How to Start and Grow Your Own Cleaning Business
 

Adapt this Car Dealer's Customer Service Philosophy And Rise Above Your Competition!

If you look around at other successful business  owners in your market, you're bound to pick up some great ideas to help you, too,  rise above your competition.  Case in point, here's an article that appeared in the South Florida Sun-Sentinel on August 2, 2007:

Customer connection is key at Stewart Toyota Marcia Heroux Pounds | Business Strategies – South Florida Sun-Sentinel Newspaper August 2, 2007 In his dealership in northern Palm Beach County, Earl Stewart is a rock star. But the mild-mannered owner of Earl Stewart Toyota doesn't let fame go to his head. His focus is on creating "customers for life." That's why Stewart, not a receptionist or salesman, answers red phones posted strategically in his Lake Park showroom, service department, cashier's window and body shop. And when customers call the dealership asking for Stewart, they get Stewart on his cell phone (red, of course). He even lists his home phone on his business card. Customers sometimes pick up the red phone at Earl Stewart Toyota and tell him, "I just wanted to see if you'd really answer." The feedback Stewart has received from customers has changed the way he does business. He feels closer to customers' needs and wants, but also says his customer responsiveness "inspires my employees to handle problems." "I wish I had done it 40 years ago," says Stewart, who has been a Toyota dealer for 30 years. His sons Stu, Jason and Josh are general sales managers at Earl Stewart Toyota. Stewart stopped call screening by the dealership's receptionist. "No matter who you ask for, including me, she puts you through," he said. Stewart also has learned about service problems, but now finds out about them firsthand instead of waiting for a brave employee to tell him. His dealership's "shopper satisfaction" is high compared with others in the South Florida market, according to a July survey by J.D. Power and Associates. The dealership also has a higher-than-average "close" rate among customers who visit only one dealership before making a purchase. But in fielding customer calls, he says, "I learned we didn't do nearly as good a job as we thought we did." So he is always striving to improve his dealership's customer service and looking for new ways to connect with customers. He writes a car-buying advice column for a local weekly newspaper, which he also posts as a blog (oncars.blogspot.com), and does similar radio spots. His outreach to customers is not always popular. Stewart recently drew criticism related to his TV commercial directed toward Hispanics that's in Spanish with English subtitles. One viewer called him "un-American." Stewart responded that he's only trying to sell Toyotas. He spoke in Spanish as a sign of respect to Hispanic customers' native language or that of their parents or grandparents, he said. But complaints more often are car-related. One customer recently complained that she didn't get her "free tires for life," as promised when she bought her car if she kept up regular maintenance at the dealership. Stewart found that the customer had missed her latest maintenance checks. He didn't give her free tires, but did give her a discount. It's not a question of whether a customer is right, Stewart said, "it's whether the customer thinks she's right." His use of the female pronoun is no accident: More than half of Toyota buyers are women. His dealership advertises in such publications as the women's magazine Redbook to reach those buyers.

It's all about Customer Service

Wow! How many car dealership owners would dare to give customers direct access to their cell phone,  let alone imprint their home telephone number on their business cards?  But knowing that, wouldn't you be inclined to visit this dealership if you were in the market for a new Toyota (or even another brand)?  I sure would!

As for having calls screened, I stopped doing that in my business over 25 years ago.  After all, what difference does it make who's calling?  When a person practices having his or her calls screened and the receptionist comes back and says, "He's  not available," doesn't it make you wonder if the person you're calling is ducking your call?  Hey, who is more important than a customer? 

Borrow this idea NOW!

Personally, I think this is a great idea.  In fact, I have my business line transfer calls to my home when I am away from the office.  That's why you're often able to get me personally when you call after normal business hours -- even on weekends (if I am home at the time).  If you request it, I'll even give you my cell phone number.

If you want your regular home phone number kept private, why not consider putting in a second line in your home just for this purpose?  You might even get a second cell phone just for this purpose as well. 

What a great customer relations tool this will be for your business!  What a great confidence booster when you offer  this option to prospective new clients.  How many of your competitors would  go this far?  Use this idea to stand head and shoulders above the rest!

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