5 Ways to Appreciate Your Customers

The ultimate goal for any small business is not just to land a bunch of customers, but to make those customers loyal and keep them coming back for more. An easy way to do this is by showing appreciation for your clients and making them feel valued. Aside from printing “thank you for your business” on your receipts and saying “thanks” as they walk out the door, there are five simple ways that you can take that appreciation a step further and really impress your customers.

Reach Out – No Strings Attached

Sure, sending out coupons or notices of promotions is helpful to your customers but there’s also benefit in it for you. Consider sending out an occasional mailing or email every once in a while that just says “Thank you” or “We appreciate you”, without any catch. This goes a long way toward building loyalty with your clientele because it’s genuine.

Recognize Your Supporters

Social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter have made this step super easy yet highly impactful. Tag a fan in a Facebook post or tweet about a certain customer that really stands out or has done something worth recognizing. It doesn’t even necessarily have to be about your business. For instance, if you see a customer post something about an achievement of theirs, comment on it and congratulate them. The personal interaction will show them you really care about them.

Include Customers in Your Marketing Efforts

Think about ways you can incorporate your customers right into your marketing activity. Maybe it’s including a picture of them (with permission, of course) on your website or in a new ad campaign, or maybe it’s posting testimonials and customer commentary on your site or in your newsletter. The more your customers feel involved in your business, the more loyal they’ll be.

Launch a Customer Rewards Program

By offering your most valued customers special perks, rewards and exclusive opportunities you’ll show them, rather than just tell them, that they’re appreciated. This can be done a number of ways, whether it’s a sign-up club style program or simple punch-cards, but it has a tremendous impact. When customers feel that they benefit from spending money at your establishment, they’re more likely to keep coming back.

Offer Superior Service

It’s simple, really. The better you treat your customers, the more appreciated they’ll feel and the more loyal they’ll be to your business. Aim to deliver the very best possible service to your clients and make it a priority in your business. When customers feel like you’ve gone above and beyond to make sure they’re satisfied, they’re more likely to return the favor in repeat business.

There are plenty of other ways you can express to your customers that you care and appreciate them, but however you choose to do so, the important thing is that you do it. By valuing your clients, you’ll create a strong sense of loyalty and trust, which can translate to referrals and more business so share the love!

Labels: customer service, small business tips

Buried Under a Pile of Paperwork? Here Are 6 Simple Ways to Dig Yourself Out.

We’ve all been there. So busy that it seems you can’t keep up with the stacks of paperwork and emails that keep coming in. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed and helpless. Not to worry. There are actually several easy things you can do to unbury yourself, get organized and stay on top of your day to day communications so you don’t get bogged down again.

Schedule time to tackle your messages. According to a recent study conducted by the Institute of Psychiatry at the University of London, a person’s IQ drops 10 points when they're fielding constant emails, messages, and calls - the same loss you'd experience if you missed an entire night's sleep and more than twice the 4-point loss you'd have after smoking marijuana. Take back control of your sanity and your productivity by scheduling a set time each day during which you will tackle your mail, email and voicemail.

Separate your paperwork into three piles. Mark one pile “action items”, one “reference items” and the other “recycle”. Keep the things that require you to take action readily available, file away the items you may need for reference at some point and recycle anything you don’t need. (If you’re not sure about what you can and can’t discard, check with your attorney, accountant or financial advisor first.)

Create a good filing system. Figure out what works best for you and put it into action. I’d suggest starting with a list of categories, creating files for each and then placing them in alphabetic order so that they’re easy to access when needed.

Keep important documents separate. A while back we discussed the importance of preparing your business for a natural disaster. One of the best ways to do this is to keep your most critical documents like insurance policies and licenses in a safe place, preferably off-site, such as in a safe deposit box. Copies can be kept on-hand for reference.

Invest in a shredder. Small to medium sized shredders can be purchased at just about any office store and are relatively inexpensive. Use this to get rid of anything that contains confidential or identifying information. Try setting aside a specific time once a week to tackle your shredding so it doesn’t pile up and get out of hand.

Take charge of your junk mail. If you find yourself fielding endless piles of magazines you don’t read, catalogs you don’t need or other unnecessary paperwork, take charge. If it’s email, click “unsubscribe” at the bottom of the message to remove yourself from the distribution list. If it’s physical mail, unsubscribe to any subscriptions you don’t want anymore and get yourself on the National Do Not Mail List.

Putting these six simple things into action will help you dig out (and stay out) of that pile of paperwork, get organized and stay focused and productive.

Labels: organization, small business tips

Free Software Options for Small Businesses on a Budget

When you’re running a small business, controlling costs is the key to keeping your head above water. Of course there are certain unavoidable things that require an investment, such as overhead and staff. But the good news is, there are also a number of free resources available to help small businesses with their software needs, and they’re pretty impressive. Here’s a handful that we recommend.

Google Docs – When it’s powered by Google, you know it’s good. Google docs is a free application that lets you create everything from documents to spreadsheets to calendars and even surveys that you can use to get valuable feedback from your customers. The best part is that everything is stored securely in the cloud, letting you share any and all your data instantly right over the web.

OpenOffice – If you prefer to store your documents on your hard drive or internal server but can’t afford the hefty price of Microsoft Office software, OpenOffice offers similar programs for free, including word processor, spreadsheet and presentation applications. What’s more, it’s compatible with a variety of other file formats, including MS Office and is available in nearly 30 different languages.

Skype – More and more small businesses are beginning to see the value of using Skype for their telecommunications. It’s especially attractive because you can make person to person and video calls to other Skype users for free. Even the more robust packages they offer are extremely cost effective. Skype gives you lots of options at little to no cost. You can even integrate it with your Synclio account. (Check out our article about how you can use Skype as your business phone system for more information.)

Distributed Source – CRM is the practice of effectively managing your communications and relationships with your customers. There are a number of CRM software products on the market, but Distributed Source offers a free basic plan for up to 3 users and 3,000 contacts. It’s the perfect way for a small business to organize and track leads as well as manage contacts and tasks efficiently.

WordPress – Blogging is an extremely important part of SEO because search engines like Google give particular preference to sites that are frequently updated with fresh content (i.e. a blog). WordPress provides a user-friendly free way to create and manage your blog so you can help get your business noticed on the web.

These are just a few of the many free resources available to help small businesses achieve success on a tight budget (just do a Google search to find countless more). For those companies trying to cut costs, Synclio also offers a free trial of our virtual phone system as well as a variety of affordable plans to choose from. With all of these tools, you’ll be armed and ready to take on the competition and come out on top!

Labels: budget, skype, small business tips, virtual pbx free trial

5 Ways to Locate Big Talent in a Small Town

Being a small business in a small town can certainly have its charm and benefits, however it also often means having a much smaller pool of candidates to choose from when it comes to hiring staff. While this may be challenging, it’s not impossible to locate some big talent – as long as you know where to look and how to go about it. Here are five simple ways to attract quality, top-notch candidates to join your team.

Tap into your existing employees – If you’ve already got a few key employees that you trust, why not ask them if they know of someone else who might want to come on board? Offer a referral bonus to sweeten the pot and you might be surprised at the quality candidates you end up with.

Use social media – Aside from marketing your business, using social media can benefit you in other ways including getting the word out about a job opening you have. Post a link to your job listing on your company’s Facebook page and tweet about it on Twitter, asking other local fans and followers to share. The more word about your job spreads, the better your chances of finding the right person to fill it.

Attend or sponsor a local event – Check to see if there are any local events coming up in your community that might be good grounds to network and get the word out about your employment needs. Join a local job fair or sponsor a technical event to gain access to a wealth of eligible candidates.

Offer good benefits – Aside from salary, one thing prospective employees will be looking for is the benefits they’ll receive if they take a new job. In addition to health coverage, consider other things like discounted gym memberships, extra vacation time or even free lunch once a week. The more attractive the package, the better talent you’ll attract and the more likely you’ll be to retain that talent once you hire them.

Allow telecommuting – More and more businesses are shifting to a telecommuting or remote workforce for a number of reasons, particularly the cost savings. And with today’s mobile tools, like virtual phone systems, it’s becoming easier and more convenient to do so. Most employees would love the opportunity to work from home, which means they’ll find your job listing more attractive.

When your business is located in a small town, recruiting the right talent to help your company succeed can seem impossible. But if you use all the resources available to you and do a little thinking outside the box like with the tips provided here, it doesn’t have to be.

Labels: mobility, small business tips, work from home