- "In the last 20 years our business has changed considerably…and as the focus of our business has changed, Bird Luckin have moved with us."
Alex Tanner, George Tanner (Shalford) Ltd - "Bird Luckin has looked after us incredibly well for over 60 years, they are pro-active and innovational - meeting all our needs to help us achieve our aims."
Richard Stubbings, Cliffords Limited - "I can honestly say that Bird Luckin are the best firm of accountants and auditors I have ever dealt with - and I don't say that lightly!"
Colin Webb, Walthamstow Stadium - "It's important for us to know that we will always be able to contact the right people to give us the right advice and support."
Jane Bennett, Bennetts Funeral Directors - "Although we deal mainly with one Partner … we also know that if we need to contact someone else who is a specialist in another area, we can get the advice we need quickly and easily"
Jeremy Ruggles, J.S. Wright & Sons Ltd - "Bird Luckin got us to a stage which would have taken us months - if not years - to reach on our own, and they got us there in a matter of weeks"
Matthew Sullivan, SNC Ltd - "You can be a good accountant, but if you don't have an understanding of the industry it can be very difficult. "There are two or three people we have regular contact with at Bird Luckin who know our business well, and it makes a difference.""
Robert Church, W A Church (Bures) Ltd - "The work which Bird Luckin has done for Boddingtons over the past few months has helped shape our future direction for the better."
John Warner, Chief Executive, Boddingtons Ltd - "Bird Luckin has acted for us since our inception 10 years ago. They have a very 'can do' yet highly professional attitude - we are very appreciative of their support and advice over the years."
Marlon Fox, Outlook Property Ltd
Understand what your customers want
With the customer increasingly becoming the driving force in all areas of business, companies must make sure they understand their customers and what they want.
Most commentators agree that the principal purchasing factor for customers is 'best value for the price'. They are not looking for the lowest price for any particular product, but for the best value.
Of course, what the business owner perceives to be the best value for money and what the customer perceives it to be are not necessarily the same thing. So, to remain at the competitive edge you need to develop strategies around what customers really value, and you need to increase your customer's perceptions of the value of your products.
How well do you know your customers?
Before you can develop these strategies however, you need to understand the wants of your customers. For example, are you focusing all your energy and resources on making the sales team more responsive, when actually your customers want a more knowledgeable sales force? Perhaps you are attempting to minimise delivery times when all along your customers would prefer regular but consistent deliveries. Or you might believe that your product line is ideal, when actually your customers are buying items from other suppliers that they would rather buy from you, if you offered them.
Few businesses have a formal programme for measuring the wants, needs and satisfaction of customers. This kind of information is usually collated piecemeal from the sales, delivery, accounts or customer service departments.
Creating customer databases
You need to be able to gather and store this kind of customer information in a useful manner. One effective way of doing this is to establish a central database or file that can be accessed by all departments. Implementing this requires three steps:
- Identifying and gathering the relevant information
- Converting the information to a useful knowledge base
- Distributing the knowledge throughout the company
Training benefits
Gathering and documenting information about your customers can also benefit employee training. New employees need to have an understanding of the customers they will be dealing with. When staff turnover occurs, much accumulated knowledge can be lost. By using a central database, the fragmented information gathered by various departments can be amalgamated and kept in a useful format. Delivery staff will know who your 'A' list clients are. New salespeople will be able to take over a territory with ease.
Do not overestimate what individual employees really know about your customers. Remember, they don't have your cross-department perspective.
Build your customer database today
The biggest problem in developing and managing knowledge is that so much is communicated through word-of-mouth and so little is converted into a form that can be easily stored and distributed.
If you wish to be successful in winning and maintaining business you need to know what your customers really want. Technology has provided all the tools needed to effectively manage knowledge about your customers. But you must take the initiative to systematically gather, store and use it to increase your profitability.