Posts Tagged ‘customer’

Sealing the Deal (Part II of II): Earning Reputation

Wednesday, June 22nd, 2011

As I discussed in Part I of this post, service seals are a great way to help ensure your business’ legitimacy through your non-ecommerce website. However, while I have explained how service seals are helpful, I have yet to explain how your business can utilize and benefit from KikScore’s particular service seal.

Show ’em Who’s Boss

Ever lost business to a bigger company in your industry? It’s not unlikely that many (if not all) of us have at some point. To be honest, increasing website visitors and getting more clients is about more than just proving that you’re trustworthy; it’s about providing great service and showing others that you can compete with the “big dogs.” Every business, regardless of size, has its edge. Maybe your business is made of highly reputable people with past experience in the field. Maybe your customer base is more loyal than those of bigger businesses. Whatever the perk, it’s essential that potential and current customers know it.

KikScore’s service seal aims to highlight what makes your business stand out through several factors, such as:

• Financial and public records
• Security
• Visitor Traffic
• And more

Let’s face it, you’re stronger than you think. Isn’t it time to let your business show it? Through our service seal, we intend to help you fight that good fight and highlight any aspects of your business that website visitors want to know.

Power to the People, Power to You

At this point, it definitely goes without saying that KikScore’s service seal focuses on proving to potential customers that your business can be trusted. The data that goes into creating your business’ unique service seal can say a lot, but why stop there? After all, referrals are the best way to get more business. That’s where our service seal’s feedback platform comes in handy.

Your service seal will not only be a place to show off your business’ information; it will also be an open environment in which previous and current customers can discuss their experiences of working with you. By doing this, website visitors can see a testimonial page that is ever-expanding. One happy customer’s praise goes pretty far, but the feedback platform is there to do wonders.

KikScore’s service seal is thorough for one reason: educated people make educated decisions. If you can prove both your business’ trustworthiness as well as its competitive advantage(s), you won’t have trouble earning your reputation.

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Posts Tagged ‘customer’

Sealing the Deal (Part I of II): Ensuring Legitimacy

Wednesday, June 8th, 2011

You Know You’re Not a Thief, But Do They?

By nature, people are cautious about who they associate with. As if this wasn’t enough, people become even more wary of others when in an online setting due to the lack of face-to-face interaction. Many people can be very extroverted in online settings such as Facebook and Twitter, but what about when they want to find a trustworthy business? This issue can make the seemingly simple task of promoting oneself very complicated. However, looking at this through the customer’s point-of-view, can we really blame them for being skeptical? Of course not. No one wants to do business with a complete stranger.

According to this alarming statistic, “90% of the users would leave your website within 5 minutes if they won’t find any kind of trust seal – especially if your business is unknown and new.” No business begins with popularity and definitely not with legitimacy. However, this issue of trust doesn’t mean game over. Instead, it is simply a break in communication that must be connected. To mend this break, those in new businesses must understand this: Although customers may be unnecessarily worried that your business can’t be trusted, you don’t necessarily have the credibility to refute such a claim. Because of this unfortunate fact, new businesses must make it a top priority to show customers that they are making safe and appropriate choices when paying for your products and services. This has brought about the need for online trust seals.

Why Use a Service Seal?

We all need help sometimes, and growing a business is no exception. That’s why a concept known as a service seal has quickly become so popular. Service seals, which function as trust seals for non-ecommerce websites, are useful because they show customers that a business has been impartially evaluated and deemed reliable by a third party.

We all enjoy seeing billboards that advertise various products and services, but many times we need more than a catchy slogan or an inspiring picture. When a business agrees to put a service seal on its website, it is making a powerful statement that says, “We have nothing to hide.” Such a statement provides assurance to customers and makes them feel safe. In fact, we have found that 86% of customers feel safer using a website that features a trust seal or similar mark of authenticity than one that doesn’t. Where establishing legitimacy through online networks has become a serious problem, many people have come to see service seals as a new and innovative solution. What do you think? What, if any, experience have you had in dealing with service seals and the websites that use them?

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Posts Tagged ‘customer’

Only Through Consistency Can You Avoid Being "Best in Coat"

Monday, November 16th, 2009

All dog owners think they have the greatest dog — but until today, I was convinced that mine was truly “the one”.  At home, Bo (our 5 year old Golden Retriever) is well behaved.  He’s never on the furniture, doesn’t beg from strangers and overall is low-maintenance.  I take Bo to doggy day care (check out www.citybark.com— greatest dog day care ever).  He’s been going there since he was 3 months old.  Recently, City Bark designated certain “dog awards” for the regular attendees.  Needless to say, I thought we had “Best Dog” locked up (due to his general disposition and my lobbying of the title).  Well, the votes came in and Bo was given the title “Best Coat”.  What?!  Is that even a category?  It feels like someone in the Miss America competition winning “Best Smile”.  It’s a made up award and really is saying, “your dog is terrible, but we want you to keep bringing your dog here.”  That’s when it hit me.  My experience with Bo is vastly different than City Bark’s.

Providing a consistent customer experience has to be the number one priority for all businesses, but particularly small businesses that are establishing a brand and customer following.  While a consistent marketing message is important, according a to a recent Business Week article, more importantly is to meet your customers expectations(not necessarily exceeding expectations).  Small businesses that consistently meet customer expectations don’t stay small for long.  Think about Starbucks.  It’s guaranteed that Starbucks doesn’t have the best coffee in every city in which it operates.  But when you’re not a local (or you don’t want to risk it on the local shop), more often than not, you’ll go to Starbucks because they are excellent in meeting a customers expectations on a soy latte.  I’m not suggesting that the goal of every small business is to become a multi-national corporation, but there is a reason why these established brands are successful.  They stress consistency because that is often deemed more important than creativity or a superior product/service.

Please feel to share what your business does to maintain consistency…or if you disagree with the need to emphasize consistency.  Or, if you think “Best in Coat” is a legitimate prize that I can take pride in.

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