Should You Focus On Sales Or Profits?

In tough economic times should a business focus on increasing sales or profits?  This is really a trick question, as sales and profits are both very important, but gaining more profit per customer is really the key. Often, you can see companies focus so much money on gaining new business that they forget how to maximize profit per customer. When you increase profit per customer, you will have a reliable revenue stream, that will build a solid business foundation. Also, by maximizing the revenue per customer, you will be implementing retention practices, that will produce loyal customers, who will do a lot of word of mouth advertising, thus reducing marketing costs. 


The cost of gaining new customers is so high, it only makes good business sense to focus on keeping existing customers, as this will cost less and build a strong company profit. A strong relationship building process will need to be in place, to build an emotional bond between the customer and business and to discover their needs. This process will look different from business to business, but the principles are the same, look for ways to build a customer connection. 


This could be as simple as front line staff being friendly and getting to know customers by name, and in the process gaining valuable feedback to improve your service or product.  Now other companies might hire survey companies to phone the customer base, or they may have a retention team which contacts the consumer. Whatever method a company chooses, it needs to have a strong relationship building objective. As this relationship grows, it will provide invaluable feedback that can be used to improve company products or services. 


Once staff get to know their customers, there will need to be a process, that allows them to document the customer needs or wants, so the marketing department can  produce a more relevant  retention process or address any customer concerns. Every business should be prepared to evolve to meet these changing customer needs, thus allowing the company to become stronger. Once a company becomes more customer focused, it will build a stronger and more profitable company.

Great Customer Service Lesson

How often do we really see customer service that shines? Well, I am sure most of you would answer, not very often, which is not good. Often you can go to a store, and the staff will seem very disinterested in you as a customer. They are trained to ask, can I help you, but really they often do not care, whether you leave or stay in the store.


We are almost shocked when we do receive great customer service. For example, lets say  you go to your local coffee shop, and the staff are smiling when you come in, and they remember your favourite coffee drink, you would be very impressed. It creates a positive relationship between the customer and the company, which benefits all involved.


I am going to provide just one fast example of great service I recently received from a small town cafe. This will show the true spirit of above and beyond customer service, and will show a great example of how to really impress a customer. Now I know every business is a little different from a cafe, but its the customer service attitude example, that can teach a customer service lesson.


I was just finishing my gym workout, and wanted to buy some muffins. I thought I left the gym by 5:30pm, ( cafe closing time)  however once I got to the local cafe, I noticed it was closed. I checked my watch and sure enough it was 15 minutes past close time, but I could still see staff inside, cleaning up. The manager saw me looking through the window, and came outside to see if I wanted to make a purchase. So I said that would be great, as I was looking forward to these muffins, as they are delicious. So I went in and bought the muffins and thanked the manager for allowing me in the store after closing.


How many staff would really want to come out after closing and help the customer, I can tell you, not very many. This showed a real customer centered attitude to go above and beyond for a customer, instead of just saying, " sorry we are closed ".  Look for ways in your business to motivate staff to go above and beyond for customers, and you will have many happy customers.