Loyalty lives forever

Customer retention should be your number one focus in business regardless of being a service or product company. Service based businesses such as carpet cleaning, pest control, lawn care, house cleaning, dog walkers, etc.  really have to pay close attention to retention. Your customers have so many options to choose from so be aware of how you treat them.

There are four tips to keep in mind when trying to retain a customer. You must continue to get them excited, take fault for any mistakes, know your customers, and let the customers know you.

1.       Get them excited

Everyone likes gifts, free, something funny, or something memorable. When you are trying to retain customers you must have some or all of this. If you have a repeat customer, sometimes you have to throw in something extra. Give them a little something for a referral.  Say something off the wall to them and they will say that to you every time they see you for years to come.

2.       Take the fault for any mistakes

It’s okay to say “I’m sorry.”  I don’t always agree with the saying “the customer is always right”, but as an owner we have the ability to right the wrong. Is fixing, re-doing, or refunding really going to make or break your business? Probably not. If so, you have some other issues going on. Once you fix it, a few days later follow-up to make sure all is well with the customer. When you see them don’t avoid them, go up to them and say hello. It obvious when a person is being avoided.

3.       Know your customers

Building rapport and knowing something about your customers goes a long way. First, they will be surprised you cared enough to remember. It keeps an on-going dialogue to where if there is an issue they will overlook it or they TRUST you will take care of it. Also, once you know your customers, you will have an idea how to approach them. Will your customer be receptive to jokes? Do they know pop-culture lingo? These are things you find out during conversation.  In an online environment, you have more control over who may see your content.  Those customers tend to gravitate to those that are like-minded.

4.       Be authentic

Seriously, people buy people not products. As I said before there are tons of folks you can get service from. For example, my father owned a business for 30 years.  He did well, never grew. They had one truck. How did they survive? Their customers loved them!  When my father passed, his customers came to the service, sent cards, food, etc. He was loved. They only accepted cash and check, no square or Paypal. They just started using a scanner in 2015. So keeping customers has nothing to do with having all the software and technology. It’s about you!

Once you put these four things together you will have repeat customers, referrals and increased profits. You should always put first is serving your customers. Take care of them. Don’t  treati them like a number, but as people. If you do things the right way and treat people the right way, growth will come.

No time for the one time.

Allow Me to Introduce Myself

I am Janet, the face behind the brand The Executive Coordinator a virtual assistant and business solutions company. I help entrepreneurs and small businesses with remote administrative support, office management and management consulting specializing in conflict resolution. My goal is to help your business grow while you focus on what you know and what you do best.

My claim to fame is being the “clean up woman.” I can take a company that does not have the proper tools in place or just needs help and make it profitable. I can clean up processes, build rapport teams, and build relationships with the customers. I listen. I act. I work hard. I make quick decisions, get rid of bad practices, and focus on doing things the right way. Let’s grow together.

 Alrighty… let’s get to the background.

A few months ago, I left my corporate job. One day, they offered a voluntary separation package. I thought about it for about six hours and said “this is my way out, hallelujah!”  To have the choice to leave when all is going pretty well is a good feeling. No bad feelings from me. I had a decent package where I would have money and medical for a while.  Sounds like a winning situation.

I learned so much. I was able to grow and mature. I was able to develop my skills. The things I learned are invaluable. So why did I leave? There were a few things that didn’t tickle my fancy. I would always question, why am I helping the rich get richer? I am growing this business unit by 20% year over year and I don’t see any benefits. My team works so hard don’t see any benefits except working overtime and lots of lunches.  I’m not getting paid anymore (one year I was insulted with a .25% merit increase).  All I’m getting is less hours at home and insomnia.  That’s when The Executive Coordinator, LLC was born. Let me use my gift to help others. Help support businesses to grow exponentially. I want to help others reach their six and seven figure income.

 I am confident in my abilities. I am confident that I can do what is best for others. I am confident that I will do well. But who knows me? Why should you choose to work with me over another? Am I putting my money and energy into the right things initially? My adversities are getting my name out there. Allowing you to get to know me. Challenging myself to do things I’ve never done before. In the past, my work spoke for itself.  Now, I need to let the “Silent Killer” be known.

That picture is authentically me. I have flaws, I work hard as hell, and I love what I do. I was practicing making a live stream for this picture. LOL. I have the coolest 12 year old son and the sweetest pit-mix puppy Bella Skye. On the weekends, I am a basketball mom and my kid's free uber driver. I'm working on transforming out of corporate mode so thanks for coming on this journey with me! I want to give credit to Pastor Monte Witherspoon Brown at Steele Creek AME Zion Church for the quote. That sermon was right on time!

Why are you so mad?

Many times adults hold onto things from our past to keep them from moving forward. Circumstances happen. We all have experienced death, divorce, addiction, lay-off, financial hardships and the list goes on. Holding on to these trials will keep you from prospering. If you dwell on it, it remains a topic of conversation…That honestly no one wants to hear all the time. It brings you frustrations, self-doubt, and hater tendencies. Then you wonder why no one wants to help you or those you thought cared about you are no longer in your corner. This leads you to being a loner and maybe even depression.

It's up to YOU to decide to find the GLITTER again. Glitter shines, it's gets on everything, you have to pick it off (or wash it). Glitter is on Christmas cards and costumes. Glitter is fun and cultivates happiness. You should find that glitter that is within you. Once you find the glitter there is no stopping you! Throw glitter in today’s face!

Stop being BITTER! The person that hurt you has moved on, you should too. You are holding back your blessings. Stifling your progress. And making yourself and most likely the ones around you miserable.

Move on. Keep pressing. Or find help professional help (I’m a huge advocate of this) to help guide you through it.

Shine bright like a diamond!

A Change is Gonna Come

Very few things work the first time. You may spend lots of time planning and drafting a detailed outline, but "Oh $h!t" happens. The client might be late, doesn't have the payment on time, the vendor is behind with the inventory, or your marketing isn't quite what you wanted.

Here are 3 things you can do when you have to pivot your initial plans:

1. Don't freak out. Things happen. In most cases the deal will still go through. Stay calm and relaxed. You are the business owner therefore you set the tone.

2 . Effectively communicate the screw up. Take accountability. The customer doesn't care about the details they just need to know when it will be rectified.

3. Use your plan B. When you were working on your plans you should have thought of a contingency plan.

 I'm thinking of a master plan.

Hope is not a Deliverable

When I was a Director, my pet peeve was having a meeting and the team (or someone on the team) would say "I hope to get to the number" or "I hope these appointments show". Hope is not a strategy.  Hope has no planning, hope has no value in business. When you have something that you need to deliver rather it is products, launching a product, gaining customers, branding it's all about what is your plan and how are you working it. There is nothing wrong with needing help as it might not be your area of expertise. There is nothing wrong with failing and having to try something new. There is something wrong with doing nothing and hoping someone else will do it. WORK. WORK. WORK. Yes, it's hard. Yes, you will have bad days. Yes, you will want to have a drink or two or three. But at some point, it will be worth it. You will meet your goal.

Stay classy my friends.