The customer is in charge and the customer is talking - about you. There's great value in engaging the customer. Engaged customers buy more, tend to be more loyal and recommend their friends to you. The "thumbs up " on Facebook is one of the ways the customer spreads the word about you and one of the reasons you want to make sure you are engaging the customers in ways you never did before.

71% Take a Friend’s Recommendation

The customer’s opinion is more important than it ever was before. 71% of people said they take a friend’s recommendation for a product or service. Customers today are involved and engaged in a way never before possible and it’s changing the game. For the better, I think.   The customer’s in charge and the customer…

William James, the great American psychologist once said that “the greatest of human needs is the need for appreciation.”

Can You Create a Culture of Appreciation?

William James, the great American psychologist once said that “the greatest of human needs is the need for appreciation.” Wow – he was really on the right track with that one!   Whether we are talking about personal or business relationships we all crave appreciation. We all want to know we are valued. We all want…

We are all beginning to realize the value of developing long term, loyal relationships with our customer. They buy more and refer more, help us develop the next generation of products and services, and they even help us keep our advertising costs down. But are our customers the only people we should be building long term relationships with? No.

Customer Care – Inside and Out

We are all beginning to realize the value of developing long term, loyal relationships with our customers. They buy more and refer more, help us develop the next generation of products and services, and they even help us keep our advertising costs in reason. But are our customers (people external to our company that buy things from us) the only people we should be building long term relationships with? No. The relationship strategy applies externally and internally as well.

Isn’t it ludicrous to believe that we could ask workers to care about customers if they don’t feel cared about? Isn’t it crazy to think that we can ask people to take “ownership” of the customer and the customer’s problems; if we don’t take ownership and create a workplace where people can feel their sense of self-worth grow? And where they can learn and develop as people as well as performers?

Customer Care and Employee Care Go Hand in Hand

I just returned from speaking at another Inc. Magazine Conference on Customer Service Strategies. I enjoyed three days of learning and networking with some of the best and the brightest minds in the field, and in the entrepreneurial community. There was one thing in particular that was so rewarding for me this year. The absolute recognition and affirmation in almost every session that I attended that without creating an environment where the workers feel valued and good about coming to work, you cannot even hope to deliver a level of service that will build true customer loyalty.

If you are a customer facing person, you know that there's never been a time when great customer service mattered more than it does now. The economy is recovering, but consumer confidence is still down, and the customers who are buying have scores of choices of where to buy and how to buy. And now, almost every product and service out there has been "commoditized" so it's hard to determine who actually offers the best value (and so, many people just shop based on price alone.)

7 Things Every Customer Facing Person Needs to Know Now

The “Get Real” Guide to Having a Good Day Every Day

By JoAnna Brandi

There’s never been a time when great customer service mattered more than it does now. The economy is recovering, but consumer confidence is still down, and the customers who are buying have scores of choices of where to buy and how to buy. And now, almost every product and service out there has been “commoditized” so it’s hard to determine who actually offers the best value (and so, many people just shop based on price alone.)

What’s happiness got to do with customer care and loyalty? Everything. The level of happiness you feel is largely in your control. When you’re happy it’s much easier to create happiness for the customer. According to Martin Seligman, the founder of “positive psychology” with whom I studied to become an Authentic Happiness Coach, there’s plenty of evidence being happy has far reaching business benefits.

Is Workplace Happiness a Business Decision? 8 Tips That Will Increase “Business Resilience”

Want a more positive workplace where you and your co-workers feel happy and motivated? Want to make customers happier so that their loyalty – and your profits – grow? Want to work more efficiently and effectively and improve your health? Authentic Happiness Coach and Customer Loyalty expert JoAnna Brandi shares tips for transforming these wants into “haves” Her overall message: Happiness creates resilient employees who, in turn, create resilient, thriving companies.