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Main Street Strikes Back With its Focus on the Customer 
When times get tough, the experts run around shouting for us to "focus on our customers" as if they invented the idea. Is this obvious or what? The reality is that we must always focus on our customers, both internal (employees) and external. I am of the opinion that serving our loyal customers is the only thing we should be focused on. Realizing the size of the market for their products and services, more and more Internet consultants and vendors are looking toward Main Street for business.
Business owners are, to an ever increasing degree, looking at the Internet as a way to expand their business and reduce their costs. What are business owners from across North America telling me about why they launched their web site, or why they are now considering doing so? What is most important to them? Customers. Serving their loyal customers. In recent interviews, and in audience comments from a wide range of industries, I hear the same thing: "If the Internet (somehow) can help me retain my loyal customers, it is worth serious investigation." As more commerce is done online, people tell me that even though they are retaining their relationship with their customers and still doing business together, those customers are "secretly" buying from their competitors who have an Internet presence. Business owners first want to know the reasons WHY the Internet is or will be important to their success. I recommend that you ask your customers, especially those you believe are quietly defecting to your online competition. Ask your sales people-- they are out there and know the competition. Ask all of your employees what have they seen or heard at other companies that will add value to the customer relationship? At association meetings, listen to your peers Ð what are they doing that saves their customers time and makes doing business with them easier than going somewhere else? Business owners also want to know WHAT specifically they should choose from the technology feast before them to accomplish their objectives. Which of the many things you can do online are important to your customers today? Make a list, set priorities, and develop a timetable for action. The Internet has so many possibilities it is easy to see how, with a lack of customer focus and good sales pitch, you can spend a great deal of money and not accomplish your goals. As Will Rogers is reported to have said, "It doesn«t matter that you are making good time if you are heading in the wrong direction." The Internet can be used to disseminate information, to target specific customers or categories of customers, and to generate direct response. It also has many aspects that are new and different from other media. One of the most important of which is its interactive nature. The Internet extends your reach far beyond what was ever possible before. Your web site can help you provide better service, better information, better support, and develop a closer relationship with your customers. Based on your formal and informal questioning you can create the types of information and services your customer want most, first on the list. If, for example, you learn that there are 3 things your customers want from your online business, do the ones you can and tell them that the others are on the way. Your loyal customers are looking for every reason possible to keep doing business with you. By asking their opinion about what is important to them, doing what you can now, and letting them know that the rest is on the way, you may be providing them with the reasons they need to stay in the fold. Through your web site you can provide easy access to information about your products, services, and company. If your customers know that the information on your web site is the most current, they will rely on it without the need to speak with someone on your staff. This will save them time (and money). Your email, directing customers to specials, sales, or timely information on your web site or in the store, can promote additional sales and offer extra customer value at the same time. And if your customers email you, get back to them as soon as possible. As a customer myself, I know that I can«t get my questions answered too soon. In fact, if I don«t get a reply to an email in a reasonable time, their reputation with me is diminished greatly. Solicit feedback from your customers continually, forever. What do they like or feel is important? What will keep them doing business with you? What are other vendors doing that they like and want you to consider? This allows you to learn more about them, helping you to better address their needs. Then, and only then, will business owners worry about HOW they are going to implement the web site and all it entails. With all the horror stories about companies who have launched their Internet strategy, only to realize that having it is just the beginning, business owners want to know their day-to-day and long-term commitment. Business owners want to know that they can support what in fact is a new location. A new store, shop, plant, warehouse, whatever Ð the Internet is just like that, without the walls. These are companies with decades of service to their customers. They don«t want to destroy that goodwill by creating more than they can support. As a business owner, don«t bite off more than you can support. As a vendor Ð don«t oversell the account. If things go bad, they will blame you and tell everyone they meet just what a lousy job you did. This is where the effective consultative solution providers come in. The relationship between the business owner and the people who create, manage, market, and support the company Internet strategy may be the most important relationship they create during the first few years of the 21st Century.
Wayne Messick can be reached via email or at http://www.fbnews.net . Family Business Strategies is devoted exclusively to helping established family businesses harness the power of the Internet. We are interested in interviewing business owners successfully integrating the Internet into their business. << Back to Homepage |