In a lot of ways, your focus as a manager will vary depending on your business.
A restaurant owner, for example, will work day and night to ensure they serve good food. By comparison, a shop owner will work hard to ensure the right layout.
But, while the underlying focuses vary, there’s one common reason behind it all – customer satisfaction. If your customers aren’t satisfied, they won’t come back.
Worse, they’ll tell their friends not to come to you. Before you know it, one unhappy customer snowballs into a lot of lost money.
So, whatever your business, you need to make sure that your customers are 100% happy, 100% of the time. By that, we don’t mean that you need to ensure no customer ever complains.
That’s not possible. But, even clients who complain can leave happy if you handle the situation right. And, to help you, we’re going to look at what the right way is.
Concentrate on quality from start to finish
Many business owners think satisfaction starts when a customer enters their business space. But, that’s not the case. Satisfaction actually starts when your goods leave the factory.
It’s crucial that you take control of your supply chain to ensure customer happiness. If goods don’t arrive on time, it’s going to translate into angry clientele.
Using supply chain analysis, you can tailor your supply process to ensure ultimate customer happiness. By studying the way consumers shop, you’ll be able to order based on their needs.
To get on top of this matter, it may be worth looking into something like this supply chain management online masters degree. This will be particularly helpful if you’ve never considered supply and demand before.
It’ll give you a fast track into understanding how to make this work for your customers.
Train your staff with customer service in mind
When you’re training your staff, it’s essential you focus on customer service. Many employers get caught in the trap of focusing on product knowledge and so on. Of course, those qualities are important, but not as important as customer service.
Your employees should be willing and able to deal with any complaints that come their way. Even better, they should be able to provide a personal and friendly experience which keeps complaints at bay.
Remember that the customer is always right
It’s also worth remembering the adage ‘the customer is always right.’. Of course, this isn’t always literally. Sometimes, a complaint may baffle you. Never let it show. Any complaint is valid, and it’s not your job to disagree. All you need to do is placate them.
Say, for example, you own a restaurant, and someone returns a predominantly empty plate, demanding a replacement. Your first instinct may be to refuse because they’ve already eaten the food. But, don’t do it.
The argument that will ensure will cost you more than that plate of food. A battle with a customer will rarely end well for you, so avoid one at all costs.
