By Kandi Moulder | August 23, 2011

Customer service needs more cowbell.

I recently took my car in to get new brakes. I had never been to this shop, so I was a little unsure what kind of experience I was going to have. Happily, the owner was more than helpful. He didn’t just put cheap brakes on my car, he asked me what kind of budget I was working with and explained the different types, gave me his own recommendation and then asked what I wanted.

When I came back to pick up my car I found that he had not only replaced my brakes, but also cleaned my car and fixed a small dent in my hood free of charge. Why? Simply because he would have done the same if it was his own car. Treating my car like it was his own assured me, the customer, that my car was in good hands.

What makes a good customer experience?

This assurance is what made my experience a good one. It isn’t always just the deals or the selection; customer service can make or break the shopping experience, gaining you a loyal customer or a poor online review.

But good customer service isn’t just about greeting customers with a smile anymore. People are looking for a personal connection even in business dealings. By making an effort to form relationships, you start to build the kind of trust that results in repeat customers.

This isn’t like building friendships, though – it’s less about getting to know each other personally and more about caring for customers as people rather than money machines. It can be as simple as offering your knowledge and advice to the customer, even if they didn’t ask for it. If people feel like they are doing business with someone who genuinely cares about helping them out, they are more likely to return.

Every customer is important – treat them so!

Every customer should feel they are the most important one you have. It’s that VIP feeling that will make a one-time customer return again.

Have you ever walked into a store and heard the standard “Is there anything I can help you with today?” greeting? How about someone who not only helped you find what you were looking for, but asked what kind of product you were looking for, gave recommendations and helped you choose something to fit your needs? It’s service like this that makes a good shopping experience because they know they can depend on you to get them what they need.

Pricing and novelty aren’t always the customer’s motivation. Building relationships with your current customers based on the level of service you provide and the way you treat them as people is one of the best things you can do for your business.

Recall the last time you had a great experience with customer service. What made it so great? Use those experiences to start giving your own customers great service.

Have a great customer service story? Share it here in the comments!

By Ben Lippert | August 1, 2011

Robert Sharp & Associates was fortunate to attend the first annual MarketPlace event in Huron, SD.

The event, which is scheduled to take place the next two years, was hosted by the Center for Rural Affairs and the South Dakota Farmers Union.

The purposes of MarketPlace is to unite local business owners and entrepreneurs in South Dakota and provide them with insight, education and a chance to network and learn about other resources from across the state.

We had several good conversations with people from all walks of life and all areas of the state.

One of our most unique encounters was with a woman from a small town north of Phillip; she owns a bed and breakfast called Missile Inn. As the name suggests, Missile Inn is located near an old missile silo. Sadly, however, guests do not stay in the abandoned shaft. The B & B has six different rooms, all decked with paintings, trinkets and artifacts the owner and her family have collected over time.

We also attended several breakout sessions and seminars. Through these experiences we learned helpful advice from industry leaders. One of the sessions, “20 Killer Marketing Ideas That Will Build Your Business,” was especially helpful.

From all the speakers, discussions and networking with South Dakota business owners, here are three most important things we took away.

1) Business is alive and well in South Dakota – what recession? SD business owners are fighting through the difficult financial times facing our country and most of them are coming out successful. This doesn’t just include established businesses, many small businesses are opening and finding a way to make it work.

2) The feeling of community is strong – even though we knew many of the vendors and business owners, there were still some new faces. The friendliness and love we received from total strangers was astounding. This wasn’t an event where businesses pushed their products at other people. There were no sales pitches or contracts – just an open environment to learn and grow.

3) Technology is at the forefront of business – the degree of attendees tech skills ranged from very advanced to complete novice but one thing was consistent in the minds of everyone who attended: technology is essential to marketing your business and product. Many of the session talked about social media’s influence on business. It was neat to see the openness and reception to technology that many people aren’t native to, or necessarily familiar with.

If you would like to join us at the 2012 South Dakota MarketPlace event, check the Center for Rural Affairs website or contact the South Dakota Farmers Union.

By Kyle McCabe | July 14, 2010

In a brilliant and entertaining blend of traditional advertising and social media, Old Spice simply nails it here.  With a traditional TV spot posted on Youtube, they simply monitored comments on the video, as well as on Facebook and Twitter, and then shot and posted video responses to some of them.

Simply amazing. This has got to be the first time in a long time any advertising, by itself, has made me want to purchase a product!

And they’re still doing it. Prepare to waste your afternoon…

By Ian Sharp | May 24, 2010

Bidding on a beauty.

On Saturday we headed west for my first Murdo in May classic car auction at Pioneer Auto. After a quick trip to Murdo, I was really getting excited and wondered how such a small town in rural South Dakota can attract so many car enthusiasts.

I lost count of the number of people attending, but there must have been several hundred car lovers enjoying the day. …Read more »

By Kyle McCabe | April 6, 2010

Last week I wrote about OTA Sessions, which I attended the week before, and gave some overall thoughts about the experience. For the next couple of posts I will attempt to dive a little deeper and find out what it all means for you and I.

Most of the ideas discussed by the event speakers can be boiled down to one thing: changes. Changes in the marketplace and marketing; changes in the “consumer,” and the “user”; changes in the way we interact as people, and changes in the way we do business because of it; changes in our thinking and our actual physiology.

So how exactly has the marketplace changed? Here’s what some of our speakers had to say about the current state of things, with a little commentary thrown in: …Read more »

By Kyle McCabe | October 20, 2009

Is full transparency really a good idea?

Almost every “how-to” or list of tips on using social media includes some kind of advice on being authentic or transparent. I’m not convinced we all agree on what things like transparency and authenticity mean in this context.

Transparency
No one is really serious about full transparency. Full transparency would entail communication of every detail of your life. I don’t know about you, but I’m not too keen on the idea I should tell you when I use the bathroom or what my email password is. If I update a social app with the fact that I’ve left work, I don’t think I’m obligated to tell you where I’m going. Or who I’m meeting. Or what kind of drugs I’m buying. What?

Yes, the truth is there’s stuff I don’t want you to know about. Stuff you *shouldn’t* know. Not drugs, exactly – I’ve been clean for at least a few weeks. The point is “transparency” is sort of a misnomer – no one really means it. Translucent? The reality is probably more opaque. …Read more »

By Kyle McCabe | September 11, 2009

Hey everyone, big thanks to those of you who attended our IM seminar over lunch on Wednesday. We had a blast, and hope you enjoyed it and found it helpful. Thanks to the Howard Johnson Inn & Suites in Rapid City for hosting the event.

We’ve embedded the slide deck below for your reference, and also included some key takeaways from what we talked about. As always, if you have any questions leave a comment or get in touch with us in whatever way you prefer. ;)

We’re also going to be posting some more related info in the coming weeks that should help clarify some things we discussed, so stay tuned for that. Go ahead and subscribe if you like, so you don’t have to remember to check back!  We are always open to suggestions for new blog posts.  If there is something you would like us to write about or if you have any questions, feel free to comment below.

…Read more »

By Kyle McCabe | June 17, 2009

Designer's rendering of the playground

The Vickie Powers Memorial Park Playground Project gets underway today.  It’s an exciting event – 5 days of building by hundreds of volunteers, and in the end the community will have a brand new playground in the park.

What’s cool about this playground is that it was designed with the help of children, so you know they’re going to love it. As part of a “community design, community build” concept, Rapid City’s Parks & Recreation Department teamed up with Leather’s & Associates, out of New York, to make this project happen.

The concept of this park’s “community design, community build” is classic and essential.  Whether it be by getting involved in social media, encouraging higher levels of customer and community service,  relationship building, or by hosting/contributing to community events, the community theme has been a common thread for many of our clients lately.  Sort of as a way to get back to the basics.  Back to the human connection.  Working together toward a common goal.

It’s encouraging to see so many people give so much to such a cause as this park, even in the midst of a recession. This generosity, this sense of community, is now more important than ever. I hope this playground and park will benefit the community by/for which it was built, and perhaps serve as a way to grow our sense of community in the days ahead.