ustomer service means different things at different times in different companies. It might be telling your clients about the great new programs you're offering or it might involve fielding questions and concerns.

Unfortunately, customer service often means listening to and dealing with complaints, threats and screams. For every 100 great things your company does, it takes just one disappointment to lose a customer and cause him to spread the negative word to all his friends.

Making Business Roots Strong Before Growing Branches

A common blunder that companies make in their approach to customer service is to neglect their current clients in favor of focusing their energy on new ones. But for every customer lost through negligence, your company must gain a replacement.

Recruiting a new customer-and the advertising, marketing and other methods of promotion that go into it-costs a great deal more than maintaining the relationship with an existing one.

Besides cost-efficiency, retaining customers has other significant benefits for your business. Recurring customers tend to bring in more business than new customers. They are more likely to refer your services to their peers than the new customer you just brought in. It's also easier to sell a new product or service to a loyal customer.

If you have provided them with honest, reliable goods before, they will trust you in the future. Your new customer doesn't know your service from that of the guy down the street. New clients require that you expend considerable time and energy; you can just drop in for a visit, shoot an email or send a flyer to your old, trusting customers.

Winning Over Customers by Playing on Emotions

When you have dozens of competitors in an industry and you're all offering similar products to the same customers, it becomes a difficult feat to hold onto sales. I'd like to show you how outstanding service not only helps to retain your current customers, but expands your client base as well.

Safeguarding against customer attrition is really all about gaining trust and developing loyalty. Customers may try your service because of your product offerings, but that's not what will keep them; loyalty is developed by reaching customers' emotional sensibilities.

As un-businesslike as that may sound, one of the major reasons customers take their business to a competitor is because they didn't feel well taken care of. The qualities in a company that keep clients emotionally satisfied are honesty, reliability and the interpersonal, or customer service, skills of the staff.

Know Thy Customer

One of the best ways to let your customers know that you care about them-and to make them feel emotionally tied to your business-is as easy as simply getting to know them. When one of your merchants calls you, within a few moments of his greeting, you should recall his name and the name of his business. These are just the basics.

After a few interactions with any client, it should be apparent how they need to be handled. They might be a bit anxious, requiring a lot of assurance and explanations. Another merchant might have a mild temper. Learn how to deal with him so that you're bringing out only his best side, and showing him yours.

Don't get frustrated-get smart. Every time you speak with a customer, treat them like they're the only one who matters. Ask, "How's business Mr. Jones? Is there anything I can help you with? You know I'm always available to you." You get the idea.

Keeping a log of your customers is extremely useful in your business practices. Entries should include details on their business histories, contact information, past issues you have worked on together, and personal data.

Being able to check up on a merchant and knowing in an instant what her plan is, what her rates are and what terminal she uses impresses the client and is ultimately beneficial to you. Knowing her well enough to ask how her family and business are doing is just another visible expression of your interest in her success and your relationship together.

Promising the Moon

Businesses often use obvious key words and catch phrases to promote themselves and attract customers-faster, better, free, lowest rates, best quality.

Most of them are selling false dreams though; they either don't really care about providing the promised qualities or commodities and just want to make a quick buck, or they don't have the means to carry through with their promises.

One of the most important rules for customer service: Do not make promises on which you cannot deliver. Pledges for top quality wares, guarantees for superlative services, and lifetime warrantees for customer care do not make for excellent service if you have low quality merchandise, mediocre offerings, and only enough manpower to fulfill your guarantee for three months. A small promise accomplished is far more impressive than a tremendous one not met.

Honesty is the Best Policy

Remember that there are exceptions to every promise and you must be honest with each customer on an individual basis. This is referred to as managing expectations and it's crucial in preventing customers from growing dissatisfied.

For instance, as a processor, Cynergy Data offers same day approvals, something our company works hard to accomplish and certainly wants to list as one of our greatest benefits to ISOs and merchants. However, it's not always possible to review and approve Level 2 merchant accounts in just one day. Sometimes a potential problem might force you to stray from your company's promise. In these cases, upfront honesty is not only fair to your customer, it serves as a safeguard for your business against complaints of unfulfilled agreements.

Running an honest business also involves the obvious-taking a stance against misleading your customers. Selling a product to someone who clearly does not need it, even if he doesn't question the sale, is just as fraudulent as lying.

Keep in mind what's best for your customers. If you sell a merchant a product that's not right for his business, you may fool him for a few months, but once he catches on, you've lost his confidence, and probably his business.

If you work with each client to determine the package that suits his needs best, even if it means a slightly less profitable sale for you in the short term, you are on the way to developing a trusting and loyal customer, one who will be with you for an extended time, which will lead to greater profits in the long term.

Trouble in Paradise: Customer Service Saves the Day

You've heeded all the caveats, but despite your honesty, integrity, great deals and greater service, you will hear complaints. People are people, and some can find fault in the best of circumstances. In dealing with such situations, remember the old customer service adage, that, as much as it may pain you, still holds true: The customer is always right!

Even if the inaccuracy in your customer's complaint is obvious and you would like nothing better than to argue with him until you've straightened him out, the wise business move is to swallow your pride and apologize for the alleged mistake.

Your company would suffer great losses if you debated every customer's grievance; many of them will sooner take their patronage elsewhere than admit that they're wrong.

Turning your attention to a problem can also be a great opportunity to show that you care. After-sale service is as important in the customer's eye as the product itself. Even though you've already made the deal, if you prove that you're still willing to go the extra mile, you demonstrate your loyalty to the customer.

They'll likely reciprocate.

Planning, Promoting and Practicing Your Winning Customer Service Plan Once you've developed some ideas for a successful customer service launch, examine all the elements of your plan. Which will you definitely be able to uphold for the long haul? Develop these further.

Which can you foresee becoming problematic and difficult to upkeep? Scratch these before you even start. Going back to the golden rule of keeping promises, don't announce a new program or service pledge that you can't maintain.

Once you've got your customer service plan solidified, don't be shy about announcing it to current and prospective customers. If you're 100% committed to your service guarantee, there is no reason not to promote it in your ads, greetings and sales pitches.

You want people to associate your tag line of great service with your company brand. Don't limit your role to being just the merchant's sales contact. Be the MLS who makes in-store visits regularly or who has the fastest turnaround time.

Stay proactive in your approach to good service. If you only take good care of a customer once and don't continue to, your efforts will be lost. A customer's opinion is formed by consistent exposure to your outstanding service. Don't make the common mistake of making one great impression and walking away.

If you're not sure how to provide the best possible service, ask. Send out a survey or mention it in conversation. By asking the right questions you'll discover what types of business relationships your clients want and need.

Don't forget that any member of your company can influence a customer's perception. From the receptionist and accounting department to the CEO, each individual who interacts with clients represents your business and approach to customer service. Share with them the image that you want to project and teach them customer service tips that will allow them to follow your lead.

By making your customers want to do business with your company, your client base will ultimately grow. References will increase from long-standing customers who have seen the veracity of your customer service promise. Sales will increase as customers learn to trust you with their business.

You will have the satisfaction of knowing that your success is based not on deceit and ruthless sales, but on honesty and integrity. Your customers will thank you!

Danette Smith is the Manager, ISO Support of Cynergy Data, a Merchant Acquirer that provides a wide array of electronic payment processing services. In addition to offering credit, debit, EBT and gift card processing, along with check conversion and guarantee programs, the company offers its ISOs the ability to borrow money against its residuals, to have Web sites designed and developed, to provide merchants with free terminals, and to benefit from state-of-the-art marketing, technology and business support.

Founded in 1995 by Marcelo Paladini and John Martillo, Cynergy Data strives to be a new kind of ISO with a unique mission: to constantly explore, understand and develop the products that ISOs and merchants need to be successful, and to back it up with honest, reliable, supportive service. For information, contact Nancy Drexler at nancyd@cynergydata.com .