A part of this years #marchmeetthemaker we were asked to focus on our customers and the feedback. I’ve been running my own business since 2011 and have learnt a few things about this so I thought I’d share my knowledge in this post…
Running a businesses is all about relationships, valuing clients and customers and listening to feedback are part and parcel of being a business owner. I have both clients for my design and illustration work and customers of my online shops and although the relationships are similar they not the same. The client relationship is (hopefully) long term, close and intertwined. Customers are more distant and fleeting but require just as much love and attention. I am lucky to have amazing relationships with my clients and a wealth of five star reviews from my lovely customers.
For me it’s all about thinking about my clients and customers, having them in my mind when I’m doing almost anything – when answering the phone, when pricing products, posting on social media. What do they expect, what would make them happy, how can I surprise and delight them? It’s not always easy, especially when I’m busy, or my computer is acting up or I find myself answering the same question 50,000 times! The most difficult bit though is listening to feedback. Not the shiny 5 star reviews, the ones to pay attentions to are the not so positive ones, the ones that highlight any issues. No matter how imaginative you are it’s unlikely that you are going to hit every customer expectation 100% of the time. Constructive criticism from people that use your business is vital. Luckily for me this kind of feedback is rare, most of my clients and customers are effusive in their praise, but every now and again a customer highlights something that I overlooked, that I hadn’t seen from their point of view or that I could do better. That’s the reason I redesigned and increased my wall planner range, why I’ve recently changed mug supplier and why I altered the way I wrote my quotes for illustration work.
Optimising each part of my business with the help of my clients and customers is a super rewarding process!
Thank you to all my clients and customers for your trust, your support and your honest feedback and constructive criticism!
