Old timers knew the key to getting and keeping customers was through building a relationship with them. When you are selling face to face, you can use things like a smile and first name greetings to make people feel at home. This is a bit harder to do with an online business, but not impossible. You just have to know a few secrets of the game in order to stay on top.

Customer service is your first line of defense when it comes to building great customer relations. You can have the best product or service on the planet but if you do not follow it with even better customer service people will go elsewhere.

The Customer is Always Right

This is an old saying that you may have seen people take advantage of. If you have ever wondered why a company would allow this, you have to understand the cost of marketing and where your money is.

A business will rise or fall based on returning customers. From a cost per customer analysis, it has been shown that the profit margins increase dramatically with return business. In other words, it is cheaper to keep the customer than to drum up a new one. That being said you do not have to be a doormat or be taken advantage of to stay in business. If someone is really trying to rip you off, that is bad for business.

Treat Customers Fairly

All you must do to build relationship with your customers through customer service is operate from a place of reason. If what they are asking for is in the realm of reasonable try to provide it.

Back up your guarantee 100%! If you guarantee your product or service then hold nothing back when someone makes use of it. If your product is returned, do not hem and haw or try to get out of returning the customers money, just do it, and do it quickly. Treat them the way you want to be treated yourself and you can count on them coming back later. Treat them poorly or do not respond to the customer’s complaints, not only will they not be back, neither will their friends or loved ones.

Sell Yourself

As you are probably beginning to see, you are not just selling a product or service you are selling yourself. Offer customers something in you that they are willing to “buy”. Selling points are:
• Sincerity – People can smell a fake from a mile away even on the internet. Be real with people and they will love you for it.
• Honesty – Do not hype your product up to be something it is not. Trying to make a five-dollar widget into a hundred dollar one is simply bad for business. Your honesty will be in question and you will quickly be having a going out of business sale. Honesty truly is the best policy in business and in life.
• Integrity – Hand in hand with honesty is your integrity. Will you back up your promises? When you do your customers will respect you and grow to have trusting relationship with you.
• Value – Give people something of value for their hard-earned money. This is a little more about the product or service than you but you can bet if the value of your product is garbage so will the value of your reputation.

These few simple things go a long way in terms of customer service. Stick with them and your success is guaranteed.