
Be mindful of how you speak to me on social platforms. Please.
True leadership comes from having a level of control over our emotions. Just because you had one no show, does not make it OK to blame an entire following. When things begin to unravel, look inward, and look at your systems. There is something broken but guess what? It can be fixed.
I am not to blame for your lack of systems.
If you find yourself overwhelmed by texts, phone calls, and emails, look in the mirror. This is many times the most challenging part of biz ownership. So much of the angst you feel can be alleviated by having awesome systems and processes. But nine times out of ten, its not the people who fail, it’s the system that fails. Take the time to work on creating systems. Your anxiety and angst, and most of all, your clients will thank you.
Some systems + processes you may want to look into are…
Appointment Booking
Confirmations
Cancelled or changed appointments
No shows
Check In
Check Out
Pre Booking
Re-Do’s
Post experience
Lapsed client communications
FAQ’s
Agreements (Policies)
Note on agreements: Be sure these are created with the mindset that a large majority of clients awesome. If you are making a new policy charged with emotion over one repeat offender, that is not a policy, it is actually punishing everyone versus dealing with that one offender directly. Remember, doing biz with you should be simple, easy and client focused and friendly.
Look, I know biz ownership can be overwhelming, but that is what we signed up for. With the technology and choices available to us today, it is simpler than ever to implement systems that make the client experience awesome.
Always be mindful that we have choices. And of all the reasons I will choose you; how you treat me, and my experience with your brand, online and off, are some of the biggest reasons.
The choice is yours.
Love + Awesomeness-
Nina
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