Did you know there’s something you can do that takes just 5 minutes a day, that will massively improve the customer experience you offer at your local business?
Watch this video to find out what it is.
Question of the Week:
What tactics or strategies do you use in your business to improve customer experience?
Leave a comment below to share your ideas!
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Transcript
Hi, I’m Carmen Sognonvi.
A lot of business owners know it’s important to improve customer experience.
After all, the biggest advantage that local mom-and-pop businesses have is that we’re able to provide a much more personal touch than big corporations.
But improving customer experience isn’t just about how you greet customers or handle complaints.
If you want to deliver a truly impressive customer experience, there’s something you can do each day that takes just 5 minutes.
Keep watching to find out what it is.
By the way, for more useful tips on running a local business, be sure to check out my blog at CarmenSognonvi.com.
I went to an event recently and I really enjoyed the presentation from one speaker in particular.
He’s in the fitness industry and started a successful chain of indoor boot camps.
He talked about how he got his start in the business, and how he was able to grow his business within just a couple years to a point where he was bringing in over $40K a month.
And this was as a solo trainer – without spending any money on marketing or advertising.
He shared a few different techniques about improving customer experience, but one thing he said that really struck me was this.
He talked about how amazing it was that he actually got paid to do something he loved – something that he’d probably be doing anyway even if he wasn’t getting paid.
And he said that unlike other trainers he knew, he never got used to that. He never took it for granted.
That really got me thinking.
Sometimes when you’ve been in business for a few years, it’s easy to forget how excited you were to land each new client in the early days.
I remember when we started Urban Martial Arts in March of 2008, we spent the first few weeks before our grand opening doing trial lessons for prospective students.
At that time our introductory package was 2 private lessons and a free karate uniform for $19.99.
I can still remember how amazed we were the first time got a $20 bill for an intro.
After all, they didn’t know us. We were brand-new but they still trusted us enough to pay us for lessons.
Then a couple weeks later, we were even more blown away when we got our first student who paid in full for a 2-year membership.
With that money, we were able to cover our first month of rent in full.
At the time it felt like a small miracle – that this thing was really happening!
I hadn’t thought about those early days in a really long time, until the speaker at this event transported me back.
It was a great reminder to me that we should always be in touch with that feeling of newness and gratitude.
After all, every dollar that we’re able to spend on rent, food, clothing – that’s all generated by people who trust and like us enough to hand over their hard-earned cash.
The fact that my husband Serge and I are able to make a living at something we enjoy – that’s not something we should ever get used to, or ever take for granted.
So remember –
Being paid to do work you love is a privilege, not an entitlement.
So every day, take just 5 minutes to close your eyes and think back to how you felt when you got your first paying customer.
Let yourself feel all the sensations that it brought to your body. The way your heart beat a little faster, the way your skin tingled.
Then as you go about your day, maintain that mindset of gratitude and excitement.
If you do that, you’ll be able to truly appreciate your customers and deliver the kind of customer experience they really deserve.
Before I get to our question of the week, I want to let you know that if you found this video useful, I would encourage you to sign up to get email updates from me!
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Ok, now it’s time for our question of the week!
What tactics or strategies do you use in your business to improve customer experience?
I’d love to hear your ideas, so leave a comment below!
Get free local business tips from Carmen
If you found this video useful, enter your email address below and click “Yes, Send Me Tips!” to get more great local business tips and occasional special offers from Carmen:
Music Credit:
Carmen Sognonvi is owner and general manager of Urban Martial Arts in Brooklyn, NY.
Carmen Sognonvi is owner and general manager of Urban Martial Arts in Brooklyn, NY. Her views on local business and entrepreneurship have
been featured in Inc, Entrepreneur, Fox Business, and Crain’s New York
Business. You can reach her at (646) 504-4092 or carmen AT
carmensognonvi.com. Learn more about Carmen
Not only is finding the passion behind your efforts important, holding on to that excitement is amazing. It’s nice to go back and express our thankfulness as often as possible.
It is a privilege to do what we love to do.
Great video, Carmen!
Thanks Jason! And you’re right – it’s so critical to hold onto that passion.
Hi Carmen…
Love this. We are truly blessed each and every day to be in a position to serve others…. and yes, get paid for it!
Just taking 5 minutes in the morning to remember this is a great piece of advice.
Good stuff Carmen…
Hey Eric, thanks for stopping by! Glad you enjoyed this one.
Being thankful has amazing power.
We are often blessed in ways we don’t acknowledge and 5 minutes to remember that is great piece of advice.
Awesome stuff here!
Thanks!!
Appreciate you stopping by, Ryan! Always nice to hear from you.
Carmen,
Great video and tip. One of the things I do to improve customer experience is to give my clients (group coaching or one-on-one) plenty of time to ask any “dumb” questions. I try to give them an open environment where they can get those questions off their chest.
I find that sometimes it’s the little things that are holding them back, not always the big things. Once they get over this little hurdle they can move forward with more confidence.
Hey Tom, that’s a great tip. Sometimes what seems obvious to us isn’t to others, so getting those “dumb” questions answered must be a relief for them.
Awesome post, Carmen!
I looove appreciating and have been ‘training’ myself on it intensely for many years.
I apply this concept to so many things, and continue aiming for more. For me is a matter of pride to see how much I can appreciate.
I have a leg up, because being homeless, jailed, sleeping on floors, losing all possessions, 8 failed businesses, being betrayed taught me very strongly to appreciate:
homeless = appreciate shelter, warmth, comfort, stability
jailed = appreciate freedom, dignity, inclusion, community, support
losing all = appreciate every piece of clothing, technology, tools, possessions, etc.
business failure = appreciate every dollar every cent, every customer, every comment, every success.
betrayal = appreciate true friends, family, support, trust, faith, nurturing, help, love.
I appreciate the oxygen all around us, that I did not need to earn. I appreciate the clear, drinkable water that flows so easily in my life.
I most definitely appreciate every client or customer that’s helped me, and I know they appreciate me too
Rock on!
Hey Jason, you have quite a story! It’s great to see that you’ve managed to turn challenges into a source of gratitude and passion, rather than getting demotivated. Thanks for sharing!
Yep, and I wrote about stories recently. I consider it a sure sign of my grand-scale success, because every other world-legend also lived ‘larger-than-life.’
Thanks for inspiring
Speaking from a customer’s perspective, I can tell when a business owner is staying in touch with his/her feelings of gratitude and how that translates into a successful business. A local restaurant down the street my house has been there for over 30 years. They are packed every night. Their food is good, but not so extraordinary where it would explain their success.
What would explain their success is the action of the elderly owner. He no longer works in the kitchen. Instead, he is there every night to greet each and every single person that comes through their door as if they’re old friends. THAT is an experience that I don’t forget and one that keeps me coming back.
It’s amazing how a little gratitude shown to customers can go such a long way, yet so few businesses do it.
Hi Jeanne, that’s such an awesome example – and love that it’s a local business too!
For him to be in touch with that gratitude after THIRTY YEARS – just goes to show that us relative newbies have no excuse not to do the same!
I totally agree about Jeanne’s explanation of “6th sense” for appreciation
Carmen,
This is VERY important.
I have realized that feeling gratitude towards what you have is the key for performing better and feeling happier.
Although I don’t have a business of my own, I can see how this lesson can be translated to business environment as well.
Cheers,
Timo
Hey Timo, appreciate your input and thanks for stopping by!
Hi Carmen
Great advice in the video. Its such a small thing but can make the world of difference to the success of your business.
Business longevity rarely comes down to price, or product but how you make the customer feel, every time you interact. Imagine the relationships you would build if you treated every customer like they were your first.
Hey Carmen, thanks you for this.
And I’ll echo what Tom says: giving people the chance to ask as many questions as possible.
I’m reminded here of the FISH philosohy which is Be There, Play, Make Their Day, Choose Your Attitude…those have stuck in my head for about 12 years now! And thank you for the reminder of ‘how did I feel’ way back in the early days.
Many thanks,
Dawn
Here’s the link to check out fish if you haven’t seen (but you probably have!) http://www.charthouse.com/content.aspx?nodeid=22610