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The reputation of your business is the most important factor in the long term success of the entirety of your business efforts. Your reputation is remade each day with each customer who encounters your business. Really you are not limited to one business reputation, but many reputations that are given birth in the minds of customers who deal with you in the execution of your business activities. It is just as critical to know that you have a reputation with people who have never done business with you but learned of you from others.

You may know Joan Jett's tune from days gone by called 'Bad Reputation.' Joan was a famous rocker of her day, but she was also a cunning marketing person. She postured herself as the bad girl of rock, and the song 'Bad Reputation' proved a hit. In the ever nonconformist scene of alternative rock, a woman proud of her bad reputation was quite popular. She likely lied a little with the words 'I don't give a damn about my bad reputation' as she obviously thought much about her bad reputation, it was one of her best marketing advantages! She harnessed that reputation to achieve lasting fame.

Sadly for the majority of us, a poor reputation is not a viable marketing goal to grow our business. The exception besides musicians might be trial lawyers, repo men, or bail bondsmen who are often hired for their dangerous air and fearsome reputation. For everyone else it just doesn't work.

You need to be very aware that everything you do, and everything your workers do, for your business contributes to your reputation. Business has no Mulligans. You can strive to make things right that might have make your business reputation falter. In fact, remedying problems properly can be a real opportunity. However, you can never undo the memories of things that have caused someone to take a low view of your company.

Every interaction you have with people you encounter in your business has one of three endings related to your reputation. Two of these endings are not pleasant, the other one is excellent!

Experience number one is one you have with a client, or potential client, where you don't embarrass your business or company, but you also don't do anything to stand out from the other companies. This may not be the worst outcome, but it comes close. You have managed to be at best typical in the mind of a customer. You will likely be either forgotten in the future, or thought of as someone that 'did OK' last time.

The next ending occurs when you, or your employee, has committed a big enough error to make sure the client is enraged at you. This is the worst case scenario for your business. In addition to estranging a client, you have left no doubt that you have lost people who hear about you through that customer. The negative potential is gigantic. If you as a business owner have knowingly allowed this to transpire, then you certainly deserve the impact it has upon your business. But nine times out of ten the business owner is completely unaware of what has transpired if the problem occurred with one of their employees, or out of their own interactions with the customer. You shouldn't think that angered clients will make time to announce what transpired. Typically they just never come back and no opportunity exists to fix it. If you learn of the problem, and then fail to make it right, then again you deserve the poor reputation it creates. However, if you take the time to go try to fix the situation, you will have used a fantastic opportunity in business - to demonstrate to a client that you want their loyalty and will go the extra mile to demonstrate concern.

Outcome number three is sought by every savvy business owner in all interactions they have with customers. You strive to convince the patrons, and potential patrons, that besides supplying top-class goods or services, you have a concern for how those products or services fill a customer's need. It all focuses on building a lasting relationship with your patrons so that they know you are competent, fair, and focused on meeting their needs. When successful in this goal you have formed a loyal customer who's value far surpasses any purchase they make.

Helping you learn to create devoted clients is the focus of our business. Hopefully if you are concerned about developing your business based on this style you will consider signing up for our services.