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1- I& #39;ve been busy this week - I& #39;m moving, we need to hire some new technicians, blah blah blah
Here& #39;s what& #39;s been on my mind though:
Communication is the most important factor to running a business properly.
[3 examples & a Thread
https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="👇" title="Rückhand Zeigefinger nach unten" aria-label="Emoji: Rückhand Zeigefinger nach unten">]
Here& #39;s what& #39;s been on my mind though:
Communication is the most important factor to running a business properly.
[3 examples & a Thread
2- [EXAMPLE 1 - Marketing]
OK, you know that you need to talk to your potential customers, right? But how do you do it?
I was taught in school that business communication is rigid.
That& #39;s not true for marketing. Be conversational.
Like this: https://twitter.com/goodmarketinghq/status/1258052549246140416?s=12">https://twitter.com/goodmarke...
OK, you know that you need to talk to your potential customers, right? But how do you do it?
I was taught in school that business communication is rigid.
That& #39;s not true for marketing. Be conversational.
Like this: https://twitter.com/goodmarketinghq/status/1258052549246140416?s=12">https://twitter.com/goodmarke...
3- Talk to them as if they were there in person. Tell them what they need to hear about your product & services
I like to help customers with buying guides for specific products or services
For example, here& #39;s a buying guide for chimney caps: https://bit.ly/2Hk3tcs ">https://bit.ly/2Hk3tcs&q...
I like to help customers with buying guides for specific products or services
For example, here& #39;s a buying guide for chimney caps: https://bit.ly/2Hk3tcs ">https://bit.ly/2Hk3tcs&q...
4- Communicate with your potential customers.
Talk to your current customers too
Tell them what you& #39;re doing. Give them VIP treatment when you release a new service. Reward them with exclusive deals.
Talk to them and find out what you need to do to make their life better
Talk to your current customers too
Tell them what you& #39;re doing. Give them VIP treatment when you release a new service. Reward them with exclusive deals.
Talk to them and find out what you need to do to make their life better
5- That leads to my next point: [EXAMPLE 2 - Customer Service]
Customer service is basic business. But it& #39;s hard because it can be awkward.
You want to provide services to your customer, but then your customer complains and says you suck.
That hurts.
Find out why.
Customer service is basic business. But it& #39;s hard because it can be awkward.
You want to provide services to your customer, but then your customer complains and says you suck.
That hurts.
Find out why.
6- Get on a call and find out why.
@sweatystartup mentioned the other day about how people are afraid to get on the phones.
Have hard conversations on the phones. Customers want to be heard. Be sympathetic to your customers. Listen to what they say. https://twitter.com/sweatystartup/status/1318607452309495808?s=20">https://twitter.com/sweatysta...
@sweatystartup mentioned the other day about how people are afraid to get on the phones.
Have hard conversations on the phones. Customers want to be heard. Be sympathetic to your customers. Listen to what they say. https://twitter.com/sweatystartup/status/1318607452309495808?s=20">https://twitter.com/sweatysta...
7- I read in the book "Thank You for Arguing" that you shouldn& #39;t always apologize though. Choosing to offer a plan for fixing the situation is a much better solution.
Your customers will feel like they& #39;ve been heard, especially if you implement solutions they& #39;ve suggested.
Your customers will feel like they& #39;ve been heard, especially if you implement solutions they& #39;ve suggested.
8- But customer service goes beyond just pissed off customers.
Listen to your happy customers too. Figure out why they love your service so much. Ask them to share their experience.
And then play on those positive experiences because those are your strengths.
Listen to your happy customers too. Figure out why they love your service so much. Ask them to share their experience.
And then play on those positive experiences because those are your strengths.
9- Then market the hell out of those strengths.
Take what your current customers love about your services and communicate that back to your prospective customers.
I call this the customer service love triangle
Take what your current customers love about your services and communicate that back to your prospective customers.
I call this the customer service love triangle
10- [Example 3 - Talk with your team]
This goes for employees, partners, and any other stakeholder in the company.
I don& #39;t think it& #39;s a horrible idea to go into business with your friends or even your family.
I& #39;ve done both.
The key is to set the expectation ahead of time
This goes for employees, partners, and any other stakeholder in the company.
I don& #39;t think it& #39;s a horrible idea to go into business with your friends or even your family.
I& #39;ve done both.
The key is to set the expectation ahead of time
11- Take a look at E-Myth Revisited. One of his examples is of 2 brothers starting a business.
The first step is to set the expectations with an org chart. Even when your business hardly a business - more of a thought.
Create an org chart of the final version of your company
The first step is to set the expectations with an org chart. Even when your business hardly a business - more of a thought.
Create an org chart of the final version of your company
12- Set up job agreements. Figure out what the KPIs are for each position. What happens if you fail at your job? Who& #39;s in charge?
Be pragmatic. No emotions.
If the other person you& #39;re wanting to partner with isn& #39;t willing to do this, don& #39;t partner with them.
Do this first.
Be pragmatic. No emotions.
If the other person you& #39;re wanting to partner with isn& #39;t willing to do this, don& #39;t partner with them.
Do this first.
13- If things go awry, you& #39;ll have this to fall back on. You can point out the KPIs where they& #39;re failing.
Having data to back up the claim is better than bringing emotions.
It& #39;s still hard to say that someone is failing but at least you have cold, hard proof.
Having data to back up the claim is better than bringing emotions.
It& #39;s still hard to say that someone is failing but at least you have cold, hard proof.
14- And if someone is failing you should let them know.
It& #39;s hard. But it& #39;s the right thing to do.
If someone sucks at their job, they should know
You& #39;re wasting their time because they could be actually doing work that they& #39;re actually good at
It& #39;s hard. But it& #39;s the right thing to do.
If someone sucks at their job, they should know
You& #39;re wasting their time because they could be actually doing work that they& #39;re actually good at
15- Beyond negative things, your team needs you and you need them
If you& #39;re an owner/operator listen to your technicians in the field especially if you aren& #39;t out there every day
They& #39;ll tell you about the bottlenecks in the daily operations
If you& #39;re an owner/operator listen to your technicians in the field especially if you aren& #39;t out there every day
They& #39;ll tell you about the bottlenecks in the daily operations
16- Eliminating those bottlenecks could help increase your efficiency and thereby increase your profits
I& #39;ve seen so many times when leaders think they know what& #39;s best, but they& #39;re so far removed from the field that they have no idea what& #39;s realy going on
I& #39;ve seen so many times when leaders think they know what& #39;s best, but they& #39;re so far removed from the field that they have no idea what& #39;s realy going on
17- They try to implement changes that actually create new bottlenecks
And then they don& #39;t listen or take feedback from the folks in the field.
This creates resentment and your people will leave.
Just as you communicate with customers, communicate with your team.
And then they don& #39;t listen or take feedback from the folks in the field.
This creates resentment and your people will leave.
Just as you communicate with customers, communicate with your team.
18- [Conclusion]
I say all this to mention that the most important part of communication is listening
Listen to your prospects because you& #39;ll be able to better promote your services to them when you actually understand what they need
I say all this to mention that the most important part of communication is listening
Listen to your prospects because you& #39;ll be able to better promote your services to them when you actually understand what they need
19- Listen to your customers because they& #39;ll be able to help you get to where you want to be. They& #39;ll be the anchor in all of this, telling you how you actually performed.
Use that information to get more clients
Use that information to get more clients
20- Listen to your data. Set up the systems so that you can get the data that will give you special insight into your business.
Listen to your team. Learn from each other and do the things that is going to make your company work better.
Listen to your team. Learn from each other and do the things that is going to make your company work better.
