There are just over 1 million small businesses with employees in Canada. In fact, ninety-eight percent of businesses in Canada have fewer than 100 employees. Between 2002 and 2006, 130 000 new small businesses, on average, were created in Canada each year.
In October of each year, the government of Ontario recognizes the contributions that entrepreneurs and small businesses make to the economic well-being of the province. Ontario’s small and medium enterprises (SMEs) make a significant contribution to this province in terms of jobs, investment, trade, innovation and prosperity. The Ontario Ministry of Economic Development & Trade (MEDT), through its network of 57 Enterprise Centres, conducts events throughout October to salute small business owners.
In Brampton, there are a number of ways to celebrate being a small business, through this partnership between MEDT and the Brampton Small Business Enterprise Centre (full details at www.brampton-business.com)
Start-Up Stories inspiration and networking event, Tues. Oct 5th, 9:30-11:30 a.m., hosted by the Brampton Library, 65 Queen St. East. Hear motivational launch stories and network with other small businesses. FREE.
Lunch ‘n Learn seminar series, a different topic each day, noon – 1 p.m., October 18-22nd. Bring along your lunch. FREE.
Energize! professional development event, Thurs. Oct 28th, 7:45 a.m. – 12:30 p.m., Holiday Inn Select, Peel Centre Dr. Continental breakfast, networking, round table experts (12+ topics) and keynote speaker Sunjay Nath on his 10-80-10 principle. Sponsored by Ontario Ministry of Economic Development and Trade. FREE.
Business-to-Business Trade Show, immediately following the Energize event, 12:30-3:30 Thurs. Oct. 28th. An affordable marketing tool and great networking opportunity. Sponsored by Rider Enterprises. Full table $75, shared table $50. Visitors – Free.
Reward yourself! Celebrate with the Small Business Enterprise Centre by registering (905-874-2650) for one or all of these free events. Meeting with others, talking about your mutual challenges, hearing best practices and sharing successes is a great way to re-discover your vitality. You’ll be refreshed and motivated to take on the next big thing, whether it’s balancing the books or reinventing your strategy. And while you’re there, give yourself a big pat on the back for a job well done!
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Friday, September 10, 2010
Turning Customer Complaints into Repeat Business
Turning Customer Complaints into Repeat Business
Small business owners must, at their core, want to satisfy their customers, if they are truly passionate about their business. “The Customer is always right,” may or may not be true, but I do believe that keeping an established customer is much easier than finding a new one. Keeping a customer happy is also a lot less stressful and time-consuming than undoing the damage that can be caused by one who is unhappy. Whatever way you look at it, customer loyalty is essential for business success.
Here are a few tips for triumphing through customer complaints:
1. Recognize them as opportunities for market research i.e. products’ features and benefits, customers’ psychographics, your company’s competitive advantage.
2. Listen to your customer without becoming defensive. Stay patient, hear your customer out and don’t try to solve it in this moment.
3. Acknowledge the customer’s emotions (anger, frustration, confusion) to reinforce that you are truly listening. Empathizing is kind, builds trust, and doesn’t imply your ownership of the problem (this can come later.)
4. Summarize the situation to ensure you have understood, and ask any questions you need for clarity.
5. Thank the customer for bringing the problem to your attention. This is NOT the time to state return/refund policies; the customer is asking for a unique solution. With sincerity, assure them that your company values their business and that you intend to rectify the situation.
6. If the solution is simple, propose it, outline steps, and ask if this will solve the problem for them. If the solution is more complicated, state a course of action toward resolution, time required, and when they can expect the process to begin.
7. It (almost) goes without saying…follow through with your promises.
It takes practice not to take a complaint personally, particularly in a very small business; but becoming insulted or otherwise hurt will not get you closer to a solution. How should you proceed depends largely on the nature of your business, as well as the severity of the customer's complaint. Negotiate fairness, both for the customer and you. Be polite but firm; you do not want to be taken advantage of any more than they do.
Often, customers will begin a complaint process expecting the worst, and you can come out of it looking like a hero if you go just a little above and beyond the call of duty. The result: a very loyal client.
Small business owners must, at their core, want to satisfy their customers, if they are truly passionate about their business. “The Customer is always right,” may or may not be true, but I do believe that keeping an established customer is much easier than finding a new one. Keeping a customer happy is also a lot less stressful and time-consuming than undoing the damage that can be caused by one who is unhappy. Whatever way you look at it, customer loyalty is essential for business success.
Here are a few tips for triumphing through customer complaints:
1. Recognize them as opportunities for market research i.e. products’ features and benefits, customers’ psychographics, your company’s competitive advantage.
2. Listen to your customer without becoming defensive. Stay patient, hear your customer out and don’t try to solve it in this moment.
3. Acknowledge the customer’s emotions (anger, frustration, confusion) to reinforce that you are truly listening. Empathizing is kind, builds trust, and doesn’t imply your ownership of the problem (this can come later.)
4. Summarize the situation to ensure you have understood, and ask any questions you need for clarity.
5. Thank the customer for bringing the problem to your attention. This is NOT the time to state return/refund policies; the customer is asking for a unique solution. With sincerity, assure them that your company values their business and that you intend to rectify the situation.
6. If the solution is simple, propose it, outline steps, and ask if this will solve the problem for them. If the solution is more complicated, state a course of action toward resolution, time required, and when they can expect the process to begin.
7. It (almost) goes without saying…follow through with your promises.
It takes practice not to take a complaint personally, particularly in a very small business; but becoming insulted or otherwise hurt will not get you closer to a solution. How should you proceed depends largely on the nature of your business, as well as the severity of the customer's complaint. Negotiate fairness, both for the customer and you. Be polite but firm; you do not want to be taken advantage of any more than they do.
Often, customers will begin a complaint process expecting the worst, and you can come out of it looking like a hero if you go just a little above and beyond the call of duty. The result: a very loyal client.
Call for Entries: Start-Up Business of the Year Award
Are you Brampton’s 2010
Start Up Business of the Year?
Scotiabank “SUBY” Award Competition Call for Entry
~PRIZES, RECOGNITION, MEDIA ATTENTION~
Applicant Criteria
· Launched in 2009 or 2010
· Brampton-based
· Wholly new business - not a franchise or resale
· 10 or fewer employees
· Brampton Small Business Enterprise Centre client
Application Deadline
· Monday, October 4th , 4:30 p.m. deadline
Business Overview – 70%, Finalist Interview – 30%
Full information, application and Business Overview Template available at
www.brampton-business.com or call Cassandra Baccardax at 905-874-2667.
Start Up Business of the Year?
Scotiabank “SUBY” Award Competition Call for Entry
~PRIZES, RECOGNITION, MEDIA ATTENTION~
Applicant Criteria
· Launched in 2009 or 2010
· Brampton-based
· Wholly new business - not a franchise or resale
· 10 or fewer employees
· Brampton Small Business Enterprise Centre client
Application Deadline
· Monday, October 4th , 4:30 p.m. deadline
Business Overview – 70%, Finalist Interview – 30%
Full information, application and Business Overview Template available at
www.brampton-business.com or call Cassandra Baccardax at 905-874-2667.
Trade Show October 28th
Brampton can be a challenging market to advertise in. TV and radio is priced to reflect the fact that the stations cover the entire GTA, and this can be unaffordable for a start up business. One very affordable tactic is the SBEC Fall Business-to-Business Trade Show (B2BTS), taking place Thursday October 28th at the Holiday Inn Select (Dixie & Queen). Full tables are just $75; shared tables only $50.
Trade shows are a terrific tool to add to your marketing toolbox. Face-to-face interaction gives vendors the chance to educate and inform, as well as make that all important first impression on potential customers. They are also a terrific way to gather market intelligence; vendors can ask market research questions within a casual conversation to glean important psychographic information about their target customers.
Trade shows are a terrific tool to add to your marketing toolbox. Face-to-face interaction gives vendors the chance to educate and inform, as well as make that all important first impression on potential customers. They are also a terrific way to gather market intelligence; vendors can ask market research questions within a casual conversation to glean important psychographic information about their target customers.
Below is a link to a brief clip from our spring B2BTS - check out the great energy and vibe! Thanks to Jason at Phoenix Gate Pictures for the videography and production.
If a trade show sounds like a good marketing tactic for your business, contact Susan Vasey at the Brampton SBEC at 905-874-3630 for full details and to reserve your table.
http://www.youtube.com/user/PhoenixGPictures#p/a/u/0/e39iAK1gfn0
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