Here are three simple lessons that will help you do well in the coming year.
1. Treat employees like you want the customer treated - maybe even better. (This is one of my favorites and I've been preaching it for a long time.) It starts at the top. Be an example of the behavior you want employees to exhibit to their customers and their fellow employees.
2. Recognize that a satisfied customer (and employee) is not a loyal customer. This is a big mistake many companies make; thinking that they want satisfied customers. "Satisfactory" is a rating - and an average rating at that. Loyalty is more of a bond, even an emotion - a feeling that a customer or employee gets from consistent positive customer experiences and a feeling of confidence about the company. Focus on being better than satisfactory - better than average. Be so good that customers and employees become loyal.
3. Recognize that all of the advertising and marketing dollars don't mean anything if an employee doesn't treat the customer in a way that is consistent with your brand promise. This can be tricky in tough times, which is why controlling employee morale is so important. Employees should be an extension of all of your marketing and advertising efforts. When they deliver on the promise and create an amazing customer experience, customer confidence goes up, which transforms into customer loyalty.
Don't be fooled by the simplicity of these strategies. They are powerful and can help build a strategy to create loyal customers, even in tough economic times.
Source: runningrestaurants.com
