Marketing is all about meeting the NEEDS of the customer and heres a few tips to bear in mind 1) ALWAYS treat customer at the top of your business 2) ANSWER all their questions 3) REFUND them if they object 4) NEVER let them down THATS THE KEY TO SUCCESS
Yeah. You'll go bankrupt with the policy "customer is always right" - after a while you'll realize they are hardly ever right; they just can't read correctly.
that works fine as a talking point, but in reality, if the customer is always right, the customer will end up always walking all over you.
While your intentions are good, I'm going to disagree with you on a few points. Of course you should treat all customers well, but not as though they're your "top" priority. Ironically, several consultants I've worked with (from major firms) suggest that's actually a mistake, because acting that way can cause clients to distrust you. Clients know very well that they're not your only client, or "best" client in most cases, and if they think you treat everyone like that, it can hurt your credibility. As for refunds... no, you shouldn't always give a refund just because they object. That depends on what you're providing, and why they object. If they're simply one of those clients who will never be satisfied with anything, that's not your fault as long as you make an honest effort to meet all of their needs, and you thoroughly interview them up front about what they wanted. Also, clients who repeatedly delay projects and change their requirements don't deserve refunds in a large number of cases. That's also the reason why kill fees and similar things exist. A refund isn't a cure-all, and can make you a pushover if you do it too often. You have to know the difference between that and running an ethically sound operation - don't take advantage of clients, but also don't let them take advantage of you. And in the end, no, the client is not always right... sort of in line with what toopac said. There are a large number of situations where business owners, freelancers, and consultants are completely justified in "firing" clients, and most successful ones independently or in large firms do this regularly in addition to rejecting them from the start.
The problem is the customer is not always right, so that is a horrible cliche and should not be the foundation of any business. You always want to be accommodating to your customers but saying they are always right is wrong. Nobody is always right, most especially your customers. So sometimes you have to go out of your way to help them, even when they are wrong.
I have to disagree with this. My customers are my absolute top priority. I make money when they pull out their credit card and order/re-order my stuff. Top priority doesn't mean that the customer is always right, just the realization that No customer = No business, hence top priority goes to my customers.
There are customers you WANT to get rid of. Some customers are just losers and cost you money. You do not want to "cultivate" anything with them, other than a quick exit.
You are absolutely correct. I my experience, these types represent such a small percentage of business, it really isn't an issue to get hung up on. I refund and move on.
Here's a quick story from 2 years ago (christmas) I had a customer order 2-3 times in rapid succession. She returned everything she bought each time. she ordered the last time and said she wanted a discount because she was a good customer. I told her that, no she wasnt, she was a bad customer - always returning everything. If she wanted a discount, she was free to shop elsewhere, but it wasn't coming from us. she hasn't ordered again, thankfully.
While I agree that customers are wrong in MANY situations, it's usually best to treat them with respect. Maybe object to what they have to say and try to explain, but don't go running your mouth or anything. Because that's a way to build a bad reputation. Although if they're wrong, I wouldn't refund them . And there are customers that you don't want, but you don't want them telling other potential good customers that the service is terrible.
Yes - but maybe your experince is with the PR side of "clients" or customers. In an online or an offline business customers are normal people and if you build good crediblity amongst them they will be repeat buyers! Those repeat buyers will spread word about your business through word of mouth and when word of mouth spreads more and more people become aware of your product - people start talking about your service in a good way. Those "bad" customers are only a few but those few customers can ruin the crediblity of your business too by spreading news about your product. If a customer was treated bad by you then you should be in a position to be professional and rectify their problem. The saying is "Marketing is all about meeting the NEEDS of the customer and if we dont meet their needs we make no profit.
Actually my experience is not only with PR... I have freelance clients for writing work, editing work, etc., as well as being heavily networked in the consulting world due to past work (as in high level management consultants with major international firms, independent consultants, those in HR, PR, Marketing, Management, IT, etc.). And that's not to mention networks with other freelancers on the writing / editing side. And it's the same in nearly all situations. No matter what kind of business you run, customers are "normal" people. That's why they're not always right. And I didn't say you shouldn't build credibility... actually, I gave an example of how not to screw that credibility up. A "bad" customer doesn't mean they were treated bad by you. Some people are just jerks. But more often the problem is that there are people who figure if they complain every step of the way, they'll get something for free... and they don't just do it to you, they do it in other capacities as well. I never said treat them badly. I said don't refund them if they're wrong, and "fire" them if you have to. Big difference. And a refund doesn't "rectify the problem" in many cases. It does in some, but you can't look at it and say it's always the right thing to do... it simply isn't, and when you're in business long enough, you'll learn that the hard way. Marketing isn't just about meeting needs... it's about educating your clients to know what those needs really are, because in many cases, they're truly clueless and don't understand how marketing, PR, advertising, etc. works. Many clients don't even understand the fundamentals, and when you work as a consultant in the field, it's not only your job to get results, but to teach the client what to expect, what's realistic, and to show them a better way to reach their goals if their current plan wasn't well thought out or researched. If they knew what they needed and how to get it, they wouldn't need to hire a marketing pro... that's why consultants are paid the big bucks; they know what the clients don't.
Big business actually got big on the "customer is always right" idea. Look at Wal-Mart, 10 years ago you could return ANYTHING at ANYTIME with or without a receipt and get a refund. Did it get abused? Sure! Did they gain new business from the millions of people that knew if they had problems they would get what they wanted? Yep! When someone throws that old quote around it isn't literal. It simply means you should take care of your customers as mentioned in the OP. I have eaten tens of thousands of dollars over the year but I have made more money from it in the long run. The problem you run into online is that everyone and their brother owns a "business". When a dial up connection, $200 computer, and electricity = a business you run into people that have no clue how to manage customers. If you get a customer that causes you problems for whatever reason it is better to fix them then never do business with them again than to say "nope, can't refund you sorry". This is just something you will rarely see from "business owners" working from their bedroom.
I think you misunderstood what I was saying. Your clients, in an overall and general sense, are obviously high priority in any business. My point is that you shouldn't go out of your way to tell individual clients that they're your #1 priority, unless it's an incredibly huge account and they really are, b/c otherwise it's just a marketing ploy and a load of BS that clients in the professional world see right through. It's been overused and overdone, and clients are rarely idiots in the sense of knowing hype from reality... although what you can "get away with" saying depends a lot on your industry. The main thing is that you shouldn't be trying to "get away with" anything. Always be honest. Don't make them think they're your best client if they're not. You can build a good relationship with them, and maybe they will be someday, and you can do that without lying to them. And you can't tell every client they're your top priority without being dishonest. People know that, and that's why it's generally a bad idea to pull that kind of line in your marketing... it hurts your credibility with any client smart enough to see through it.
"Buyers are liars" - that's more like it. "It's in brand new condition so can I have a refund?" - "If that's the case, yeah, just send it back and we'll check it." Needless to say what state it's in 8/10 times. Then again, the saying "Buyers are liars" finishes with "and sellers are worse" so take your pick
I don't think anyone was talking about using the line in marketing. They were using it to explain how important customers are in the conversation on this thread.