Keep Communicating To Keep Contracts
This information was sent by Ron Lyons of Rue-Vac, Inc.:I've been in business for 15 years, and during that time have seen a good number of competitors come and go. One of the reasons why we have grown and prospered, in my opinion, is because we've always kept a good line of communication open with our accounts.
I think some people are either afraid, or don't want to take the time, to talk to their customers once they've signed them to a contract. Afraid - because they might hear something negative and have the client be unhappy. Don't take the time - because they are busy getting on to finding the next prospect for their services. My philosophy, on the other hand, is to contact my customers often. That way I am able to make sure service is satisfactory and also let them know about any special needs I see.
With the former, I can find out right away if there's a problem with service. This helps me to correct any deficiency before it gets serious. Plus, when they are happy I am often given referrals while I have them on the phone.
When I say that I call about special needs, I mean it's that I make sure to let them know if they have some lights burned out, a broken sprinkler line, a need to change the time of sprinklers coming on to give a better sweep, pavement recently broken, cars which have been in the lot over a period of time, etc. By the way, many of our clients really appreciate that we will put a 'Please Remove' notice onto parked cars if they'd like us to.
If someone gives it a try, I predict that they'll find effective communication to be a great way to keep and expand clientele.
Have an idea that would be helpful to others in the industry? Please let us know what it is.
