first-time customer

Home  /  Build Relationships with First-timers – 11/11/25  /  first-time customer

Complement Empathy with Action - 8/4/26


A man falls into a hole, and he can’t get out.  He starts yelling for help, and a doctor walks by and looks down the hole.  The man in the hole yells to the doctor “Please help me.  I’ve fallen into this hole!”  And the doctor takes out a Read more

My 8-Minute Visit at the DMV- 7/28/26


I needed to get a Real ID, which in North Carolina facilitates airline travel and other identity verifications.  My wife suggested I go to one particular DMV that was a LONG way away from home, but where she had experienced great customer service.  I was lucky to find an Read more

When They Might Walk Out the Door…Permanently- 7/21/26


Have you ever had one of those conversations with the customer where they literally tell you they’re about to stop doing business with your company?  This is it.  They may bring up a competitor or found another way to get their need met, or they are just leaving. When we Read more

Transparency in Customer Service- 7/14/26


We’ve worked with a lot of clients in the local government sector, and many of these clients have Customer Service Standards and/or corporate values that include Transparency. Think about an old-fashioned transparency sheet, that malleable see-through page you put on an overhead projector.  You can see everything on one side Read more

See the Customer’s Journey from Their Perspective- 7/7/26


That customer is face-to-face with you right now, and you are fielding their questions or delivering your service to them.  And oftentimes and understandably, we are so immersed in the moment that we don’t think about what came before or think enough about what comes next. But in the life Read more

Gaining the Benefits of the Greeter- 6/30/26


Most likely, we’ve all entered some establishment – a retail store, restaurant, or service center - when there is a greeter at the door.  The most famous greeter position is probably the Walmart greeter.  I often thought that my father-in-law would have been a fantastic Walmart greeter, because he Read more

Seamlessness - Why the Customer Thanked You - 6/23/26


This doesn’t happen enough nowadays, but the employee received a long thank you e-mail from the customer.  A financial services account manager had taken care of the client during a period of time that was stressful for the customer. Life was unexpectedly changing quickly, and personal emotions, additional financial responsibilities, Read more

When to Avoid the Escalation - 6/16/26


The customer calls with a complaint, and the easy thing to do is to escalate it to your supervisor. That may also be the right thing to do, but how do you know when to avoid the escalation? Why You Would Escalate The first thing to consider is why you would Read more

Let’s be Clear on Clarity - 6/9/26


When trying to manage expectations, it’s vital to be clear with the customer.  But what specifically does it mean to be “clear?” Clarity is in the eyes and ears of the beholder, so what may be clear to one customer may be unclear to another.  However, there are some basic Read more

Allow Yourself to Solve a Couple Puzzles Every Day - 6/2/26


Frank had never been a dog owner before, and when he first got Bosco at the shelter, Frank didn't really know what he was doing.  He would try to be a good parent - feed the dog, play with it, take it on walks - but he was doing Read more

•••••

Build Relationships with First-timers – 11/11/25

Posted on November 11, 2025 in Customer Service Tip of the Week Please leave a comment

We’ve worked with one of our sports clients for over 10 years, and although the main focus of our work is research with their fan base, we also provide informal consulting advice and guidance whenever possible.  One approach we’ve talked about on and off for years is the need for them to have a first-time fan or first-time customer strategy for relationship development that is different from their approach with other accounts.

They have an extremely high churn rate with first-time customers, like most businesses do, so there needs to be a clear intent to strategically develop relationships with those customers, learn more about them, and personalize communications and engagement whenever possible.

We had a debrief call recently after one of our major research projects, and one of our client’s staff talked about the fact that they were starting to assign a personal service rep to the new accounts.  This is something we have encouraged for years, and we were happy that they’re doing it, but we wondered why this hadn’t been done after our many prior conversations.

The Reason for the Personal Representative

Why do customers – especially first-time customers – often prefer to have a personal representative?  It’s about ease and simplicity – having one person you know by name and who knows you by name – one point of contact, one to call, to text, to e-mail to address all their needs.  They don’t have to learn your business; they just have to know how to get in touch with Jack, their personal rep.  It could be a question about online account access, optional services, policies, fees, program functions/features, etc.  Regardless of the topic, all they have to do is call Jack.

This approach provides them a feeling of being taken care of – they know someone they can trust to help them.  It’s about their feeling valued – being able to talk to an employee they know, someone who cares about them.

If you want to build true value with your first-time customers, make it easy on them.  Build trust with the customer, convey you care about them.  Give yourself the ability to be responsive by giving them the ability to get to you easily.

Eliminate barriers to the communications that help you build relationships with new customers.

Signup for FREE Tips!    Contact Us    More Resources for You    Visit Our Home Page