For Nina Orlando, the lesson hit home a few years ago when she was using 150 pounds of hamburger to make patties by hand at Alexander & Polen, a gourmet shop in Grosse Pointe Woods, Mich.
For Raymond Trella, it boiled down to taking care of some longtime customers down on their luck by giving them discount cards worth 25 percent off their dry-cleaning bills at his Oakland County, Mich., cleaners.
Like small-business owners across the land, Orlando and Trella have learned that the keys to surviving when competing with bigger, deep-pocketed rivals are focusing on stepped-up service and going the extra mile for customers.
Orlando, 29, works at the butcher shop bought by her late grandfather, Russell Orlando, during the 1940s.
She, her two brothers, two cousins and her father, Frank Orlando, work at the 3,000-square-foot market and butcher shop, which has seven employees.
The store has homemade pastas, stuffed chicken breasts, pork chops and many other items. The family also imports items from Europe.
"I'm a pro at this," says Nina Orlando of the process of making burger patties that are sold at their store and at area restaurants.
The experts say providing exceptional customer service is one way small businesses can stand out.
"Turning regular customers into loyal customers assures repeat business," says Bill Kalmar of Lake Orion, Mich. Kalmer is a former Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award examiner, where he judged firms for annual U.S. Commerce Department awards.
Trella, who started Trella Cleaners in 1991, says he has had to adapt to the economy.
"Two years ago, we really began to feel it as more auto layoffs took place and a lot of my customers were out of a job," Trella said.
He responded by giving them discount cards worth 25 percent off dry-cleaning bills.
The store, which has 15 employees, has added services such as delivery and wedding gown restoration.
Trella knows about 80 percent of his customers by first name and says it's important for his employees to know customers' names, too.
It is critical to let employees know what customer service is expected, Kalmar says.
He offers other suggestions for businesses on ways they can shore up customer service:
Ask for customers' e-mail addresses and send them special offers.
Empower your employees to handle customer disputes.
Meet daily with employees to discuss customer issues and invite input from your staff on how each should be handled.
Finally, keep an eye on the competition.
"Benchmarking one's customer service against the competition is one way to pick up some ideas," he says.
Network Marketing - Lifetime Residual Income
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