When potential and existing clients walk through your door, they are first greeted by one of your employees. They likely have contact with multiple employees before ever seeing you. This means that your staff has a huge responsibility in creating a great first impression and maintaining it. Disgruntled employees are not the source that you first want your customers to interact with. You would benefit more by having a person who clearly enjoys their job and feels passionate about it. Consider these five reasons that happy employees are one of the best ways to make customers want to use your place of business for their needs.
1. They have the most contact with your clients
No matter what industry you are in, your clients most likely deal with staff more than they do with the actual business owner. The client is more likely to trust someone who they feel is one their own level, and employees are more accessible and relatable than the business owner for many people.
Many people are good at picking up subtle cues, and if they feel that an employee hates their job, they may decide that something is wrong with the business itself. If they see that the employee enjoys working, they may feel that the company treats their employees well. That may encourage them to continue doing business with said company.
2. The staff acts as an advertisement source
Many companies pay a lot of money for advertising. Marketing can be a large chunk of a company’s profits and can be a great way to bring new clients in. However, staff can be your most effective advertisement source. People trust the opinion of a person who works for a company and will often ask if they should use that particular business before going. Staff who are highly trained in negotiations training can be an invaluable asset to your company.
3. Their true feelings show
When someone is truly happy at work, it shows. The same goes for someone who is very unhappy. Because true feelings shine through, happy employees can help promote your business just by being themselves. Unhappy employees can harm your business by not being able to give their all to a job they hate. When workers are pleasant to be around, clients are more likely to enjoy their overall experience with your business.
4. Tenured employees build strong client relationships
Most existing clients like to deal with employees that they have built a relationship with. It can be frustrating for a client to have to start over with a new staff member at every meeting or appointment. A happy, reliable employee can be someone that your clients trust and look forward to seeing. This keeps people coming back to your doors time after time.
5. High staff turnover says something to clients
Just as long-standing employees help retain your clients, high staff turnover can lead to customers looking elsewhere for business. This is not necessarily true across all industries, but it is for many one-on-one services. When a person sees new faces at every appointment, they may feel that the business cannot keep staff happy. They may start to wonder if the business will be able to keep customers happy in the long run.
Because happy employees are so important to the success of your business, it is important that you do what you can to keep them satisfied. Things like cash incentives, paid vacation and fair wages can do wonders for making workers feel content at work. Any effort that you make to show your staff that you appreciate and value them can come back to you tenfold.
For those wanting to make a business thrive and grow, consider looking at customer-employee relationships. Decide where improvements can be made, and do not be afraid to ask staff what can be done to increase their satisfaction at your company.
Lindsey Patterson is a freelance writer and entrepreneur based in the US who specialises in business technology, customer relationship management and lead management. She also writes about the latest social trends, specifically involving social media.
