Just How Important is Customer Service?
Do you have many suppliers that you simply don't get on with? Probably not many I bet. And if you do it's likely to be because you can't get whatever it is you buy anywhere else.
The fact of the matter is that people buy people and to be successful in business you must have people that enjoy developing strong relationships with clients.
It's well known that I am a golfing fanatic and whilst I enjoy playing a number of courses, I just love the service I receive when I play Gleneagles where I am a member.
I know when I phone up for a tee-time that I will speak to one of two people, who know that I prefer the King's Course and know that I like to tee off in the early afternoon. They also know that I regularly bring clients so are more than happy to hold a couple of times so that I can check that everyone is available.
When I arrive I am welcomed like a personal friend. They ask about my wife, Rona and how my son Alistair is getting on with his world tour. They ask about how Forfar Athletic (the football club I coach) are doing. They also go that extra mile to ensure my guests are made to feel extra special.
Why? Not because somebody told them to. It's because they care.
Developing strong relationships with clients is an area that we work extremely hard at nurturing from the way in which we recruit our team members, to the training in interpersonal skills we arm them with to the criteria we use in our regular reviews.
It's not about taking a job specification. It's about understanding your business, the pressures you are under and the objectives you have set your company. It's learning about what makes your products and services different from your competitors.
But most importantly it's about investing time in our customers and going that extra mile to ensure we know our clients' business almost as well as they do.
This is a feature of Avenue Scotland that has helped us to become one of the most successful in Scotland and one that we will continue to invest in for many years to come.
So if you care to sample the Avenue or indeed a game of golf at Gleneagles, give me a call or drop me an email to imcampbell@avenuescotland.co.uk.
