The president of a Bank in the city of Virginia Beach, Virginia, believes her bank is successful because of the way her employees treat the customers. She says, “My employees are specially trained to concentrate on what the customer needs.

The president made the point that she spends no money on costly advertising cam­paigns; she just concentrates on having her employees treat the customer the way the people like to be treated. Despite the fact that the bank has spent no money on advertising since its opening in 1985, 35% of its’ new customers have come to her as the result of referrals from her satisfied customer base. Read More »

One of my favorite places to go is my printer. Tony Grech and Paul Degrazia, co-owners of Grecko Printing in Plymouth, MI make it a point to create an upbeat and energetic atmosphere for their clients and their employees.

When you walk into their lobby, it is alive with activity, sound and eye popping color displays. Everything from the mascot, a live gecko by the name of “Grecko”, to their clients laughter that echoes throughout the building.  Tony, Paul and crew do their best to make it an enjoyable experience to do business with Grecko Printing. Read More »

One of the best ways to help everyone in your company do a better job of serving your clients is to make sure they have their own business cards (not the kind they have to write their name on). What I mean by everyone, is everyone, from the owner to the managers, down to the front line employees.

A personal friend of mine who at the time was the vice-president of a construction company, (He now is the president of his own construction company) made it a point to order all of his truck drivers business cards. Read More »

Several years ago I was doing a talk for my local Kiwanis Club and met a most delightful individual by the name of Greg Ferman. He was courteous and upbeat and happened to be an optometrist. I mentioned to him that I was looking for a new optometrist since mine had unfortunately passed away. He gave me his business card and invited me to set up an appointment to come in for a checkup.

A few weeks later I made an appointment to see Dr. Ferman and was totally impressed by this man’s very helpful and pleasant staff and office ambiance. Read More »

Last week I walked into my credit union, Community Financial, in Canton, MI. As I waited in line, I noticed one of the tellers was new. Whenever there is a new teller it makes me aware that there will be a short period of time for them to get to know me. Once this young lady got my account number, she wasted no time using my name.

On my next visit, the same thing happened. On my third visit she called me by name as I walked up to the window. She did not even need to look at my account number. This kind of treatment made me feel important and respected and is one of the reasons I have been a member of this credit union since 1983.

Do you know the names of most of your customers? Read More »

There is a man from my hometown by the name of Joe Slaga, owner of PJ’s, a baseball card shop. When customers enter his store, he makes them feel comfortable by his easy manner. He is a good people person. He realizes that people don’t want to be badgered into buying anything.

By joking and exchanging stories with them about their favorite sports celebrity, he devel­ops a friendly relationship with all the adults and children who come into the store. He has made it a favorite stopping place for many children to bring their parents to browse and buy. Read More »

A few weeks ago I attended a business meeting on a Tuesday night at a fairly large restaurant by the name of Doc’s Sports Retreat in Livonia MI. As I pulled into the restaurant parking lot, I was flabbergasted.

During this Michigan recession, the parking lot was almost completely full. Once inside, I could see the place was near capacity.  As the evening progressed the restaurant became totally packed. This is a Tuesday night mind you!

On the way out I asked the head waitress if there was  something special going on that evening. She said “oh no, this is the way it usually is, seven days a week.” Read More »