Mick Birch, Managing Director...
A lot of companies either forget, or are yet to realise, the significance of excellent support. Having support as a 'contractual obligation' or a 'customer defence' mechanism is a massively wasted business opportunity. It can even be downfall of a company regardless of the product you sell.
Customers seldom go for the cheapest option when buying a product. They go for the best value for their unique set of circumstances. Once a product is purchased the perceived value that the customer will place upon the product will primarily be affected through the support you deliver. The majority of any future contact with a customer, after the sale, will be through the support department.
How a customer perceives your product will be based on how well they feel they are being looked after. As feelings are emotions, and differ with each of us, they are not based on logic and as such are difficult to predict. One thing is for sure, once the feeling of trust is compromised so is your future business with them.
If your looking for repeat business, and we all are, then the support you offer can, and often will, make the difference in a sale. Loose that customer through poor support and it will be a never ending uphill battle to win them back. The salesman's job just became a whole lot more difficult.
Calculate the repeat business you could loose over the next 10 years and the figures are alarming. Spending thousands or millions developing products makes no sense if the comparatively inexpensive future support of that product is not carefully planned and considered.
A lot of companies either forget, or are yet to realise, the significance of excellent support. Having support as a 'contractual obligation' or a 'customer defence' mechanism is a massively wasted business opportunity. It can even be downfall of a company regardless of the product you sell.
Customers seldom go for the cheapest option when buying a product. They go for the best value for their unique set of circumstances. Once a product is purchased the perceived value that the customer will place upon the product will primarily be affected through the support you deliver. The majority of any future contact with a customer, after the sale, will be through the support department.
How a customer perceives your product will be based on how well they feel they are being looked after. As feelings are emotions, and differ with each of us, they are not based on logic and as such are difficult to predict. One thing is for sure, once the feeling of trust is compromised so is your future business with them.
If your looking for repeat business, and we all are, then the support you offer can, and often will, make the difference in a sale. Loose that customer through poor support and it will be a never ending uphill battle to win them back. The salesman's job just became a whole lot more difficult.
Calculate the repeat business you could loose over the next 10 years and the figures are alarming. Spending thousands or millions developing products makes no sense if the comparatively inexpensive future support of that product is not carefully planned and considered.
Copyright 2008 Lime-DS Ltd
