Jean-Pierre Lauzier, consultant, sales speaker and author of the book “Le coeur aux ventes“, regularly gives his personal and commercial development advice on Isarta Infos. Today, he explains why loyalty and the WOW factor are THE determining elements to have in mind as a salesperson.
“Customers aren’t loyal anymore” – “They’ll go to our competitors for a few dollars less”: maybe you’ve heard these types of comments from merchants disappointed with their customers’ lack of loyalty. Maybe it’s happened to you.
Customers are faced with so much competition in all areas of business that it’s easy for them to become more demanding and expect the best service, the best product for the best price. Can you provide that? That’s what today’s marketers are facing.
The difference between satisfaction and loyalty
Too many companies are focused on satisfying their customers, when they should be increasing their loyalty. A satisfied customer is a person or company that received the service or product they expected, but they will not necessarily buy from you again.
A loyal customer will almost certainly return to you because they are more than satisfied, they are fulfilled, their expectations have been exceeded. This company or this person feels privileged to use your services or products because they will benefit from them and will speak highly of you to many potential customers.
Directing our efforts towards customer satisfaction brings more or less value to the business, as almost all businesses use this approach to attract customers. Today, good service is seen as standard, normal and not as a competitive advantage.
The customer knows that excellent “customer service” is a given and expects nothing less than to be served like a king or queen. Why would a customer go to you instead of your competitors? Especially since some firms have difficulty understanding what the customer really wants and what satisfies them deeply.
The unsuspected importance of the WOW
Think about the last major purchase you made. Did you go to the same merchant as the last time? Why or why not? Think about a business or a firm that you have been doing business with for years, to which you are loyal: why this loyalty? What is it about this business or firm that is superior and justifies your your loyalty? The WOW factor!
Today, a customer is loyal to companies that make them say WOW! Nothing less. Does your company make your customers say WOW? You must identify what can be improved in your business to make it a must for your customers. It is your responsibility to do everything you can to keep your customers loyal, to keep them coming back to you. You must therefore identify what is wrong, even slightly, and act quickly to correct the situation to keep your customers with you. You must offer the exceptional service or product that they expect and that will amaze them.
To gauge loyalty, you can ask your customer, “Can you describe the most important or memorable event that occurred during your last transaction with us?” Such a question is surprising, and if the customer has received exceptional service from you, they will respond quickly.
If, on the other hand, they are evasive and their response is “Nothing in particular,” then you will know that your customer’s perception of your service is similar to that of your competitors and that they may not return, even if they are satisfied, because they do not feel a sense of loyalty to you. You can also ask them to tell you about a WOW experience they had with your company or a competitor. Their response will tell you their deepest needs and what can increase their loyalty.
Know what your customers want
If you really want to know what they thinks, build your surveys on loyalty and not just on their satisfaction. Find out what excites them about the service or product, the store, etc. Learn their deepest desires to better meet them and build loyalty. Customers are more demanding, but they are not weathervanes. They are only looking for the best… just like you and me! And if they can’t find that WOW, they will browse.
Give them that WOW experience and they will be loyal to you, because you will be the ultimate… competitors will surely come in second and their influence will diminish. Don’t look for customer satisfaction, look for customer loyalty and you will make your customers ambassadors of your company for years to come.
Happy sales!
