Pulse December 2017 | Page 18

Pulse PoInts WHAT’S IN A NAME? “ 71.7% of consumers aged 35 to 44 will support or shop more at a small business if the owner knows their name.” hen someone you barely know remembers your name, how does it make you feel? Important? Cherished? Valued? Your customers feel all that and more when you address them by their name, and, according to a new study by Vistaprint, they’re also more likely to use your services. Vistaprint surveyed U.S. consumers to uncover opinions about shopping at or working with a small business. The full survey was completed by 1,504 consumers aged 18 and over across the United States from August 24 to 26, 2017. The survey, which also uncovered that shopping or using the services of small businesses is very important to consumers, showed that nearly seven out of ten (68.9 percent) of U.S. consumers will support or shop more at a small business if the owner knows them by name. Even more, 71.7 percent of consumers aged 35 to 44 will support or shop more at a small business if the owner knows their name. As a spa with a database full of consumer records and appointments, it shouldn’t take more than a few tweaks to your customer service policy to ensure your customers are being called directly by name. Here are four tips to becoming a pro at memorizing the names of your customers. W 16 PULSE ■ December 2017 1. Meet and repeat. If the customer has set an appointment beforehand, your staff should already have their name available. Train everyone from your receptionist to your service providers to weave the customer’s name into the conversation. Also, when you’re saying goodbye, make sure to use the name one last time while looking them in the face, and make an effort to commit it to memory. Associate. Many experts suggest that you conjure a verbal game or image when you first hear a name. Think, “Cassie from California” or “Bill with the blue shirt,” to help you remember their name throughout their spa visit. Be Authentic. It’s more important to be real with customers and make them feel comfortable, than ensuring you say their name every few minutes. Authenticity in conver- sation will make you feel more comfortable with customers and naturally remember their names. Choose to Care. Most psychologists and memory experts point out that one of the main reasons we forget someone’s name is that we’re not really focused on learning it in the first place. Decide to care about learning names, and pass that on to your staff; you’ll be surprised how well it actually works! n 2. 3. 4.