Kelly's Korner - First Impressions

Hey, All,

As you all know, first impressions can make or break any kind of dealings with another person.  And if you are running a business, this may be the only contact you have with a potential new customer.

So when that phone rings, how are you answering it?  A gruff "Bob's"?  Or a cheerful, friendly "Bob's Appliance Service, this is Mary, how may we help you?"  Your greeting doesn't have to be long (in fact I hate the ones that are!) but identifying the business, who is answering and the offer of assistance in a cheerful, helpful tone is the most important.  This also helps for recorded messages.  Most people are willing to listen to recordings with more information than a real voice because they know that the info they need may be on there, but try to keep the recordings short, sweet and to the point.

Mazzie and Shannon - Our first impression experts!

So now that the greetings are out of the way, getting the name and phone number of the person calling is imperative - first, because people like to be called by name and, if for some reason the call gets dropped, (and in these days of cell phones that could be highly likely) you have their number to call them right back.

Now, listen to the customer and use my list of 10 questions to get the info you need.   If, by some chance, they are calling for something that you can't help them with, sending them off with another avenue to explore is way better that "sorry" and hanging up.  I get calls all the time with people looking for stuff we don't carry.  And sometimes all it takes is looking up the manufacturer of their product on the web and giving them a phone number.  No, this isn't something that you HAVE to do, but that person will remember the assist (or not) and will be a major factor on if they call you for something that you can help them with.

Now, how does your tech look when he shows up at the customer's?  Is his vehicle clean and in good repair?  Is his appearance neat and clean?  You don't need to have fancy uniforms, but a polo shirt (looks better than a t-shirt) with the company logo on it and nice pants or jeans is nice.  Does he put on protective shoe coverings (we have these - 50 pairs of SHUBEE) and protects the floor around the appliance?  Does he clean up any mess he may make (we have cleaning products too!)?  This is also a way to make a major good  impression on a customer by treating their home as a castle.  The clean-up process is also a good time to do add-on sales by offering the customer cleaning products, added services and leaving any promotional items like refrigerator magnets, pens, brochures, etc., so they will call you back if they need more repairs.

Last, but not least, a follow up call.  Call the customer the very next day and find out their opinion on how the repair went.  Are they satisfied?  Is the appliance still working?  Was the technician clean, neat, personable and knowledgeable?  Sometimes this is the only way you can know if your technician is an asset or liability to your business.  And if they have some type of complaint, dealing with it right then and there will better their impression of your business.  Ignoring it will probably not get you back in their door again.

So, take a look at you and your first impressions and wow your customers!

Have a great week!

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