I’ve said it many times “all customers are not equal.” I’ve even delivered whole seminars on the topic, but lately I’ve decided I was wrong! All customers are equal especially if you are beginning to build a business community around your brand. How exceptionally arrogant of me to think otherwise.

Customers are equal, they contribute something different to your business. The basis of how healthy your database is should not only be measured by its profit generating capabilities. The benefits some customers bring are not, and should not, be totally profit centred. Sometimes its influence, occasionally it will be knowledge, other times they will act as word of mouth operators. We need to recognise the non financial value adding aspects too.

I’m not saying we shouldn’t focus on the profit generating customers, not at all. What I am saying is that we need to be encouraging all customers to collaborate with each other to ensure the best prospects for everyone rather than pursue the short termism of money! What I have effectively been advocating is for businesses to act like faceless corporations instead of people. I’ve firmly wrapped my own knuckles!

So all customers are equal, just some may, at a particular moment in time, have more of a priority depending on the needs of the business. I accept in times of low sales, you chase the profit/cash generating ones, but its only a temporary measure, If you have an effective customer experience process in place, it means your other value givers are never forgotten and constantly engaged with you. Not all customers will bring you financial value, some will bring influential value…..and that’s just as important!

Remember the old saying “going to borrow a cup of sugar” Referred to as the best way of getting to meet or know your neighbour. Just occurred to me, that perhaps we should do this more often in business.

Today is a lot about connections and relationships. We need to get out and about more and visit that company over the road or next door and say hello. Borrow a cup of sugar virtually from that person who has just followed you on Twitter who looks interesting. Better still what about the last person to visit your website or post a comment on your blog. Or, even the customer you haven’t talked to in ages.

We’ve a lot to learn by looking back at how our forefathers built relationships and its a great excuse to use a coffee break productively too!

If competitive advantage has nervously changed its position to one of constant innovation, talent and customer experience, how do we make a sustainable business out of a profusion of ideas?

A plethora of questions come to mind; How do we work co-operatively with competitors? How do we cope with ‘open’ and ‘free’ systems? How do we innovate? How do we pool resources? How do we retain, afford and keep the best talent? How do we cope with being social? How do we deliver exceptional customer experience? How do we start sharing knowledge when our mindset if one of secrecy?

Business communities and eventually business eco-systems will be created to exploit not just the physical nature of development but the human one to. The challenges we will meet in the future and the answers to the inevitable difficult questions will be met by us all forming business communities around our brand.

Our businesses are already surrounded by an economic web of companies, individuals, suppliers, customers and employees which collaborate, converse, connect and compete on a daily business, building a web of relationships that evolve over time and are heavily influenced by the people involved. Those connections are powerful.

Effectively it is a community of players, within a business environment who have common purpose, share interests and have similar values. All I’m suggesting is that, as a business, we start facilitating and guiding those groups into a business community that delivers both financial and non financial value. We have the platforms and ability to do it now. Instead of spending £50k (or whatever it is) a year on buying people, why not divert it to people that already love what we do and can help us do it better.

As a small business owner we have no excuses. The corporates perhaps do, but as the owner its your job to know what your customers are thinking and feeling. You possibly know each one by name. You’ll know them personally even if you never eyeball them and you’re doing business online.

Customer feedback does not need to be a number crunching, sterile set of data that tells you sod all. By being in touch, by asking the right question, you are in a great position to see what makes them happy and what enrages them. As a small business owner you can treat each of your top 20% of customers individually by building that intense relationship with them. If you don’t want too, you are simply in the wrong job! And, if you treat the top 20% right, they are the ones referring other great customers to you.

Word of mouth marketing is the cheapest, yet most effective form of marketing. Its impact is huge, its effect fundamental. Its interesting just how enjoyable the job becomes when people start seeing your credibility and reputation in a similar way to you.

Work can be cool and, when you run your own business, you can dictate how cool. So many small business owners get bogged down and end up in a day-to-day routine because they don’t have cool customers. What being your own boss teaches you is that you don’t have to compromise anymore. In fact, you don’t have to deal with idiots either. Phew!

It’s an important point. People will advise you to go out and get as many customers as possible and quickly when you start up. That’s completely the wrong advice. Yes, take on lots of customers but make sure they are remarkable. You’ll know in your mind what a great customer is. These are the kinds of customers who add value to your business, make you work hard in the positive areas, push and challenge you, the point of running your own business. And, if they are truly remarkable, you’ll have a client list that will make your competitors go green.

As Janis Joplin said “Don’t compromise yourself, honey. You’re all you’ve got.” Resist the urge to rush and grow a huge customer list that’s eventually going to cost you money. It’s not the size of the list that matters but its credibility and reputation.

I think Seth Godin is absolutely spot on with this short post. I agree there is no point in being with customers who are second best. Find those customers that are listening and love you. Only work with those that you love wholeheartedly. Its a relationship remember over the long term. If you lose customers it should be because you let them go. Not the other way round.

Let your competitors deal with the rest. Thats how the internet has changed things and made things better for small business.

http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2009/06/scalejacking.html

After Steve Yastrow’s thoughts on existing customers, thought this was an interesting post by Seth Godin on new customers…..

http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2009/02/three-things-you-need-if-you-want-more-customers.html

In some ways times like these are good. Those businesses with strong business models well positioned for adapting to the future will survive. Those that have been struggling for a while or those with excess and ‘macho’ driven cultures will die…is that a bad thing? From a customer/consumers point of view, it’s certainly a good thing. From a surviving businesses perspective it’s a huge opportunity. Tom Peters said way back in 1994 “There are only two types of businesses in the future, the quick and the dead.” Perhaps what he meant is coming to fruition.

So what to do and quick. Existing customers are the place to start. They know you, you have a relationship, they are ‘warm.’ They’ll talk to you when others won’t. Here’s three things to do this week:

1. Grade your customers A, B, C, D. A’s are great customers who you can do more business with. D’s you shouldn’t even have on your customer list.

2. Get rid of the D’s, yep get shot, don’t do anything pro active with them. Schedule meetings with all, yep all, your A customers over the next month. But call one now and set up a meeting this week.

3. Before you meet those A customers. Create a new story about your company. Pull something together that will make your A customer intrigued, curious and interested in what you are doing and I don’t mean you’ve reduce your prices or you’ve invented a loyalty card. You are going to have to be more creative than that.

But and it’s a big BUT, also ensure that you use the meeting to understand what you are doing right, what you could do better. It’s an amazing opportunity to make the relationship with your most important customers (the ones that help you through difficult times) more intense, more profitable and more sustaining.

It’s a big ask, it’s time consuming, you may never have done something like this before and it may take you out of your comfort zone. That’s my point, by being uncomfortable you learn a hell of a lot!!

Go do it

Customers are different

The people that work with us are different

Our suppliers are different

The way we work together is different

The customer/supplier relationship is different

How we make money now is different

The way we use our computers and mobiles is different

The internet is different

How we consume energy is becoming different

The cars we are driving are different (or if they are not now, they will be)

Our perceptions are different

Our expectations are different

You are different

I am different

……than we were three years ago, yet we are still communicating, building business strategies, marketing plans and product development on three year old thinking. Unstable, unsure times bring about two opportunities, those that are missed and those that are taken.

You don’t add value to a customer if you’re offering them something that’s inflexible, you don’t add value to a customer by not being in touch with them and you can’t add value if you don’t know what’s happening to them! If you are providing a service to a client that ‘locks’ them into you for a sustained period, you have to work harder at keeping them. You have to be more innovative and deliberate in delivering your service.

If customers are paying you on a regular basis ie: every month for a maintenance contract, you need to be supporting them on a regular basis. You are committing a basic customer experience crime if you let the standing order come into your account and then REACT when they need you.

No regular contact will result in customers feeling under valued, taken advantage of and in worst case scenarios…abused! Work harder during the contract phase and you won’t have to work so hard at the end to keep them!