theImportance of a Follow up Call

Hey guys,

I just wanted to share with you some information I received at a clinic I attended last night. First of all let me start by saying that as well as being a PC consultant, I'm also a gymnastics coach and the clinic was about staff professionalism and the importance of specific areas in the business. The speaker, spoke in great detail about the importance of follow ups. For instance when a child attends a birthday party at the gymnastics center, or a child takes a trial class, attends a field trip, things of that nature, we should always follow up their visit with at least 2 "touches" (meaning some form of communication), either with a phone call, email, postcard etc..... He also stressed the absurdity of how many potential students, and I quote:

"fall through the cracks because someone didn't take the minimal amount of time to treat them as an important part of the success of their programs".

When I heard this, bells went off in my head! Hello?!? Is this not the EXACT same thing we should do with our PC businesses?

When I got home, I immediately looked through past show records and was sick over how many people in my PC business have never reordered! This could have been avoided in many cases if I had just made post show calls, sent out postcards, sent emails, etc.... THOSE POST "TOUCHES" ARE A CRUCIAL PART OF THE SUCCESS OF OUR BUSINESS!

I admit, I am HORRIBLE about making CC calls. I don't want to be a nuissance or bother anyone. But after this, I will discipline myself to make sure that EVERYONE gets that customer care from me. So regardless of how uncomfortable you may feel making those calls, just remember that the person on the other end is going to feel pretty special knowing that you took the time to let them know they are appreciated. I think people are reluctant to making calls because many times, we associate contacting a customer with getting a booking or order. But CUSTOMER CARE is just what it says. It doesn't always have to be about making an on the spot sale or getting a booking. They are about building relationships with your customers, earning their trusts, and making sure they know that they are indeed significant so that when the time comes for them to need PC, they automatically think of you! The orders will come and continue to come as long as we DON"T LET ANYONE FALL THROUGH THE CRACKS!

Ok, I'm finished! Sorry for the lenghty post. Until tomorrow....for now, I need to make some cc calls!!!!

WOW!!! That was the kick in the patooty that I needed. I HATE making CC calls, mainly because... well, actually there is no good reason, I just HATE making calls (too much time doing accounts receivables at a former job and having to track down nearly $200,000 in overdue $$ )...

ANYHOO, this is exactly what I needed to hear... especially the part about not expecting every CC call to turn into an order or a booking!

It's too late at night to do CC calls now (and I'm not sure too many guests what such calls on Mother's Day), but I CAN get my list together tonight and start to "reach out and touch someone" on Monday!

Thanks for sharing!

Yes, Thank you Stephanie for giving us a kick in the pants!!! I made over 50 phone calls today to follow up with my nurses week but I really need to make sure I do my OOB calls.

THanks!

Just remember, Katie, when you do CC calls, you aren't trying to get them to cough up money they owe. You're offering them great customer service.And, yeah, I hate doing the calls, too.

Hi there!

Thank you for sharing your experience at the clinic and the valuable information you learned about follow-ups. You are absolutely right, it is crucial to treat every customer as an important part of the success of our businesses. I can relate to your realization about the number of potential customers who have fallen through the cracks in the past, but the important thing is that we learn from it and make changes for the future. I also struggle with making CC calls, but you have inspired me to make it a priority and remember that it is all about building relationships and showing our customers that we appreciate them. Thank you for the reminder and good luck with your CC calls! Keep up the great work as a PC consultant and gymnastics coach. Have a great day!