Search CompleteMarkets

...me-equipment store and receive a discount on smoke detectors. The store sold a...

...to reward loyalty with quarterly discount coupons based on the amount of purch... I made a purchase. Like the grocery stores, they even provided a key ring-siz...

... by Emily Huling Remember the best sales experience you had as a consumer? It may have been having your car serviced-that's what mine was (at Hendrick Motors in Hickory, NC)- buying a new piece of audio-video equipment, or shopping at one of the big discount retailers. What was it about this experience that made it above average? Are you doing these simple steps each time you encounter a buyer? Anticipate the customer coming. Whether your job is to juggle a flow of walk-in traffic or prepare for a preplanned appointment ... ! Do your customers feel that way? At a minimum, when buyers enter, greet them with 100% of your attention, smile broadly, and if appropriate, extend a firm hand. A simple Pleasure to have you here! ' or Welcome to our store' sets the right tone. Always make eye contact with a new arrival even if a warm welcome greeting must be delayed until you are free. Keep the customer informed. As a consumer, is there anything worse than feeling like your needs and questions have ... ignored? Jim Burns called me at 9 a.m. the morning after I dropped my car off to advise me of the mechanics time estimate, the cost, and the time the car would be ready. In almost all sales situations, the salesperson should check on availability of a product, pricing issues, or service status. Remember this: Customers can accept the answer, good or bad, when they have been kept informed in a timely manner. Timely' might mean minutes in a retail store or 24 hours for a ...

... your agency, employees, and especially your customers, are suffering. With the advent of Internet E-commerce, the local independent agent is in jeopardy of losing a substantial amount of its Personal Lines and Small Commercial Lines business. More and more insurance-related Web sites are advertising discounts because there's no agent involved and thus no commission. These discounts range from $200 to $800 on Private Passenger Auto policies. The Internet is an equal-opportunity competitor that affects agents in big cities and rural communities alike. Let's face it. People will pay ... . Both the agency and the customer copy can then be tossed. Another benefit of electronic communication is that most fax/e-mail systems keep a log of all items sent and received. This provides proof that a customer received their document. Logs can be printed and stored on paper, or copied to software and stored electronically. Not only will E- Filing cut costs dramatically, the productivity of your CSRs, marketers, and claims people will increase dramatically — from 25% to 50% . They can spend the time freed ... from handling paper to provide the quality customer service that will help overcome some of the lower prices that your competitors offer on the Internet. E-Filing can also show you how to integrate agency management technology that matches, and even exceeds, the benchmarks in the Best Practices Study. Although the hardware and software costs of E-Filing are minor (with systems less than $300 per workstation), there are many new techniques involved. You'll need to replace your agency's manual and T-filing procedures with new ways of doing things. Just like the ...

... with your top clients. In fact, too many employers know more about their clients than their employees. Establish an alliance benefit program. This one is for all your customers, internal and external. Create a nurturing business climate in which everybody wins by establishing a discount alliance. This encourages your employees and other customers to give your clients their business. Whether you insure a hardware store, video store, dry cleaner, or restaurant, negotiate a standard discount that can be accessed by all your other clients and employees. Everyone ... sees this as a value-added benefit-and you get the credit! These 16 ideas are just the tip of the iceberg of ideas for improving relationships with your employees (while solidifying your organization's grasp of technology) . Your employees are your most valuable customers-and it's time you let them know it! Jack Burke is the president of Sound Marketing, Inc., a marketing and communication company specializing in customized audio and video programs for business. The author of Creating Customer Connections (Merritt, 1997) and hundreds of trade articles, he's also ... speaker and consultant on marketing and communication issues. Jack can be reached by phone at (800) 451-8273, fax (417) 239-1541, E-mail [email protected] , or Web site www.soundmarketing.com . Login or Register (for FREE) to gain access to thousands of other great articles. Need more reasons to join? Need insurance for you, your business or your family? Get quality appointments - Save yourself a whole lot of time & money when you use our directory of carriers, wholesalers and service providers. Negotiate lucrative ...

... incentives, give away big discounts, or simply slash prices. These are ... Disney World of the Home, the Expo stores achieved a marketing triumph. ...

...lated Web sites are advertising discounts because there’s no agent involved and thus no commission. These discounts range from $200 to $800 on Private ...

...everybody wins by establishing a discount alliance. This encourages your emplo...or restaurant, negotiate a standard discount that can be accessed by all your ...

...everybody wins by establishing a discount alliance. . If you insure a hardware... a restaurant, negotiate a standard discount that all of your other clients an...

...in the nation's supermarkets and discount stores, didn't clean clothes. It jus...ntory even after offering up to 70% discounts early in the Christmas selling s...