Making first impressions amazing for a customer is your key to growth and customer retention. You have only one chance to make a great first impression, so you should maximize every element of a customer’s initial experience with your company. The journey to amazing customers begins with a superb website and ends with a customer’s commitment to invest in your products or services. Below are ten steps to creating amazing first impressions for a customer.
The Harvard Study of Communications said that it only takes seven seconds for you to make a first impression on another human being, only seven seconds…. In fact, one of the parts of this study actually says that… all together, only 45% of a first impression has anything to do with the words coming out of your mouth. That leaves 55% of a first impression to visual.Amanda Johns Vaden
An Outstanding Website
Your website is the face of your company to many customers. Capturing a prospect’s attention immediately through your website should, therefore, be a top goal. Investing in your website’s design is critical because most consumers begin their search for products and services online. Your website should have a mobile-friendly design that includes the following elements:
- A pleasing design with a layout that is easy for users to navigate
- Useful content with actionable items
- Clear images that lend valuable support to featured content
- A highly visible “Contact Us” page that enables customers to easily reach your company
Personally Welcome Customers
A well-organized, customized onboarding process is one of the most effective tools a business owner can use to amaze customers. When properly optimized, onboarding will help you go beyond that great first impression. Below are some keys to remember as you welcome customers aboard:
- Focus on personalization and abandon cookie-cutter approaches
- Strive to properly address customers when communicating with them
- Do not misspell or mispronounce customers’ names. Practice pronunciation in advance if necessary
- Be transparent to avoid creating unrealistic expectations with customers
Prompt Service
Speed of service is many customers’ number one priority. Since many customers will have only a few minutes of time to interface with your company, it is up to you to make your customers’ experience amazing through speedy service. Here are some ways to accomplish this goal:
- Strive for 24/7 accessibility if feasible
- Offer customers multiple modes of sending inquiries to your company (phone, email, chat, etc.)
- Ensure that your company representatives are well-trained and knowledgeable
- Use a cloud-based system that offers immediate access to product information and inventory
- Enable customers to find information on your website through no more than three clicks
Knowledgeable Employees
Knowledgeable, well-trained employees are often at the heart of a customer’s amazing first impression. In an age of automated customer service and outsourced call centers, it is more important than ever to ensure that employees have access to the tools and data they need to provide high-quality customer care. Whether you have a staff of ten, one hundred or thousands of employees, the measures below will help you build a highly functional, competent workforce.
- Design a robust training initiative that emphasizes ongoing learning instead of holding isolated training classes
- Replace outdated textbook and classroom learning with online learning programs
- Use gamification and contests during the training process to help make learning fun and exciting
- Stress the importance of making great first impressions during employee interview, during training and periodically thereafter
- Regularly evaluate your training program’s effectiveness and strive to continually improve program design
Value Customers From Day 1
A superb first impression is often created automatically when a customer feels valued right out of the gate. Below are some steps to take to show customers that you value their time, opinions, and future business:
- Reduce the amount of time that customers have to wait to speak to a live representative by phone
- Train employees to address customers by name and thank them for considering your business
- Ask customers if you have sufficiently addressed their inquiries before ceasing communication
- Encourage customers to provide feedback on your website and onboarding processes
Enticing Introductory Offers
While you can amaze customers without offering customers something special, an exciting introductory offer for new customers often makes it easier to entice prospects. However, this step can backfire if offers are not chosen with care. Here are some steps to use when creating an introductory offer for new customers:
- Know your industry and make offers relevant to the needs of customers
- Make sure that the offer is helpful or useful to the customer
- Examples of effective offers include free products, complimentary service packages and gift cards
- Keep an eye on your competitors’ introductory promotions and ensure that your offer does not pale in comparison
No Deceptive Tactics
Few things are more frustrating to prospective customers than deceptive tactics. You run the risk of driving prospects into the arms of your competitors if you use deception in an effort to push prospects into purchasing. Limit excessive advertising and refrain from using the deceptive tactics below to avoid offending customers:
- Banners and promotional links that are cleverly cloaked as icons
- Inaccurate images such as photo-shopped models
- Overusing sex appeal in an effort to convert prospects
Professional Interactions
Professionalism is the cornerstone of a positive customer experience. Never underestimate the positive effect that polite, respectful behavior can have on a customer’s opinion of your company. Below are some specific ways to heighten your company’s level of professionalism to amaze customers:
- Use the proper salutation when interacting with customers
- If you are talking by phone with clients, ask if you are pronouncing their names correctly
- Avoid the use of jargon or slang on your website
- Refrain from using profanity when speaking with clients
- Check your spelling and grammar before sending important correspondence to customers
Robust References
A company’s ability to quickly produce references within a customer’s industry and geographical area is both impressive and reassuring to prospective clients. Conversely, customers should be wary of companies that are unable to produce names of satisfied customers. Here are some ways to effectively use references to wow potential customers from the moment they first interact with your company:
- Post the facts and testimonials of customers who are satisfied with your company on your website
- Emphasize your geographic range of service and have a list of references from all key regions of that area
- Be sure to ask permission before giving an existing customer’s name or contact information to new clients
Efficient Operations
Speed and efficiency are critical to customers and should, therefore, be a top priority for your company. From your website to your supply chain operations, you should strive to eliminate glitches that can cause frustrating delays for your customers. With most consumers spending under one minute on a website, efforts to improve efficiency should begin with your website. Here are some ways to eliminate glitches during a customer’s first visit to your website and ensure you amaze customers:
- Check the speed of your website to ensure that pages do not take longer than three seconds to load
- Feature a user-friendly search bar that is easy to find
- Remove or replace any broken links on your site
- Avoid using plug-ins too frequently
- Make sure you have a high capacity server that can accommodate elevated levels of traffic
Amaze Customers by Enlisting the Support of an Industry Expert
New customers are your company’s future fuel for success and deserve red carpet treatment. The customer workflow professionals with Tallyfy have the experienced and tools to help you win your customers over from the moment they interact with your company. Tallyfy’s comprehensive platform makes it easy for you to convert new prospects during their first visit. With Tallyfy’s guidance, your company will create award-winning first impressions.
