KEEP IN TOUCH WITH YOUR CUSTOMER 

Roger is your regular customer. For any travel related enquiry he calls you. Anytime he wishes to travel he comes to you like a homing pigeon. He has purchased all his tickets from your agency over the past 5 years. He is one of your valued customers. This relationship has evolved as he has always returned satisfied with his queries answered and travel plans arranged to the last detail. Even at times if we are a bit expensive he is assured that he is in good hands. Roger has referred many customers, individuals and companies who have been equally satisfied. 

While it is good to take care of Roger and other customers when they visit you, it is important to stay in touch with them after a sale and in between sales. Other than when they visit you, reach out to them and render added service. 

How could we do this? Keep them informed about new products and services. Send regular newsletters and brochures on new products, mail market updates. While doing this, remember not to avalanche them with mailers that will set them off.  Since this is more of an automated process, it losses the personal touch. 

It is then essential to mix it with social visits and personal letters. To top the list, a key vehicle to keep in touch is periodical calls to your customers. Do all this and anything else you can think of but keep in touch and let them know that their satisfaction is our concern. It is our first priority.  We are here to help them get better value for their money. 

With a telephone call or social visit the customer reaches a higher level of satisfaction, as you have been thoughtful enough to take the time and effort for it. He feels important. 

Keeping him informed also means educating your customer, which is an important key to building an image of quality service. The more he knows about your product and services the better he understands its value. He is also informed about what is happening in the business and an informed customer feels more in control. He is in a better position to derive value for his money. He develops faith and trust as you are informing him and not keeping him in the dark. 

How does keeping in touch help the business beyond projecting a quality service image?

We get to talk to a customer in his domain. His frame of mind would be different as we are in his environment. He is now in a position to think back and give useful feedback on our product or service, which might not have been possible while conducting a transaction during his visit. 

This also becomes a medium for us to understand our position in the market. We cannot expect our competitors to tell us their business strategies, product launch, quality standards, pricing etc. Keeping in touch with the customer does this. They give us valuable information about competition. What products are being launched? How is it priced? Does it have additional features? What services do others offer? What promotions are expected? Market trend, buying pattern… 

In short keeping in touch with your customer helps him feeling good, informed and updated on our products and services and in return helps us with market information to gear up accordingly and get ahead of others. 

This is not always possible when the customer visits you on work. It is only possible when we reach out and keep in touch with him. 

Give him that extra attention and concern.