Tagged by Others: customer relationship, home based business, Official Solo-Entrepreneur Expert - Terri Zwierzynski Terri Zwierzynski is a solo entrepreneur and marketing consultant to solo business owners. She runs Solo-E.com, the entrepreneur resource website which attracts thousands of solo home business owners monthly from all over the world with proven, practical business tips and marketing ideas. Get a copy of our new ebook, "25 Surefire Ways to Capture More Clients, Get More Done in Less Time, and Make More Money -- in 90 Days or Less." Featured Books The Life Coach's Guide fill!) your coaching business. Learn how to choose a niche market that's ideal for you and create client winning language, while you gain tools to get out of your own way and use powerful thinking to become a TOP COACH. Grab your free advanced step today! More LEAP! 101 Ways to Grow Your Business More than 50 business owners, experts and authors reveal top strategies to help you take your business to the next level. More From Entrepreneur to Infopreneur: Make Money With Books, eBooks and Information Learn how to generate passive income by creating and selling books, ebooks, teleseminars, workbooks and other information products. Includes interviews with successful infopreneurs--Dan Poynter, Joe Vitale, Joan Stewart, Tom Antion and many others. More Working Websites for Coaches - How to persuade visitors to buy your products and services. - How to choose and manage your web designer. - How to launch your website and ezine together. ... all in one best selling, step by step guide. Make your coaching website work for you now! More 7 Secrets To eBook Authoring rategies almost always over looked that determine either a success or failure in eBook authoring. ($27 USD Value)Get this for FREE as it is part of the Basic Authoring For Business Profit e-Class (Value $700) from http://www.AwakenTheAuthorWithin.com. More 145 Ways to Market Your Small or Solo Business E-book packed with 145 marketing ideas! Plus our exclusive guide to choosing the best marketing ideas for you, and a detailed 10-Step Marketing Plan workbook and lots of resources. More GENIUS NOW: The Mastermind Blueprint GENIUS NOW is an exact method for any group or business to achieve "uber Success" by creating genius-level events! More Audios 8 Places to Look for Systems to Maximize Your Success Tips for Planning Your Own Creative Business Retreat The Importance of Networking with Others MP3 File 5 Most Common Mistakes Solo-Entrepreneurs Make MP3 File Have You Nailed Your Niche? MP3 File Do You Have the Five Characteristics of an Entrepreneur? MP3 File

Terri Zwierzynski on customer service"> Request Reprint Print About Author Email to a Friend Report Problem Related Books The Customer is Always Right, (Especially when you think they aren't!) by Terri Zwierzynski Send Feedback to Terri Zwierzynski customer service More Details about customer service here. Translate to Spanish Translate to French Translate to German Translate to Italian Translate to Portuguese Get Your Vision Board Iphone/Ipod App and start moving toward your dreams today! Books by this Author 136 Ways to Market Your Solo or Small Business™ UPDATED with 145 marketing ideas! Plus our exclusive guide to choosing the best marketing ideas for you, and a detailed 10-Step Marketing Plan workbook.   25 Surefire Ways to Capture More Customers, Get More Done in Less Time... and Make More Money -- in 90 Days or Less! Proven business tips and marketing ideas for Solo Entrepreneurs: generating leads, increasing income-per-customer, and reducing wasted time and expense. FREE EBOOK!   Feature Articles Compassionate Business in Action... Fast Track Your Journey to Home Business Succ... Simplify Your Holidays,Stuffing is for TURKEY... Money Can Be Made on the Web... How To Use The Socratic Method To Create And ... How Does A Business Goddess Make Decisions?... Rebrand Your Company to Boost Your Bottom Lin... Cinnamon Rolls, Breast Cancer and Your Busine... Click here for more >> It takes a long time for a self employed business owner to build up a reputation for great customer service. I am a caring person, and putting customer service first is something I hold very dear as an important aspect of how I do business. And recently, I almost blew it. In a fit of irritation over a client's request for help, I made a very poor assumption -- and almost made an idiot of myself in the process. As I reflected on that experience, I came up with these four elements of providing great customer service as a self employed business owner. I share them as a model of how to think about your own customer service interactions (especially those that occur via email) and as a reminder to myself too. I call it the CARE model of email customer service. C = already a Customer! Gaining a new customer is 5-10 times more expensive than keeping an existing customer. So doesn't it make sense that we should treat them accordingly? It's easy, when you are in a rush, to forget all the work it took to get them to be a customer in the first place. And never underestimate the wrath of a customer scorned -- a disgruntled customer is much more likely to talk to others about that one bad experience they had with you, than all the good experiences that came before it. Customers are precious -- remember to treat them that way! A = Attitude Having a bad day? In a rush to get to an appointment? If you respond to a customer under those circumstances, chances are that your annoyance or hurry, even if it is not about them, will creep into your response. The words you choose are very important; doubly so if you are responding via email. It's hard to choose the best words if you are peeved or if your mind is elsewhere! So, take time and care to respond. Find a time when you can take a few deep breaths and set aside any distractions. If you can't find the time, or feel yourself unable to curb your negative energy, get someone else on your team to respond. R = Relationship EVERY customer interaction is a link in your relationship with that customer. A good customer interaction, where you solve their problem and make them feel better in the process, makes for a solid, strong relationship. On the other hand, a careless response puts a weak link into the relationship. And a chain is only as strong as its weakest link! Customer retention is all about how you make your customer feel. Use polite, professional (but not necessarily formal) language, take care to re-read what you've written before sending, and thank them, even if they are complaining. And always ask, at the close of your email, if you've solved their problem or answered their question adequately. These little things can make a big difference. E = Extra How can you go the extra mile when interacting with your customers? Can you deliver more than they are asking for? Or just add an unexpected measure of kindness in your response? Include additional information or advice related to their request. Or, if you can't answer their question, do a little research and point them to a helpful resource. Add a P.S. with a personal note about their health, family, a recent trip, etc. Following up with a hand-written card or note can also be a nice touch. Treat your customers with CARE, every time, and they will come back, time and time again. Terri Z is The Solo-CEO: a self-employed internet marketing consultant to solo entrepreneurs, freelance writer, and grassroots promoter of the "solo entrepreneur lifestyle". She runs www.Solo-E.com, the resource website for solo entrepreneurs which attracts thousands of visitors monthly from over 100 countries on six continents (and was named a finalist for “Website of the Year” in the 4th Annual Stevie® Awards for Women in Business). Terri is also the co-author of 136 Ways To Market Your Small or Solo Business. Visit Solo-E.com and get our new ebook, "25 Surefire Ways to Capture More Clients, Get More Done in Less Time, and Make More Money -- in 90 Days or Less." Connect with me on FaceBook or LinkedIn, or follow me via Twitter or FriendFeed. Contact the Author Terri Zwierzynski Self Employment More Details about customer service here. Related Articles Finally, Practical Guidance For Setting And Achieving Goals What are teaching stories OFFLINE DATA ENTRY WORK FROM HOME. JOIN www.workathomeinus.com Online Data Entry Secret of body language tips Review Keywords: customer service, marketing, self employed This article has been viewed 479 time(s). Does this article infringe on your copyright? It is a violation of our terms and conditions for writers to submit material which they did not write and claim it as their own. If this article infringes on your copyrights, you MUST either call us at 706-866-2295 or send proof of infringement along with the offending article's title, URL, and writer name to IdeaMarketers.com Attn: Marnie Pehrson - Copyright Concern 514 Old Hickory Ln Ringgold GA 30736 USA If you email us or use our problem submission form, we CANNOT guarantee we'll receive your notice!

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