Do you know whether your clients are satisfied or not?

Customer Satisfaction or customer relationship management is nothing more than doing what you said you would for your customers. It's keeping your promises. Consistently. Predictable. Time after time.

You should do more than you promised whenever you're able, but you can't do less and stay in business. Not in the long run.

The simple act of being in business is a promise. It says you are here to provide something of value, and to receive fair compensation in exchange.

Oh, you can make occasional mistakes. That's human and forgivable. Your loyal customers will usually overlook an occasional lapse. But you can't frequently make mistakes and you can't consistently sell poor products or give poor service without betraying your customers.

And what about your first-time customers? Do you think they will be as forgiving if they don't get what they thought they were going to get?

Customers experience a joy in having their expectations met or exceeded. You can see it in the their eyes, hear it in their voices, sense it in their body language. You can almost feel their pleasure in good products and services. It's true even of seemingly trivial products and services.

You know instantly when you're dealing with a business that takes pride in what it does. You see smiling, helpful, knowledgeable people providing products that look good, taste good, feel good, and work well.

Certainly, none of this is news to you, but it's surprising how many businesses are mindless of their impact on their customers. They know what's right, but they can lose sight of it, and when they do, things deteriorate.

So, when you get right down to the bare essentials as seen by your customers, you're actually in business to: 1) keep your promises and, 2) provide something of value.

That's customer satisfaction.

The Four Components of Customer Satisfaction
or Customer Relationship Management

Every business has seven major functions - the Seven Centers of Management Attention - and from the customer's point of view, the most important of the seven is customer satisfaction. That's where customers get their gratification, their satisfaction. That's where they get their value.

And just as every company has its seven major functions, the customer satisfaction process of every business has its own four components - its product (or service), its production process, its delivery process, and its customer services. They may look different in different companies, but all companies have all four, and each of the four has its own set of principles and rules, no matter what the business. The trick is to understand and apply the principles in your business.

Customer Satisfaction Is the Heart of Your Business

Everything your business does should directly or indirectly serve your customers. That's basic and obvious. But it's in customer satisfaction where your business meets your customers. Where you live up to your promises. Where your customers get their real satisfaction, their sense of value received. And that makes customer satisfaction the heart of your business. You can do everything else to perfection, but if you slip in customer satisfaction, your business can't help but fall short in the eyes of your customers.

So customer satisfaction or customer relationship management deserves the best from your business - your best thinking, your best attention and intention, your best effort - because your customers deserve the best. On time, every time, exactly as promised!

It's not merely a matter of paying attention. It's a matter of reaching for perfection.

Contact us TODAY if you are a principal or owner of a business with annual sales of 1.5 million to 20 million and you want to discover more about how a Strategic Affairs Business Strategist and Coach can help with your company’s growth.

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