Are you making it hard for your customers to get to you? In this day and age of technological advances, people expect instant access. While this may not actually be a good thing and we definitely need to set some boundaries and limits around how much we work (this can be hard enough with a home-based business!), we also need to compete in a business world where customers will go to the companies who can be the most accessible and meet their needs in the quickest, most complete way. Can your customers get to you when they need to?
This can be a tough issue for a home business owner who is also running a household and raising a family. In addition to “taking care of business,” you are also driving the carpool, helping out in the classroom, taking kids to lessons and activities, and getting the errands and grocery shopping done. Customers need to be able to reach us via phone and e-mail and while they don’t necessarily need 24-hour access, they have a right to expect that we will be working somewhat regular business hours and get back to them within a reasonable amount of time. I am not someone who wants to be doing business or work at a soccer game or band concert, so I have to make sure I’ve gotten in touch with everyone I need to beforehand.
It comes down to a balancing act (like so many things!). You might not need a cell phone with e-mail capabilities, but you will need to make sure that you check messages and e-mail regularly or develop a system by which customers can expect to find and reach you on a regular basis. If you make it too tough for customers to get in touch with you they will probably take their business elsewhere.
See Also: With Home Business–We HAVE to Give Good Customer Service
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