It’s a question for the ages… and one that no one really has an answer for. No two businesses are alike – what works for one business won’t always work on another. That’s why the marketing industry exists, after all!
You could spend years reading Forbes articles and still come nowhere closer to that perfect combination that’ll keep your customers coming back.
That said, it’s not completely hopeless. There a number of things you can do as a tradie to build customer loyalty and encourage repeat calls… and we’re not talking about sabotaging people’s homes under cover of darkness!
What does service have to do with loyalty?
Excellent service equals customer loyalty. More than that however, tradies who put an effort into building long-lasting relationship with their customers will eventually reap the rewards: more work and more referrals.
Here are some ways how tradies can keep customer loyalty while maintaining good quality service:
Our customer service tips
Remember your customers
A little bit of follow-up goes a long way!
Tradies who do follow up calls after weeks or months of finishing a job is a good sign that they value good customer care.
It doesn’t take so much to let your clients know that you remember them. By simply remembering their names whenever you see them around or sending a card or a greeting during the holiday season if you live local. You might even get away with sending a care package on their birthdays!
All these efforts show your customers that you aren’t just there for their business, but you have the goal to keep the communication and customer relationship growing.
Sending an email or a quick text shortly after rendering a service doesn’t just help keep tabs on how your work is holding up, however – it also reminds previous customers of your service.
After all, not all customers have a regular plumber, electrician or carpenter they call (unless their house has chronic issues!)
For most however, when something goes wrong around the house they’ll go to Yellow Pages (or more likely, Google) to look for the nearest tradie. And if you maintain contact after providing your initial service, that nearest tradie… is you!
Be professional
Professionalism is an important in any business. And for some reason, it’s not a trait that’s assigned to the stereotypical tradie!
While the negative stereotypes are (fortunately) starting to die off, unfortunately there’s still a non-zero percentage of customers who cling to old prejudices.
That doesn’t have to be a bad thing however – in fact, you can use that as a way to stand out from the crowd in your customer’s eyes.
In short, leave a good and lasting impression from the time you are contacted to the point where your service is done.
Professionalism goes beyond the way you carry yourself during the callout, however:
- Your uniforms, condition of your van… even the voice tone you use to answer the phone shows your professionalism to your customers
- Being on time – never let your customer wait. This shows your respect for their time and being serious about your job.
- Keeping the home or working area clean after rendering a service. That means turning up with clean boots, picking up after yourself
Build Rapport
Did you know: in some cultures, smiling is actually frowned upon.
In Australia however, that’s not the case. In fact, the very same study shows that we Aussies love it when people flash their pearly whites, associating smiling with honesty and – surprisingly enough – intelligence!
With that in mind, the importance of coming in with a smile and a friendly demeanour cannot be overstated.
Maintaining customer loyalty goes far beyond just turning up, doing the job and leaving – tradies need to make good impressions on their customers and come across as friendly and approachable.
And one of the central pillars of customer service in the land down under is to smile and chat.
Long story short: smile… and of course, brush your teeth!
And finally…
… Be good at what you do!
Customers will always remember two types of tradies: the ones who give a lacklustre performance and those who do a great job.
Naturally, you’ll want to be in that latter category!
Start building a good relationship with your customers today!
Customer service is more than a big deal. It’s huge. Huge. And it’s something that tradies can’t afford to ignore if they want to increase their business.
Another aspect of your customer service that can’t be ignored – your digital marketing!
Even tradies can’t hold out against the increasing importance of digital marketing… especially if your goal is to boost the amount of business you have coming in.
If you’re interested in a increasing the amount of customers calling your tradie business, iformat offers complete online sales and marketing packages for tradespeople.
If you’re interested in digital strategies that drive people to take action, give iformat a call on 1300 88 64 50 or book a consultation to see how our strategies can generate business for you.