|
In the September 25th issue of the On-Demand E-Newsletter issue, Survey Advantage President, Michael Casey, shares with the community effective ways of implementing best practice surveying processes to stay connected with print buyers.
Survey Advantage now is offering busy managers the ability to view recorded trainings focused on customer retention, client share expansion, and referral generation, on-demand. Many times managers and business owners are unable to make the specific days and times of our webinars due to their busy schedule.
We have released several 7 to 8 minute, recorded trainings to explain how to survey using different printer MIS installations; PrintSmith, Printer’s Plan, Technique, Enterprise Print Management Solutions, Printer’s Plus, and a session on how to survey using all other MIS installations. To view the on-demand library and select your specific printer MIS, visit www.surveyadvantage.com/printers.
We are planning to release several new trainings in the future focused on our other verticals; marine services, association research, business services, parking facility feedback, manufacturing, education, finance, and healthcare.
Print ’09, the largest printing show in North America, will be in Chicago from September 11-16th. Survey Advantage president Michael Casey has been asked to lead a presentation on Monday, September 14th from 2:15PM to 4:00PM. Please read the overview below or visit www.myprint09.com for more details.
Topic: Creating and managing a customer retention strategy
On average 5% of a printer’s revenue is directed to the marketing budget to capture new customers through tradeshows, advertising, and get your name recognized on the cluttered field of printers. Printer’s with an effective, deliberate customer retention strategy benefit from lower marketing expenses through higher client share and customer referrals. Rarely does a printer lose an account completely, but many will lose client share if they don’t have an effective early warning system in place when a specific job goes out with a problem. This session will discuss ways printers have implemented programs to retain customers by driving loyalty, proactively gathering print job feedback, customizing services, and making their customers feel unique and special. Multiple studies have proven how much more profitable it is to grow revenues with existing accounts versus pursuing new accounts. Retaining customers is the best way to keep your business healthy, reduce marketing budgets, and drive referrals to your door.
What you will learn
• Effective customer retention strategies
• Printer loyalty programs
• Printer referral programs
• Printer loyalty benchmarks to shoot for
• The importance of surveys
• Best practice survey techniques
• Low cost customer feedback process
• Customer service processes to consider
Presentation for Executive Management, Owners, Customer Service Directors and Managers, Sales and Marketing Directors and Managers
Yesterday I was speaking with the director of a state marine industry association who said something very profound. He said that many have the wrong thought process because they are alarmed dealers are hurting and going out of business. If they go out of business, they wrongly believe there will be less boaters.
He went on to say that service is what keeps people in boating, not having access to buying boats. Most boats are used anyway and what makes people leave boating is waiting too long for the boatyard to fix the boat or not knowing what is going on with their boat. He went on to say that many boatyards don’t comprehend they are in the service business and need to keep customers in the loop when jobs are underway and they need to hit deadlines. In the northern regions if it takes two weeks to get a boat fixed, that is 2 or 3 weekends out of 16 that they have to use the boat. On average, a 40 foot boat costs about $5,000 to $10,000 a year just to maintain, get dockage, winterize, launch, insurance, etc. Losing two weeks can be a reason to just get out of boating and start camping, golfing, or get into some other past time or hobby.
So a lot rests on the boatyard’s ability to turn jobs quickly and effectively or the boating industry will suffer from people getting out of boating. That is the real issue, not selling more new boats.
From October 29th-31st, 2009 the National Association of Quick Printers will hold their annual conference in Austin, TX. Survey Advantage has been asked to present a session and moderate a session. Below is a summary of each session. Please visit www.naqp.com for more details on the conference.
Session 1: “Leveraging Customer Feedback to Expand Client Share, Drive Referrals, and Preserve Recurring Revenues” Mike Casey, Survey Advantage
Learn how printers have implemented processes to preserve recurring job revenues, drive referrals, and uncover opportunities to expand client share. Learn how to fully leverage your existing relationships to grow your business. This session will also cover ways to streamline the process by using technology and customer information you already have in your operation.
Session 2: “Panel: How to keep customers coming back for more” Moderator, Mike Casey, Survey Advantage
A prerequisite to being a printer today is producing quality on time. And everyone has solid customer service so there goes that differentiator! Your peers will share how they create and maintain loyal relationships by making their customers feel unique and special and change the game for competition knocking on their customer’s doors. Learn what successful, profitable printers are doing beyond shipping quality on time with great customer service. Learn the little and big things they do that keep customers coming back every time.
Jamestown, RI– June 19, 2009 – Survey Advantage Inc, announced today a partnership with Technique Group, the developer of commercial printer MIS solutions. Technique users now have the ability to generate referrals, identify areas to expand client share, and preserve recurring revenues through continuous customer feedback and reporting. By developing the necessary tools Technique has enabled customers to work closely with Survey Advantage to implement the CustomerPulse™ program. On-line reports are delivered daily to deliver leads, monitor performance over time, and benchmark with the industry.
Many of us are timid to ask our most loyal customers for referrals. We feel uncomfortable asking or don’t want to alienate an already loyal customer. Sometimes we feel the loyalty may go down by being direct and asking the question “Do you know someone we could help as we help you?”
A more subtle way to capture referrals is to tie the request for referrals into a customer feedback survey. The way it works is that you send a customer a very short five question survey after your complete a job, complete a service, or ship a product. One of the questions asks the ultimate question “How likely are you to recommend us to a colleague, friend, or family member?” For all customers who click “Very Likely”, you now know they are loyal, love you, are passionate about what you do for them, and are the customers most likely to recommend you. They have self qualified themselves! At that point when they click submit on the survey you direct them to a landing page to highlight your referral program along with any gift you want to offer. It is that simple. I have seen up to 5% of those filling out the survey offering referrals to help their supplier or vendor. What an opportunity! Just don’t forget to call them or thank them for the referral. It is only common courtesy and it will feed the referral process.
Just last week a small printer closed a $1,000 initial order with a referral by using this process and the newly acquired customer appears to be ready to give them future orders for other printing needs. This process isn’t just for printers, but can work with insurance agencies, any service organization or business that relies on referrals to grow and prosper.
So, don’t leave your loyal customers just buying from you. Engage them in the selling process and expand your selling force.
This weekend a colleague asked a myself and a few fellow business owners if our customers were asking for discounts after work was complete. His customers were telling him they could pay him immediately if he took another 20% off the bill or he would need to wait for payment. This is for work he already had done!! With the recession he added that his closure rates on bids went from 50% to under 10% and he was desperate. He is in a competitive, commodity market, but something isn’t right here. He is taking the 20% off the bills and discounting, but his business is not doing well. You could see the worry on his face and I am sure the customers are as well.
I suggest if customers are asking for discounts that you change the scope and give options. Give three different scopes of work with three different price points, but then hold firm on the work being done. You must do this to stay healthy and your customers should respect this. People love options and the customer will understand that with options there are varying levels of product.
There are typically three things to look at with any project scope; price, timeframe, and quality. Keep to these three sides of the triangle when bidding and discussing jobs with customers.
Before finding yourself in an unprofitable situation, the best businesses find ways to differentiate themselves and offer unique and special services and products. Customers will be happy and your business will remain healthy.
NAPL releases Field Case Book, a new initiative to share best practices and innovations with printers. In NAPL’s first field book case study, a printer is highlighted for a creative customer retention strategy saving $130,000 in business within the first month of the strategy.
Click here for complete case: http://www.fieldcasebook.org/
Yesterday I was speaking with a good friend who was heading home for an appointment with his oil burner maintenance company. Since I needed some maintenance I asked how he liked the business. He said he “HAD” to use them because the business was a client. He continued saying that he just wished he could go elsewhere and explained all the problems he had over the years. He felt hostage. I call this “Fake Loyalty”. It is too bad this oil burner company doesn’t get it right and give this customer a reason to refer them. I am just glad this guy told me to stay away. Does anyone know a good oil burner guy?
Ask your customers the question “How likely are you to recommend us to family and friends?” Some of your customers may feel like hostages for now. Why not make it right.