During my workshops I talk about the importance of staying in touch and personalizing service well after the initial sale.

The reality is that no matter how good you are or how pleased the client was with the product or service, they forget about you! That’s right! Even if you offered unbelievable service and even solved their problem you’re not a blip on the radar… unless you stay in touch.

It’s interesting that I recently received a flurry of emails from a car dealership providing some trade-in offers and pictures of new models since my car is now paid for outright. Boy did they miss the mark!

 

The reality is that after the sale I didn’t hear from them once! I had a question about getting out of my financing early so I could purchase the vehicle outright and move on. That was about 12 months ago and THAT would have been the ideal time to pick up the phone and have an actual “real live” conversation! I’m still waiting for the dealership to return my call. Very poor customer service and zero relationship.

Had they stayed in touch I may have been persuaded to get in to a newer model earlier but as fate had it I found a new car broker. I’ve been fostering a relationship with Yosef (yosef@ultimatewheels2u.com) over the past year and I wouldn’t dream of using anyone else! Why? Because he built the foundation of our relationship months ago. He wasn’t pushy or aggressive. In fact, whenever we talk he’s more interested in my recent vacation, asks about how the dogs or doing or discusses our mutual love of vehicles with complete passion. He genuinely enjoys his work! Most importantly he enjoys serving people and is a fantastic relationship marketer. Yosef will be the guy who stays in touch, follows up to make sure I’m pleased and will reconnect well in advance when it’s time for an upgrade.

Gone are the old school “hit and run” tactics. In order to preserve and foster great relationships there needs to be ongoing communication and relationship building. Why? Because the ROI is ALWAYS in the relationship!

What can you do today? Reach out to existing clients! Ask them how your product or service is working out for them. Are they seeing the results they anticipated? Is there anything you can do to improve the service experience next time around? Give your clients a chance to provide feedback and above all express your appreciation for the relationship! Because if you wait for the contract to renew or leave it too long it may just be too late!