It’s very possible to make money in these difficult economic times. However, customer retention is more important than ever. With fewer and fewer customers out on the market in nearly every market, retaining a customer is much easier and less expensive than trying to replace a customer.

For startups, the ability to retain customers is one of the most important things investors will look at when assessing the long-term viability of the company. For example, a startup could be making money but if their customers are constantly complaining and leaving, eventually those customers will run out. On the other hand, a startup who has a group of loyal customers and that group is growing at a steady pace, that’s a much better sign.

Here are a few customer retention tips for startups:

• Provide what you promise. This sounds simple but it really isn’t. Startups sometimes promise the world when they don’t have the capabilities to follow through.
• Communicate. Customers want their questions answered and they want to be able to contact a company with relative ease.
• Listen and adjust. If a number of customers are having the same issues, listening and adjusting is almost always the right move. As the saying goes, the customer is always right.
• Go above and beyond. A company that is willing to go the extra mile typically can boast a high customer retention rate. Making sure your customers are happy is the easiest way to keep those customers around.

Keep Your Customers Happy! (Image: Flickr)

If you have an online startup business, you have probably considered adding a live chatroom to your website. Live chatrooms are a good idea, however they do have their drawbacks. Here are some tips if you are going to add a chatroom:

1) 24-hour Moderation
If you have a chat system, you should have a representative on hand around the clock. The only way around that is to only have the chatroom open during certain hours of the day.

2) Customer Interaction?
Do you want your customers to be able to chat with each other? In most cases you don’t, however in some cases customer interaction can actually be healthy.

3) Don’t Look Only for Free Solutions
There are a lot of free chatroom solutions, however the more professional options cost money. You want a chatroom that integrates with the look and feel of your website.

4) Offer Alternate Support Options
Not everyone is comfortable with getting support via a chatroom. In addition to chat, your website should offer email support and, if possible, phone support.

Chatroom Tips (Image: Flickr)

Customer service in any line of business is always extremely important. For a startup business, the quality of customer service oftentimes can mean the difference between success and failure. After interviewing many successful startup business owners, here are the top five customer service tips that were discussed the most:

5. Avoid form letters. It’s tempting to try to answer all the questions from customers by using form letters and canned responses. However, customers can see right through such tactics and it comes across as unprofessional.

4. Use phones. It is tempting, especially for internet startup businesses, to try to handle everything via email. But to gain customer confidence, having a contact phone number is still very important.

Customer Service - Image: Flickr

3. Be fair. Don’t always make decisions based on your the bottom line. Being fair with your customers can help the reputation of your business and eventually bring in more money down the line.

2. The customer is always right. The old saying is true, especially when a business is a startup. Listen to the questions, concerns and complaints of your customers. At the end of the day, it’s what they think that matters the most.

1. Be timely. This customer service tip simply cannot be understated. If a customer wants service, it should happen in a timely fashion. Waiting multiple days for an email response or phone calls going completely unreturned are red flag that can doom a startup.

Tis the season.  But if you are in small business, you should really take a close look at this cool guy: Santa Claus. His marketing tactics and branding are awesome. And if you just emulate one of his strategies, you could really make a difference in your marketing efforts.
Find out what it is in this week’s Monday Media Marketing Minute.

And don’t forget to sign up for my ezine, for that very special giveaway I mention! go to http://www.beheardsolutions.com

Merry everything and happy always!

Image credit: Shannon Cherry, Be Heard Solutions

Many businesses say thanks to their customers during the holiday season. (Personally, I’ve already gotten several cards and gifts from businesses already!)

That’s all well and good. But if you are only remembering your customers and clients this time of year, you are missing out. And probably are getting lost in the shuffle.

You should be truly thankful and grateful for those who use your products or services all year long.  So create a gratitude program for the entire year.

Here are some things you can include in your gratitude program:

1. Send out thank you cards and emails every time a customer makes a purchase. Many companies also include a coupon for a return shopping visit.
2. Have everyone in your company who touches the customer say thank you from the sales person to the delivery person. The more thanks, the better.
3. Send a gift every once in a while, with no strings attached. I recently did this for Halloween. It was a big hit.

Saying thank you is powerful. But you have to make it a habit. And since few people are taking the time to say thank you, you WILL stand out!

As a professional blogger, I get a ton of pitches. (And even welcome them!)

But I recently got a pitch I responded positively too from  PR person over at DittoePR. They seem to be a great firm, but I think this practitioner forgot the basics.

She did the pitch right by sending a specific letter targeted to me and for my audience. I responded positively. She followed up with a request for a phone meeting that day, plus additional info. Perfectly done.

But when I said I couldn’t make a meeting that day, it seemed to fall apart.  I offered other days that I could be available, and mentioned today was a good day for me. I didn’t hear back by days end (which was Friday), and moved on to enjoying my life at home.

She did reply, but after ‘regular’ hours on the East coast. But her reply was more of a demand. She gave me a phone number to call on Monday at a specific time. OK, I thought, a little pushy, but I’m open at that time.

So at the designated hour, I called. No answer. I waited a few minutes and called again. Still no answer.  After a third attempt, I sent this woman an email asking what’s up. I got a response a couple of hours later saying that she called off the meeting because I didn’t confirm.

First, she didn’t ask for a confirmation. She just TOLD me to call. Second, hello there? Even if she did ask me to confirm - and I didn’t, isn’t it her job to find out from me?

So why am I telling you this? Partly to vent… but there is another reason:

PR is about building relationships first. That’s why you don’t always NEED a publicist to help you - because if you’re good at the relationship part, the rest will be easier.

Are you busier than ever?  When you’re running a business and trying to get all that extra stuff down at year’s end, we often hurry through the day. (Yes, it’s only a couple more months until 2009! Can you believe it?!?)

And that means we’re not listening as well.

But what if you took the time to listen to your customers – especially when they are least expecting it?

Think about what it would mean to them – and your business.

With Better Conversations week coming up soon, here are some tips to help you get started building a real relationship with your customers:

• Ask questions of the people that matter - customers and employees.
• Listen to their answers and question more.
• Act quickly on those things you can fix quickly.
• Build into your short-, medium- and long-term strategies the things you are finding out.
• Work to ensure that your people are empowered to do this all the time, day in, day out and to feedback to where it will be noticed

This month’s Penny Pinching Publicity fill-in-the-blank release can help you promote the fact you are listening and engaging in better conversations. In addition, you’ll get, marketing advice, media contacts, and a marketing ebook every month. Go to www.pennypinchingpublicity.com for more information.

A couple of weeks ago, I had a conversation with Mary Emma at HomeBizNotes about the need to think a bit outside the box when it comes to promotional items.

And since I recently discussed how businesses will be sending holiday items despite of the economy and other cutbacks, I began to wonder what the top gifts for customers/clients will be this year.

Here’s what I think will be most valued by customers/clients:

1. Gift certificate/gift cards -with money tight, these might be the most cherished thing this holiday season
2. Something green - eco-friendly gifts will also be popular
3. Gifts that give back - Gifts that also help a charity will get a lot of kudos

Promotional product experts say your gift needs to be something that stays top of mind all year round (which is why calendars and pens are so popular). But I want you to take it a step further.

Sure, it’s great to have your company name or logo seen every day by your customer. But we’re bombarded with 20,000+ marketing messages every day, so yours might be just a blur in the sea of logos. You need to make it personal and unique - something that gets people talking.

For years now, I’ve been on the hunt for something with cherries in it or on it, but no such luck. (After all, my last name is Cherry - and my name is really my brand.) So if you know of something that might work, please share.

Oh yes! Don’t forget to share what gift items you think will be popular!

Cause marketing is a big buzz words these days - and big business.

And no wonder! A recent study found that 80 percent of people surveyed would switch brands (if quality and costs were comparable) if the product or service was associated with a good cause.

The Cone Cause Evolution Study shows that about 85 percent of respondents said they have a more positive image of a company when it supports a cause they care about. The same percentage said it was acceptable for companies to promote their affiliation with nonprofit organizations in their ads.

And more than one-third bought a product or service because it was related to a cause near and dear to their hearts.

More on how small business can take advantage of this tomorrow.

Just a couple of days ago, I talked about customer satisfaction.

Here are a few ways to keep customers happy, even if you can’t give them a ‘total customer experience.’

1. Stay in contact with customers on a regular basis. I do this with a weekly ezine that offers additional PR and marketing tips. You could also simply follow up after every sale as well.
2.  Create a customer focus group. Grab several of your most loyal clients and have them meet with you regularly to get feedback from them.
3. Make it easy for them to contact you. Have your contact details available online, on business cards, on invoices, etc.
4. Give more than customers expect. Send thank you cards and bonus gifts. Offer them something extra on their birthdays or anniversaries.