How often have you heard, “It’s the little things that matter”? And how easy is it to forget that these days, when it seems everyone is looking down at their smartphones and exercising their thumbs instead of interacting in a personal way?
New research from Kingston University bears this out. A study of over 2,000 consumers found that a small and friendly hello made nearly 60% of them feel more loyal towards the small businesses they dealt with. At the same time, three out of five consumers said they were willing to pay more for a product or service from a small business rather than a large corporate entity.
More than a third of consumers studied said they kept coming back because of excellent customer service, and one in five say they valued the fact that businesses remembered their usual order—but only a fraction of businesses studied kept records of prior orders.
Although the researchers focused on consumer behavior, the lessons learned here easily apply to the B2B world. The takeaway for sales professionals:
To set yourself apart, capitalize on your ability to provide highly personalized customer service— and do it with a smile, not with impersonal technologies.
Source: www.sciencedaily.com