Show Your Customers How They Can Save Money

The most important aspect of sales is going out and getting the customer. But getting customers is meaningless if you can't keep them. With each customer interaction you are either building or compromising your reputation and the reputation of your company. Due to tightening budgets and increased expenses, customers will greatly appreciate any effort you make that can help them to save money.

It's important to build trust with your customers by helping them to identify ways to get the most value when they make a purchase. When you show your customers how they can save money, you demonstrate that you have their best interest in mind. Customers are quickly turned off when they think all you care about is making the sale.

For example, I called Apple technical support to inquire why my son was unable to access the iTunes Store online. It had worked fine for two years, but lately he's been experiencing problems. The technical support representative who took the call looked up his serial number and said, "I'm sorry. His telephone technical support coverage has expired. You will need pay for additional coverage and I will be unable to assist you at this time."

I quickly replied, "Okay, but before I hang up, may I just ask you a quick question?"
"Sure." she said. Then she proceeded to spend twenty minutes on the phone helping me at no charge.

When I asked her why she decided to stick with me and waive the fee she said, "This was an unusual circumstance and, regardless of our policy, I just don't feel right brushing off a customer who has a legitimate complaint."

Was it worth it for her to waive the fee? You bet. I will be a loyal Apple customer for a long time to come just because she saved me time and money. She even went the extra mile when she followed up with an email that offered more suggestions on how to resolve this type of problem.

Here are some ways that you can create partnerships with your customers by helping them to save money:

• Bundle services or products and offer your customer a package discount.
• Show your customer time-saving ways to access your services.
• Teach your customers how they can handle their tasks more efficiently in order to save them money.
• Offer to use a less expensive shipping option.
• Pass along an annual "loyal customer" discount. Unexpectedly apply a 20% discount to an order just to thank your customer for doing business with you.
• Periodically waive a service or shipping fee.
• Give your customer more than he or she ordered. For example, I ordered workbooks from my printer for a seminar. The day I picked them up I received a call from my client saying there would be five additional participants. I asked the owner if she could quickly print five more books. She replied, "No problem, we already printed extra copies just in case something like this came up for you." She did not charge me for the extra workbooks.
• Throw in a surprise bonus for your regular customers, such as gift card, box of chocolates or a calendar.
• Be creative. A major client of mine mentioned that he was starting a remodeling project in his home. After I completed an on-site seminar for his company, I sent him a card thanking him for his business and enclosed a $25 Home Depot gift card to help him purchase supplies for his project.
• Offer discounts for large or pre-paid orders.
• Keep in mind that time is money for most people. Teach your customer time-saving tips. You can take it a step further by taking care of work they are normally asked to do, such as filling out paperwork.
• Don't nickel and dime your customers by tacking on small, insignificant service fees. For example, I do not charge my customers for mileage expenses when I present a program at a location within a 100 mile radius of my office.
• Ask your customers for suggestions on how you can provide more cost-effective services.
  Whatever you do, never come back to a customer and tell him or her that you need to charge more because you miscalculated the original quote. I worked with a vendor who was going to handle some editing for me. He quoted me a price of $65. When the job was completed, he sent me an invoice in the amount of $90. I called and said, "You made a mistake. You said it would cost $65."
• He replied, "Oh, yeah. I'm sorry, I misquoted and forgot to take into account your request for adding the sidebar quotes. It's actually $90 and that's a bargain." It didn't feel like a bargain to me and he was determined to stick to the invoiced amount. He got his $90, but at what price? I will never refer any customers to this gentleman and I now work with a different editor.

Your customers rely on you to be completely honest and they will love you when you can show them ways to save money.

Most businesses work in a vacuum. They spend their time just trying to keep up with day-to-day demands—rarely do they get a chance to observe what other businesses are doing and learn from them. From time to time, we need to pause, to step back from our routine, and look outside our walls. What’s going on “out there”? What are others doing in the business neighborhood? We should open a window and look out. We might all belong to different industries, but we share a single goal: to cement customer loyalty. What’s more, the principles that create customer loyalty cross industry lines. In that respect, we can all learn from each other, whether we bake pound cake for a living or operate an airline. You'll learn creative ways to exceed your customers' expectations when you order the instantly downloadable eBook, The Extra Mile-15 True Stories of Exceptional Customer Service.

Think Before You Speak

The package I dropped off at the post office had $3.00 too much postage on it. I had mistakenly used a flat-rate priority mail box, instead of the lower rate box. Since it weighed over a pound, I was required to hand it directly to one of the postal employees. After I turned in my package, I walked over to another area to pick up some envelopes.

The employee who had accepted my package apparently thought I had left. Holding my package up in the air, she yelled across the post office to a co-worker, "What an idiot. That woman put way too much postage on her package. She used the wrong box." Her embarrassed co-worker pointed out that I was standing less than 20 feet away and had heard her insult. So had all the other customers who were standing in line. Everyone was silent as they waited to see what would happen.

It was tempting to defend myself, but I was so angry that, rather than say anything, I just kept quiet. I smiled at the woman who had insulted me. Rather than apologizing, she started lecturing me by saying, "Well, you should have used the right box and weighed your package more carefully. You just wasted money."

Again, I didn't reply. Instead I headed for the door. Because I'm a regular customer, another employee ran after me to apologize on behalf of his co-worker. His explanation? "She doesn't always think before she speaks."

This was a blatant example of name calling, but less obvious examples of this problem take place in workplaces all the time. Your customers pick up on more than you think they do. If two employees are whispering to one another, customers may think they are the subject of the conversation.

When the offensive postal worker called on the next person in line, the customer responded, "No, thank you. I'll wait for a different window!" The other customers giggled and one gentleman applauded. I felt redeemed.

An employee who gossips or makes snide remarks about anyone in front of customers will quickly earn a reputation as unprofessional, immature and offensive. If at all possible, regular customers will go out of their way to avoid interactions with that employee. An employee who maintains a friendly, nonjudgmental demeanor, at all times, will earn the respect and appreciation of customers. He or she will also earn the positive attention of the boss. These types of employees are more likely to be promoted.

If your customer or a co-worker makes an obvious mistake, position yourself as a coach, rather than a critic. The postal employee could have earned huge points in my book if she had simply said, "Let me show you how you can save money on your future shipments."