Anyone who’s been to Sonic?knows what?unmet expectations feel like. If you’re a small business owner, you’ve probably come to hate the verb “expect” more than any other. Customers have a whole?lot?of dreams?about what you can deliver, and it’s all too easy to come up?short when someone has their eyes to the sky.
任何到過(guò)Sonic(索尼克)公司的人都能感受到,并沒(méi)有達(dá)到期望。如果你是一家小公司的老板,你很有可能更討厭“期待”這個(gè)詞。顧客有大量你能滿足的夢(mèng)想與需求,并且很多情況下你都視而不見(jiàn)。

In the tech world, expectations are especially killer. Terms like “the cloud” don’t help.?Clouds are?huge fluffy things that float and take on a million, ever-changing forms, so you can’t blame people for thinking that anything is possible in?this industry. But when you’re operating on?a budget, you can’t fulfill every whim, so?part of the?responsibility—and surely thrill—of owning a business is learning to set and then meet your clients’ expectations.
在技術(shù)行業(yè)里,“期待值”特別折磨人。諸如“云端”的概念都不例外。云端就是那些龐大的懸浮物,以成千上萬(wàn),瞬息萬(wàn)變的形態(tài)流動(dòng)著,所以你不能責(zé)怪人們總是認(rèn)為“世事皆有可能”。但當(dāng)你在籌劃著一筆預(yù)算,你并不能滿足每一個(gè)奇思妙想,所以有一部分的責(zé)任——肯定是令人振奮的,運(yùn)行一家公司就是要學(xué)會(huì)預(yù)設(shè)和滿足客戶的期待。

1.Attract the Right?Business
1. 吸引正確的業(yè)務(wù)

As the voice of your product, you have the power to draw?the kind of customers you want, and that starts with?your brand. If you spout yourself as a full-service operation?that holds?the customer’s hand from start to finish, you need to deliver on that?immediately?to keep your clients around. If you’re more hands-off,?you’ll be going after independent clients who?are up for DIY. Communicate who you are and stick to it. If people are coming through the door with the wrong idea about you, you’re not being loud enough.
正如產(chǎn)品的發(fā)行目標(biāo),你有能力預(yù)期購(gòu)買產(chǎn)品的顧客,并以自己的品牌作為起點(diǎn)。如果你標(biāo)榜你的公司是一家全套服務(wù)運(yùn)行的公司,對(duì)顧客的需求與服務(wù)從一而終,那么你很快就能吸引和保住顧客。如果你的并不能全程待命,你就需要吸引能夠自主處理的顧客。找到合適的顧客,與對(duì)方洽談并維持這個(gè)原則。如果顧客從別的渠道獲得不同的信息,當(dāng)他們來(lái)找你算賬的時(shí)候,你可就底氣不足了哦。

2.Understand Your Clients
2. 了解你的客戶。

Once you gain someone’s business, the expectation game really begins. You’ll get clients who love you and clients who really… don’t.?Treat them?as case studies. Let them vent. Learn what went wrong. These people will help you grow more than your biggest fans, even if you end up losing their business. Biting the bullet and asking honestly,?“Where did we screw up?” will indulge them and enlighten you. To initiate these conversations, you need a method of?taking your clients’ temperature before they’re fuming. Periodic check-ins, whether digital or in-person, give your customers the sense that they’ve been heard, plus provide you with regular insight on how you’re faring.
當(dāng)你得到了商業(yè)機(jī)會(huì),真正的期待值游戲便正式開(kāi)始。你會(huì)吸引非常喜歡你的客戶,也有非常不喜歡的客戶。把他們的情況當(dāng)作個(gè)案研究,分別處理。讓顧客說(shuō)出自己真正的需求,再了解其中哪個(gè)環(huán)節(jié)出了問(wèn)題。這些客戶,不僅僅作為你的忠實(shí)顧客的身份,會(huì)幫助你成長(zhǎng),即使最后你可能會(huì)失去他們的支持。直面彈劾并真誠(chéng)地詢問(wèn):“我們哪些地方讓你感到不滿意?”這樣可以給予客戶發(fā)泄的空間并給予你啟發(fā)。在開(kāi)始對(duì)話的時(shí)候,你需要測(cè)試判斷顧客的情緒避免他們太生氣了。定期給他們聯(lián)系,無(wú)論是通過(guò)網(wǎng)絡(luò)還是本人親自面談的方式,都能夠讓客戶感受到自己的需求被聽(tīng)進(jìn)去了,再者會(huì)為你的擔(dān)憂提供定期的看法反饋。

3.Transform?Your Relationship
3. 轉(zhuǎn)變?nèi)穗H關(guān)系。

Feedback in hand, you can tweak away. The next time you identify a “difficult” client, you’ll know where they came from and what you could have done to make them happier. Sometimes it just isn’t meant to be—tough people will slip through the cracks regardless of how accurately you build your brand around your business. But more often than not, angry clients are open to changing their minds if you give them the chance. Start by empathizing and end by advocating. Hear them out, then tell them exactly what?you’ll do to change their mind. Don’t tack on higher expectations than they already have; give realistic solutions that you’re confident you can see through. By taking control and forecasting your relationship, you begin molding it into?one you both want, and this is where progress flourishes.
反饋正在進(jìn)行中,你可以稍作調(diào)整。下次你發(fā)現(xiàn)有一位“難相處”的客戶,你就知道他們不滿意的原因以及你能做那些事情讓他們更滿意。不過(guò)有時(shí)候事與愿違——難相處的人無(wú)論你多么清晰地定位你的品牌,他們都只會(huì)草率略過(guò)。不過(guò)通常的情況下,憤怒的客戶都保持開(kāi)放的心態(tài)接受挑戰(zhàn)。開(kāi)口語(yǔ)氣要中肯強(qiáng)調(diào),結(jié)束要擁護(hù)支持。聽(tīng)取他們的需求,并告訴他們你會(huì)做哪些事情幫助他們。不要多生枝節(jié)讓對(duì)方留下更高的期待值,要提供直接現(xiàn)實(shí)的,你所能游刃有余應(yīng)對(duì)的解決方案??刂坪?,預(yù)期你的人際關(guān)系,然后就能按照雙方的期望的發(fā)展,事情就變得好辦了。

4.Rinse and Repeat
4. 不斷完善

When you lose a customer,?treat it as an opportunity to attract a better one. Armed with new knowledge about?who you do and don’t want to work with, you can revisit your branding, up proactive communication, and apply the bandaid when necessary.?We all dream of?being comfortable enough to turn down customers we know aren’t a good fit, but for most businesses that’s not an option. Instead, you’ll better yourself for next time, and the time after that.
當(dāng)你失去了客戶,把這當(dāng)作一次獲取更好客戶的經(jīng)驗(yàn)。以新知識(shí)武裝自己,明確自己的合作意愿,你能重新審視自己的品牌,主動(dòng)與對(duì)方交流,在必要時(shí)申請(qǐng)?jiān)?。我們都想象能夠舒適地處理不合格的客戶關(guān)系,但對(duì)于大多數(shù)的企業(yè)來(lái)說(shuō)不是一個(gè)選擇,相反,你只有不斷地完善自己,一次又一次地。

聲明:本雙語(yǔ)文章的中文翻譯系滬江英語(yǔ)原創(chuàng)內(nèi)容,轉(zhuǎn)載請(qǐng)注明出處。中文翻譯僅代表譯者個(gè)人觀點(diǎn),僅供參考。如有不妥之處,歡迎指正。