Complacency - Is It Killing Your Business?

I was talking to a woman about her business the other day. We were focusing on a particular service that she knew would be a nice thing for her customers to have and wouldn't take a ton of work to do. It would even help solidify what was an already pretty good relationship with them. But she then said "It's not like our competition has it now and it's not like people are complaining that we don't have it. The few that do complain aren't going to go anywhere because we're kind of the only game in town. We're just too busy to think about it anyway."

So I got to thinking, what happens when all of a sudden you're not the only game in town and that little "nice to have" might actually be a nice differentiator for your business?

I was reading research by the University of Florida and studies showed that for every customer that complains about something there are 25 more dissatisfied customers who don't! What's worse? An unhappy customer will tell 13 people about his or her dissatisfaction. That adds up.

Yes, there are such things as priorities, we have them here too: A finite number of people to do the infinite amount of things you have to do. Here's an exercise: look at your infinite list of things you want to do for your customers, I bet there are 5 of them that aren't as hard as you might have thought.

What are a few examples of things you can do that maybe your customers AREN'T asking for?

Offline Retailers - You might be carrying the same things as your friends down the street and for the same prices, but do you have a few nice cushy chairs for people to relax in? How about serving espresso to your customers as they shop. Check out very inexpensive things like Tassimo or Nespresso. A little can sure go a long way

Salons - My husband goes to a place where his stylist gives him a 5 minute scalp and shoulder massage, he's a lifer!

Software Developers - We ALL have the list of things that a) WE know will be great for our customers and b) bugs we need to fix. Why not do the quarterly "mini" release for your customers that bundle some of these small things together with a mix of upgrades along with something new?

Consultants - Here's an idea: put together some research on the industry you serve from other researchers. It's a pain for your customers to track down any data or information, but it would be nice for you to write a quarterly white paper and send an email to your customers informing them of your new download.

Restaurants - Amuse bouche! What a nice surprise it is when a tiny appetizer that isn't on the menu shows up in front of you to start the meal.

What are things you can do to give your customers the "Wow, that's cool" factor, before they complain or worse yet don't and never come back?

Comments

[Dale Grove]

Loved your article. I did a video this morning titled "Is Complacency killing Your Business" and then wondered if anyone else had written about complacency. You've expressed my sentiments exactly!
Looking forward to reading more of your articles...

[Janine Popick]

For Julian

Sounds like you need to whip up some business in the dead times of the year.

Here are a few ideas I can think of:

1. Send a direct mailer to the local consumers in the zip code where you are with an offer. Offer a discount for "locals" because they are special and will carry you through the non tourism times.

2. Offer a "family style" Italian night. Pick a day of the week and go "off menu" with large plates of shareable food. Then charge a price per person. Might make for locals to come out and dine together in a community setting.

3. Offer an Italian cooking class or an Italian wine tasting night.

That's all I have, anyone else got any ideas for Julian?

[Tom Griffin]

For Oswalts:

Maybe you are not getting people to your site to take advantage of your offer. A combination of SEO and proactive targeted emailing to a prospect list may help accomplish that.

Griff
http://eprospector.typepad.com/small_business_sales_and_/

[Julian Ong]

Hi Janine,
Thank you for all the good ideas every time I received the news letter.Your article' Stay a head of the game,Don't be complacent ' its so important to have a 'Wow Factor' to stay a head this day.
I just opened a Italian restaurant in a tourist village in Ireland where most of the business is from tourist trade that come in the summer for cruising in the canal.What form of marketing idea do you recommend since the local population in the winter time is limited.

Thank you for your time
Regards

Julian Ong
Juliano's Italian grill
Leitrim. Ireland

[Krista]

Why tell them you will be giving them a gift? Simply send one with a thank you for their business as a surprise....memorable, different, and will generate excellent word-of-mouth. A great way to keep your exceptional customers returning again and again....80/20 rule.

[David Heffernan]

Janine,

You are sooo right on this one! Especially from the restaurant perspective. I've been in a few restaurants in my day, but the ones that stand out the most are the few that offered that little something "extra". The nice little sampler at the start of the meal, or the added touch of a custom made mint at the end of the meal, or a custom made butter for your bread during your meal. It can be anything extra that you weren't expecting, but it pays dividends in the long run.

[APB]

"a free gift" can be anything, and isn't usually what I want.

How about free shipping OR a free gift certificate worth 10% of their purchase total?

[Janine Popick]

For Oswaits - Perhaps it's not the incentive you give them but how you package what people buy from you. Take a look at Red Envelope for ideas on packaging. Give a free gift if you can afford it in every box you ship. Make it very easy for people to return things to you, taking the risk out of online shopping. What about calling your customers to find out if their shopping experience was satisfactory?

It's not always about the offer, sometimes it's about how you treat your customers.

[Oswalts Buy It Here]

Hello. I just read your post regarding: Complacency - Is It Killing Your Business?. That is exactly what we need for our business, a wow factor as you said.

We have an online store, not an offline one and need ideas of something to give us the edge. I have posted previously, at other sites, a bulletin stating that the first 50 customers who were to make a purchase from that site would get a free gift.

It did not get any response. So, now I am asking you, do you have any ideas for us? Please let me know and thank you for your time.

Have a wonderful day.