Welcome to the month of July!

Photo by Travis Rupert: https://www.pexels.com/photo/scenic-view-of-ocean-during-sunset-1032650/

I hope you had a great 4th of July holiday. We are officially in the summer season filled with backyard barbeques and fun times. Many times during the summer months we can forget about working on our business and put things on the back burner. I encourage you to do something different. 

This month I want us to dig into the core of what keeps revenue flowing through our collective doors: customers/clients. Specifically, I want to focus on how to deliver exceptional customer/client service experiences, tools to manage customer/client relationships, and tips to help us be the best in class as it relates to delighting our customers/clients. Let’s go on this journey together.

Keep IT Sunny~

How To Provide Amazing Value To Your Clients

We all know what it is like to receive great customer service and have a great customer experience.

It might look something like this:

You arrive at a new restaurant that you have heard a lot about and are feeling pretty lucky that you got a reservation because they fill up so quickly. The host seats you and your guest and lets you know the waiter will be with you momentarily. The waiter shows up quickly and with a smile on their face ready to offer you menus and take your drink, and appetizer requests. Once you receive your drinks and appetizers the waiter gives you time to enjoy the ambiance, the drinks and appetizers. He returns to take your main course order and like magic your food comes out quick, hot and delicious. Finally you finish your dining experience with dessert and enjoying more of the ambiance. The waiter asks if he can get you anything else and later brings you the check. You don’t even care about the amount and are happy to leave a big tip because you felt special and appreciated at each step along your dining experience.

That is an example of delivering value.

According to the Oxford dictionary, value is “the importance, worth, or usefulness of something.” And Merriam-Webster dictionary describes value as, “A fair return or equivalent in goods, services, or money for something exchanged.”

Is Value Subjective?

Yes, in my opinion it is. But I think we can all agree if you go to a nice 4 star rated restaurant vs. McDonald’s that the expectation is that you will get more for your money at the 4 star rated restaurant. The key word is expectation. If you just give people what they expect then that’s okay BUT if you go beyond what they expect then you can provide them with amazing value. In my opinion, this is something that you can’t buy it is intrinsic, genuine value that makes the other person feel special. In order for it to work it has to be authentic and not rehearsed or fake. It could be described as your competitive advantage.

What do you do different that makes your business different then others?

A great example of this is Zappos.com. They are known for delivering happiness through providing a WOW customer service experience. Here are some ideas on how you can provide amazing value to your clients:

1. Seek to become an expert on what your clients 3 main pain points are and integrate them into your services.

2. Surprise them with thank you gifts for choosing your company to do business with.

3. Create services and packages that are all-inclusive and a win/win solution.

4. Deliver a white-glove concierge experience every-time.

5. Use social media to stay connected and share useful tips or answer questions from followers.

6. Build a community for them through online or in person events so that they can have shared experiences with others.

The bottom-line is that the more you can make your clients feel special and valued in an authentic way the more clients will beat a path to your door.

What are some ideas that you have tried in the past to create more amazing value to your clients?

Keep It Sunny!

3 Tech Tools You Can Use To Communicate With Your Clients

Image courtesy of Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

The month of March went by way too fast!

We dedicated the whole month to taking a sharper look at how to give your health and wellness business a reboot, tips on how to make your online business more sound and ideas on how to attract your ideal client. As the month ends we will round it out by looking at 3 tools you can use to communicate with your clients. We all know it is hard to find good clients so ensuring they keep coming back is paramount to keeping your business healthy.

 Communication is key.

Using email only to talk to clients can get cumbersome. Here are 3 tech tools you can use to stay connected with your clients.

1. Slack: This is a collaboration tool with many bells & whistles. If you have a project with a team and you need a way to keep your client in the loop then this tool may be just the one to use. Check out how it all works here.

2. Ryver: This is a competitor to Slack and has a lot of great features. The best part of using this tool is that it is free. You can check it out here.

3. Google Suite: Google is the best when it comes to having tools for text-based chats, file sharing, email and video chat. The cost for the basic plan is just $5. 

There are all sorts of techie tools to use as a way of staying connected to clients. The most important thing to remember is to make sure your client knows how to use the tools so that you can make the most out of it. So what tools do you love using to stay connected to clients? Share in the comments below.

Keep IT Sunny!

 

How to make sure your client is a good fit for you

Image courtesy of renjith krishnan at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

How much time are you spending with potential clients before you take them on as a current client?

Last week we discussed tips on how to attract your ideal client and this week we take a deeper look into how to vet our clients.

In his article, Tips on Vetting Prospective Clients, writer Chip Camden states a golden fact: “We sometimes forget that not all business is good business." Wow! This is so true. 

As health and wellness professionals your time is very valuable and in demand. So using technology to consult with clients is a must in order to work in an efficient way.

Picture this: You kick butt doing all the “right” marketing things, you spend time networking online and in person. Finally, it all pays off in the form of a potential client lead. But what you do next will either leave you in a happy zen place or crying the blues. You must ask yourself this question?

What method should I use to vet my clients?

Should you rely mostly on email, a phone conversation, FaceTime, Skype or some other face to face video tool to meet with them?

This issue was raised on a forum I am a member of and for the professional who posted it the outcome was not good. They chose to use email only. Their potential coaching client was located overseas so they believed that email would be the most efficient tool to use due to the time differences. The health coach mentioned that they should have spent more personal time with this client to make sure it was a good fit BEFORE they signed them up & took their money & subsequently had to offer a refund.

That is the price of not really thinking through how much time should you spend with potential clients before you sign on to help them. It is crucial to pick the right tool or tools so that your consulations produce good results. 

So what tools do you use to vet potential clients? Share your thoughts below.

Keep It Sunny!

5 Quick Ideas To Attract Your Ideal Clients

Image courtesy of Sira Anamwong at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

We are in business to deliver a service or a product or both to our ideal clients. What exactly defines an "ideal client"?

According to the site Business News Daily, " Your ideal clients are the people who see the value in your efforts, seek out your services and are willing to invest in your services and pay you what you are worth".

But there seems to be a "mystery" about how to attract our ideal clients. Here are 5 quick ideas on how to do just that:

1. Create a blog that adds value to their lives

2. Create a virtual event that showcases what services/products you sell that will change their lives

3. Create a community that connects them to others who are on a similar journey

4. Create a case study to demonstrate social proof of your services/products

5. Use social media to build your brand & create raving fans

The #1 key to attracting your ideal client is simple: Create value for them. Demonstrate in tangible terms how you can make their lives better. If you answer the "What's In It For Me" question clearly, then you will have more customers than you know what to do with.

Your turn. What are some unique ways that you have seen others try to attract their ideal clients?

Share in the comments below.

Keep It Sunny!

How Do You Handle A Difficult Client?

Photo Courtes of Ambro|Freedigitalphotos.net

We have all had a chance encounter with a difficult client. You know what I mean. A client that seems to thrive on making your life not so happy. Fussy, Trite & Demanding. 

But the real question is how do you handle a difficult client?

First, start with defining the real issue by listening. Rhett Power writes on Inc.com that "A good listener also engages his heart and mind. He does not allow himself to become distracted, but focuses on the speaker. He doesn't formulate answers before the speaker completes a statement. He doesn't give the appearance of being defensive."

Does The Shoe Fit

Try placing yourself in the other person's shoes. I don't know about you, but when I have received poor customer service from another business I often feel ignored. I think to myself they wouldn't want someone to treat them this way so why are they doing this to me. Well, this is how your client feels when they are frustrated with something that is not going smoothly. They are relying on you to make their lives easier is some shape or form so when we fall short they often feel ignored.

Confess & Correct

O.k. I am sure you are thinking this sounds a bit much. But we should be humble enough to admit when we fall short of a promise and what we are going to do to make it right. When you open your mind and your heart to your clients and show them that you are a real person that bleeds just like they do then real rapport building can happen.

Handling a so called difficult client can be stressful. But it can also be a learning opportunity for you to see what products, skills or services you can improve upon. Make no mistake that having good communication skills coupled with taking action is the only real cure for this ailment. So how do you handle difficult situations with your client? Tell me what is one good tip to use to make the relationship better.

Keep It Sunny!