Do you have BusinessWeek Online Small Biz delivered to your desktop and even consider it one of the nine newsletters that you really must read—not delete or put in a folder for later reading?
Why nine? Because that’s all you are really going to actually read an act on. This is a somewhat scientific observation. Someone with a lot more time or money than you and I actually studied what humans remember and the magic number is nine. That’s why your phone number is nine digits and that’s why your Social Security number is nine digits. Every business that exists within the law has a Tax Identification Number and that’s nine digits. Beyond nine items, the human mind tips into “I can’t remember” or “I’m swamped.” (If you were the leader or participant in that study, be sure to hit the “comments” button below and straighten us out on our facts.)
This week, the article by Michelle Nichols, who has written more than 85 Savvy Selling columns for BusinessWeek Online, is about Keeping Customers Reliably Satisfied. Do we need to remind you that the money flows when you are providing what the customer needs? Knowing what those needs are, then, seems as essential as taking your next breath. Have you made your own list of the nine things that each of your customers need? (There’s that number again because customers expect you to remember what they tell you and then act on it. Don’t make them tell you twice.) You don’t have to do this for every customer—only the ones you want to keep. Michelle helps by giving you an answer you will hear from just about everyone and that is “reliability.” Exactly what does that mean in terms that keep things simple and powerful? It’s about systems, knowing yourself and what works, and replicating that, in a way that looks, feels and sells like mass customization. (What’s that, you say? Come back to this blog and we’ll do a short session on mass customization over in the “customize” category. We’ll show you how customers achieve maximum satisfaction while businesses achieve larger and larger margins. Profit comes from margins.)
To further your blog education and to figure out the best reasons for your business to blog, BusinessWeek Online is there for you again with Blogspotting. It makes sense quickly and respects your time. Another blog watering hole dedicated to small business success is AllBusiness.com Blogs.
If you found this blog, then may I ask if you are well aware of the John Jantsch Duct Tape Marketing Blog item on Blogs, Web Sites and Email - Together At Last. That great little article pounds the stakes in the ground for you so you can tell where True North is and how you want to begin any thoughts or discussions about blogs for your business. Start there if you want to get 5 percent smarter, faster, and impress everyone in your car pool on Monday.
Okay, your turn. Do you know the nine things your best customer needs? Do you think you can make that phone call today to find out? This is how you got your customers—one at a time. This is how you will keep them. Comment on this, too, while you are blogging back: Which blogs and resources are helping you get more comfortable about blogs? Which blogs are putting high-test fuel into your customer communications and customer referrals practices?
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