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Category: Offline Marketing

  • Service Gaps Model for Exceptional Customer Service

    I’m not a big fan of marketing and business development ‘models’ in general, but I do like the Service Gaps Model. It’s old-fashioned, perhaps, but still works for me and the many service businesses I deliver mentoring to.

    Essentially, the Service Gaps Model is a way of reviewing the performance of a business, as measured against what the customer had perceived the service would be before experiencing it.

    But crucially, it also measures performance against how management had declared it should be. In other words, actual performance is measured against both internal and external preconceptions.

    Let’s put some meat on this.

    Imagine a person walks into a restaurant and orders the full breakfast for Euro 8. She imagines that this would include not only the fry but also tea and toast. In fact, she is surprised to be charged an extra Euro 1 for this. This is a service gap.

    On the other hand, imagine the manager of the above restaurant prescribes that the breakfast should include two sausages and two rashers, along with the rest. In fact, there is a new recruit in the kitchen who has been putting three of each on the plate since he arrived yesterday. Again, this is a service gap.

    Service Gaps Model

    Service gaps can result in fluctuating margins and disappointed customers. And we all know that the disgruntled customer goes away and tells twenty friends about the experience…

    One of the Seven Ps of Marketing is People. While it’s clear that people are critical to the success of any business, this is particularly the case in services. Training of staff is important, but then so too is the role of management in determining the level of service that should be delivered to the customer and ensuring that it is both appropriate and delivered upon.

    Understanding the Service Gaps Model gives insight into how providing exceptional service that surpasses customer expectations can drive your business forward and make it stand out from others that have not given due consideration to this powerful marketing tool.

    Service Gaps Model – The 5 gaps you need to close :

    1. Customer perception of what they will receive (Expected Service) v Management perception of what the customer will expect.
    2. Management perception of what the customer will expect v Management specification of what the service should provide.
    3. Management specification of what the service should provide v What actually happens.
    4. What actually happens v What was ‘promised’ through communication and promotion.
    5. What actually happens in the eyes of the customer (Perceived Service) v Customer’s prior perception (Expected Service).

    Service Gaps Model – What you need to do to close gaps and deliver the type of outstanding customer care you’re aiming for :

    • Carry out marketing research, talk to your customers, ask questions and listen to what customers say and want.
    • Communicate clearly to your customer what he will receive and when. Do not over-promise and under-deliver and be sure that every marketing claim is justified.
    • Commit to service quality. Train and match the right people to the right job.
    • Preach uniformity, standardise tasks and levels to be delivered. Lead by example and do not cut corners.
    • Improve two-way internal communication between front-line staff and management, as well as between marketing, design and technical / production departments.
    • Work as a team towards a common branding goal, recognise and reward the delivery of quality service across your team.

  • Customer Care at the Cleaning Company

    It’s a few years since I met these people, but the client’s name recently popped up in a conversation. This cleaning company has been very successful over the years and I remember them as one of the most impressive small businesses I’ve come across.

    First, their business is spread quite widely across the country. Despite this, they retain excellent customer relations because they put it at the very core of everything they do. This is not just lip-service, but genuine quality customer care. They’re all the time talking with their customers, reviewing budgets and what can be achieved within the means of the people who employ their service. They talk to them as fellow humans, not as paying customers, and they’re not trying to sell a service the customer cannot afford.customer care at the cleaning company

    Second, they do as they say. With many services that call to the home nowadays – like the tv guy, boiler guy, phone and broadband guy – the customer receives no more than a vague “morning” or “afternoon” slot for the call around and is expected to just sit at home and wait. As if they had nothing else to do with their lives. Not so here. This service gives a tight one-hour window in which they will call around. Much more reasonable, much more acceptable, much more customer-centric.

    Third, the business keeps in touch via email. But not just any old humdrum marketing-heavy newsletter. No. These regular emails don’t mention the services of the business at all. There’s no pushiness; there’s no up-selling. It’s fantastic.

    Learn More

    If you’re in a service business, you could do a lot worse than consider the quality of customer care at the cleaning company. And while you’re at it, read this post on the importance of people in services marketing.

    Here’s a nice article on customer care from thebalance.com.

    Keep getting better.

  • Tips for the Start of a New Year

    Let’s face it, we all reflect at the start of each New Year. How’s our business going? How did last year end up, compared to our plans and aspirations of 12 months ago?

    With that in mind, here are a few tips for the start of a new year.

    Get out

    First, go somewhere new to think. Go into town and visit a coffee shop you’ve never been to before. Bring a pen and paper … remember them? In fact, do this a few times during the year, not just in early January.

    tips for the start of a new year

    Get scribbling

    With said paper and pen, start throwing down some ideas – lots of them – about what you feel you could or should be doing this year that’s either the same or different to what you did last year. Something worked really well last year? Great, keep it up, but advance it, fine-tune it, improve it and bring it to an expanded audience. Something else didn’t work? Fine, get rid of it. You know the adage : if you keep doing the same wrong thing, you can expect the same poor results.

    Get after a lost client

    Each year, through natural attrition, we lose maybe 20% of our clients. That’s okay, especially if we’re happy enough to have lost some of them. Who doesn’t have a client they’d be happier without? But if not, then get on the phone, email or whatever and see if you can win them back. Where that’s not possible, then at least learn a lesson.

    Get into something new

    Your market is constantly evolving. You must evolve with it, or ahead of it. In 2017, I generated over 20% of my turnover from a product I didn’t even offer back in 2016.

    Note that there are essentially three components to any sale : the buyer, the seller and the product.

    For example, if your buyer knows you and appreciates the products you currently offer, then you have an opportunity to offer him something new and relevant. Equally, if the buyer doesn’t know you but does know or can relate to a similar buyer to him who has bought from you and he understands the product you’re offering, again you have an opportunity. Indeed, here are some tips on how to present a new product or service.

    Get mental

    Outside of work, but directly related to it, go get some physical exercise. Get into walking, cycling, swimming, team sports or whatever you fancy. Regular exercise will help you feel better both physically and mentally and that can only be good for you and your business. Right?

    Tips for the start of a new year – resources

    Here’s a nice list of practical things to do marketing-wise from the blog at Wix.

    Here are 9 goals to aim for, from Entrepreneur Magazine.

    And here’s what Social Media Today has to say – 18 digital strategy tips. Pay particular attention to Number 18!

    Happy New Year!

  • A Flying Leopard Cannot Change Its Spots

    A few short years ago, amid great fanfare, Ryanair announced to the world that it was changing the way it did business. Changing its spots, if you will. The airline, declared Mr. O’Leary, would “try to eliminate things that unnecessarily piss people off”.

    Apparently, this change of heart was due to some significant shareholders being worried about the capacity of one of the world’s biggest airlines to grow yet further under its previous ‘customer service’ regime. Read this 2013 Conor Pope article.

    Now, I should declare at the outset that I’m a huge fan of Ryanair and thank it enormously for the massive expansion in the number of destinations we can all fly to non-stop from Ireland and, of course, for its low fares. The over-the-top rules and regulations that characterised its modus operandi never really bothered me. Indeed, I specifically bought a cabin bag that didn’t break its dimensions rule. I never allowed it to weigh more than the permitted 10kg. I never put a bag in the hold.

    But this year has seen that, it would appear, a flying leopard cannot change its spots.

    flying leopard cannot change its spots
    Screengrab of Ryanair’s Website

    Just a few short years into its new cuddly, friendly skin, Ryanair has reverted to type with its new, unnecessary splitting of groups (often, families) that book but don’t choose the option to pay for allocated seats.

    So, off to Girona we went this summer without taking up this option and, lo and behold, we were placed all over the plane. Not even two of the five of us were on the same row, on either the outward or homebound legs. And all the other families around us were complaining of the same. For that matter, neither flight was full, so that wasn’t the reason. Clearly, it’s policy. In the past, we never once paid for priority boarding or seat allocation, yet always got to sit together. No longer so, it would seem.

    Conor Pope wrote about this in the Irish Times in June 2017.

    Luckily, our youngest is now 13, so it’s not a big deal for us.

    You’ve heard it before, “don’t over-promise and under-deliver”.

    In your marketing communications, if you make some sort of promise or declaration about your customer service and the experience your customers will have, be sure that your customers will indeed have that experience.

    Oh, and try not to unnecessarily piss people off.

    And I haven’t even mentioned the outrageous cancellation of hundreds of flights this autumn …

  • Following Up is a Key Function of Selling

    Congratulations! You’ve presented your product or service, negotiated an agreement that’s a win-win for both parties and closed the sale. Now remember that following up is a key function of selling, not to be ignored.

    The thrill of the sale is hard to beat when you run your own business – whatever its size or focus. I remember very well the day the first person told me that they’d employ my services. Thankfully, they’re still doing so. I’ve even got a copy in my office of the first cheque (remember them?) I ever received from a client.

    But it’s important not to lose track of the next bit of business you need to win, rather than focusing solely on the job at hand (or, worse, reminiscing about past glories). One key element in achieving this is to ensure you’re following up on projects or deliveries completed.

    Following up builds relationships with enterprises or individuals who may hire your service or purchase your product again in the future. It also encourages them to tell others about you and that’s got to be good, right?

    Referrals – you can’t beat them.

    following up is a key function of selling

    Small Business Trends states that, according to Harvard Business Review, the biggest complaint that customers have when dealing with any business is poor follow-up.

    When it comes to problems encountered by customers, 56% complain that they need to re-explain their issue when calling back, because the provider didn’t follow up. 62% report having to repeatedly contact the company to get their issues resolved, again because the provider didn’t revert. As a result, 65% are likely to speak poorly about the company and 48% of customers go on to tell 10 or more people about their bad experience.

    Incorporate Following Up into your Systems

    But, of course, that’s all about the scenario when something goes wrong.

    Hopefully not much goes wrong for you, so why then would you still need to follow up? Because selling should not be about “them and us” or “buying and selling”. No, you’re building a relationship. You’re building trust.

    Drop your client an email or, better still, pick up the phone, or even better again, go meet up with them. Following up with your customers shows them that :

    • you’re interested
    • you’re confident in your product / service
    • you want their feedback on customer experience

    Following up is a key function of selling because, through demonstrating your interest in and commitment to the client, you are, in fact, generating goodwill and new orders. You’re also learning though listening, discovering market trends and, hopefully, spotting new opportunities.

    And, if you’re really good, you might get a coveted testimonial.

    Updated Sept 2021

  • 6 Ways to Close that Sale

    Often, when trying to improve our sales performance, our attention is concentrated on how to present and how to negotiate. As vital as these tasks are, we should not lose focus on the true job in hand : closing that sale. See if you can apply any of these 6 ways to close that sale.

    After all, closing is ultimately what selling is all about.

    So remember : do not be afraid to ask for the order, be clear and assertive, but do not interrupt your target or be too early asking.

    It’s important to realise that, while you may lose a sale by not asking for it, you cannot make a sale simply by asking for it. Prospecting and information gathering remain vital elements of The Sales Process, leading you towards (hopefully) a sale.

    6 ways to close that sale

    Here are 6 ways to close that sale :

    1. Just ask!

    Sometimes we can forget to do this.

    2. The concession close

    “If you give me an order today, I can give you 2% off.”

    3. The alternative close

    “I can deliver the blue one today or the red one next Thursday. Which do you want?”

    4. The objection close

    “We can call two of my clients now, if you’d like to ask them about the service.”

    5. The forcing close

    “You do want to avail of this special offer, don’t you?”

    6. The requirement close

    “Well, tell me what I need to do to get an order right now?”

    So, keep working on getting to know when it’s the right time to ask for a sale. Listen out for buying signals as you are having a discussion with your target. Nowadays, people like to have a human relationship with their supplier. It’s no longer a case of just turning up and trying to wrangle an order out of somebody, before quickly moving on to the next visit or phone call. Listening is more important than ever in today’s highly competitive marketplace. Build a relationship and learn to understand the target’s needs. After all, good marketing and selling is about satisfying your customer’s needs.

    There’s 6 Ways to Close that Sale. Fine, but what about when they say “no”?

    Often, when a target says “no” to your advances, it may not always actually mean “no”. They may just be appealing for help with something. They may, indeed, be looking for your help to assist them make a decision.

    “No, we don’t want to integrate your software now, because it might mess with the systems we already have.” Is that a true “no”, or an appeal for reassurance?

    Keep talking, but also keep listening, to close your sale.

  • Why I Hate Cynical Ads

    Hate Cynical Ads? I Know I Do.

    OK, before moving on to why I hate cynical ads, let’s start by saying that I generally enjoy listening to ads on the radio (I watch relatively little telly).

    I particularly like really great radio ads, like the campaign run during 2017-2019 from Appliances Delivered. I mean, they were so well written and brilliantly delivered (excuse the pun) by the “voiceover guy”. How they managed to create humour from humdrum extractor fans was genius, but the best line of all was the one where the reader declares that he doesn’t know how Appliances Delivered make any money “what with my voiceover fees”. Brilliant! And no, I’m not on a commission.

    Interestingly, that company went to the wall during 2019.

    hate cynical ads
    Image © Nick Youngson at http://www.creative-commons-images.com/

    But I really hate cynical ads. There’s one out at the moment from Love Irish Food pontificating about how its members must be producing in Ireland using Irish ingredients in order to earn the label. Yet, this is patently not always the case. There are Love Irish Food products on the market containing ingredients which are no more form Ireland than the man in the moon. Visit their website, dig a little bit and you’ll discover that, in fact, “the brand uses ingredients from Ireland where these are available”. Mmm, not quite the same thing as the radio ad declares.

    But that’s nothing when compared to Bord na Móna’s “Naturally Driven” campaign.

    Bringing cynical advertising to an all-time high (low?), one of the biggest environmental criminals in the history of the State now wants people to believe its spin that it is in some way ‘naturally driven’. Here is a company which has destroyed many thousands of hectares of our once beautiful boglands. Here is a company that currently imports palm tree kernels from the other side of the world to burn in one of its power stations claiming to be ‘naturally driven’. Give us a break.

    A number of years ago, the UK’s Advertising Standards Authority commissioned a report into UK citizens’ attitudes to advertising. While mostly positive, the report referred to a trend towards what the writer called ‘untruthful truthful advertising’, defined as being “assumed to be legally true, but economical with the truth”. I’m not aware of any similar research having been carried out in Ireland.

    Why I hate cynical ads

    Cynical ads that try to deceive consumers, or at least be sparing with the truth, give marketing a very bad reputation among the general public.

    When I ask attendees at training courses I run what they think about marketing, quite often one response forthcoming is that “marketing equals false or misleading advertising”. Unfortunate, but true. I hate cynical ads because they lower the quality of an industry which, ultimately, is supposed to be trying to match goods and services with what the market wants. Mis- or disinformation is hardly achieving that.

    Not to mention disrespecting the listener.

    Advertising Authority for Ireland (ASAI)

    Farcically, the ASAI is a “self-regulatory body set up by the advertising industry”. I mean, seriously …

    Updated 2020.

  • How to Develop your Sales Funnel – Keep those Targets Moving Along

    How to Develop your Sales Funnel – Lifeblood of your Small Business.

    Listen, whatever marketing and promotional work you undertake, whether that be pressing the flesh, putting photos up on Instagram, email marketing or whatever, your focus needs to remain on moving people in your target market along and how to develop your sales funnel.

    Remember : Nothing happens until something gets sold.

    Traditionally, the sales funnel has been portrayed in images as a type of water funnel, with its big open end at the top and the narrow tube at the bottom. This representation seeks to convey the idea that, while large numbers of ‘cold’ prospects may be thrown in at the top, relatively few will come out the bottom and become actual paying customers.

    But there’s a degree of laziness to this.

    At the core of this image is the notion that prospects simply fall into your sales funnel, like rain into your gutter, and that the only work involved is moving them down along. Indeed, this even suggests that gravity will push some out the other end, irrespective of your input. It’s lazy.

    I put it to you that a much better image to form in your head would be of an upturned funnel. Now, suddenly, you’ve got to lift your funnel up for the ‘cold’ prospect to get in there in the first place. There’s already work to be done. Moreover, now gravity cannot help you get them out the top. You’ve got to keep those targets moving onwards and upwards. More work involved. In fact, your poor old prospect has to want to get to the top. He ain’t passive no more. Huge difference.

    how to develop your sales funnel

    How to Develop your Sales Funnel

    The first thing to understand and accept in wanting to develop your sales funnel is the need to develop your sales funnel.

    Huh?

    By that I mean to draw your attention to the probability that you will lose 20 – 25% of your existing customers / clients over the next 12 months. That’s just life. Some retire, some close down, some begin to buy from their sister or best friend. Some just don’t need your product or service any longer. Maybe you haven’t progressed or innovated and you can no longer meet their ever-changing needs.

    OK, so once we get into the frame of mind that we need new customers, what then?

    Step one is research. In fact, it’s research, research, research. Get out and meet people, network, check out new businesses, get on the internet, get along to trade shows and conferences, etc. Find new prospects. They’ll be cold at first, but c’est la vie.

    From there, it’s a question of developing a relationship, making enquiries about their needs, matching your product or service to those needs, getting into presentation mode, then negotiating and so on.

    Now, I always advise people to put a system in place for seeking out new ‘cold’ prospects. Give yourself a manageable target every period of time. For you, that might be to meet 10 new people per week in their office or at networking events, or it might be to go visit 4 new trade shows per annum, where you’ll walk up to stands and see where you can offer a benefit to the exhibitor.

    However you choose to do it, be sure to keep working on how to develop your sales funnel. After all, it’s the lifeblood of your business.

  • Irish Craft Beer Symbols Launched

    Irish Craft Beer Symbols.

    This year has seen the launching of two separate Irish craft beer symbols, in an apparent attempt to stave off ‘pretenders’ from the world of Irish craft beer production.

    There has been a phenomenal growth in production of Irish craft beer over the last few years, to such an extent that the well-known community website, Beoir, now lists an incredible 86 micro-breweries in Ireland.

    Faced with the challenge of dodgy market entrants, either from the large multinational breweries or independent pretend-breweries, we have recently been treated to the introduction of two types of quality-of-origin labels. As the Independent Craft Brewers of Ireland (ICBI) puts it on their won website, “Unfortunately, some other companies are jumping in on this [market growth] and releasing products into the market which they are misrepresenting as craft beer and being vague about origin to suggest a provenance of craft beer from an independent Irish brewery.”

    First off the mark was Beer Ireland. According to Beoir, the criteria for carrying the Beer Ireland symbol are as follows :

    • The beers have been produced in a brewery on the island of Ireland.
    • The brewery is legally and economically independent of any other brewery.
    • The brewery meets the legal definition of micro brewery.
    • The brewery owners are professional members of Beer Ireland.

    irish craft beer symbols

    Meanwhile, the ICBI symbol requires that :

    • The brewery the beer came from is independently owned, small scale and a registered microbrewery as recognised by Revenue.
    • The brewer has complete ownership of the brand.

    irish craft beer symbols

    Although Irish craft beer symbols such as these are desirable, one concern would be for the capacity of these umbrella organisations to police their usage and validity in every case. Shelves are already awash with so-called craft beers that are questionable in the origin of their production.

    But there’s another marketing issue here. Does the consumer really care that much about the origin of the beer s/he is drinking? While those of us who love great-tasting craft beer might not touch them, the reality is that the ‘imposters’ couldn’t be eating into the market if consumers didn’t welcome them. Might it be that there is a large section of the beer-drinking market that simply wants ‘new’, as opposed to ‘craft’? Is that why we now have our Hop House 13, Cute Hoor, Smithwick’s Pale Ale and so on?

    West of Ireland Craft Breweries

    Whatever about Irish craft beer symbols, if it’s West of Ireland craft beers you’re looking for, go try out these guys :

    West Mayo Brewery

    Reel Deel Brewery

    Black Donkey Brewery

    Mescan Brewery

    Sláinte!

  • People as part of the Services Marketing Mix

    People as part of the Services Marketing Mix

    When we think of the Marketing Mix, we’ve all heard about the famous “Four Ps”, made up of product, price, place (distribution) and promotion. However, the importance of people as part of the services marketing mix might just pass us by.

    You see, potential customers will make purchasing decisions based not only on your marketing communications, service quality and reasonableness of your pricing, but on your full services marketing mix – and that includes most especially your people.

    Here in the West of Ireland, there’s this great seafood restaurant along the coastline, serving up fabulous local oysters, mussels, fish and more. The view from the dining room is to die for, with ocean, islands and spectacular cliffs outside its big windows. Pricing is perfectly reasonable. It’s great. But the staff leaves a lot to be desired – especially the owner/manager. I’m not sure if they realise it or not, but their manner is very poor, leading to a big ‘fail’ in this critically important P – people as part of the services marketing mix.

    Meanwhile, inland, there’s this run of the mill (in terms of location, decor and seating) café diner that opens up for lunch each day.  Now, don’t get me wrong, they do really very nice food indeed, especially their great and varied home-made soups. But the thing here is that the owner/manager is fantastic, always wears a smile and is truly friendly. I return regularly.

    I recently read a motivational sign inviting us to smile, because it might confuse people. Unfortunately, this is very often the case. But if you can invest in really great people and add them in to your marketing mix, you’re onto a winner.

    people as part of the services marketing mix

    Anyway, the ‘people’ in your marketing mix involves two key functions : procedures and personality. Procedures is about doing the necessary in an organised and efficient manner. Personality is about delivering that functionality with a nice and friendly manner.

    I remember reading the late great Feargal Quinn’s legendary book about quality customer care entitled “Crowning the Customer” and a passage inside where he mentioned that, at the time when he was still involved in recruitment for his business, that if a candidate didn’t smile during the interview he didn’t get the job. You can buy that book from the publisher here.

    Just remember that there’s no point in having the finest automobile, bought at an excellent price and running on the straightest road, if the person behind the wheel doesn’t know how to drive! In service businesses, be sure your people are the right people.

    Updated 2019.