(Story My Studio, 2019)
Nowadays, it can be very simple to start your own business so making a first impression and gaining a reputation is more significant than ever to outrun competitors. There are many simple steps that can make our business reach maximum its potential and stick out from the crowd.
One of the first things a potential customer will explore in a business is their website, so it’s very important for this to be up to standard so the consumer can interact with our business easily. We t include all the general information about our business that the consumer would need to know.
It is easy to create a website and get a domain with many platforms such a WordPress or Wix, in the future we can hire professional graphic designer to make our own coding for our website. This can be worth investing in as it will boost the professional appearance of our business. An online presence is very key to gaining more consumers so having social media platforms such as: Linked, Facebook or even an Instagram account is a useful way to reach out to a wider audience as social media advertisement is at its peak.
Having a business email address and phone number can make more of a professional impression to attract more clients. It makes the customer more certain on their choice to interact with our business as it can feel more secure. A survey by Henley Research revealed that 90% of UK customers recognise an 0800 number as being freephone, while 65% of those surveyed said they were more likely to call a freephone number. This shows that one is more likely to gain credibility for doing something as simple as having a 0800 number for a company.
On the topic of security, having a business address instead of a home address does not only add a safety layer to our business but also gives the consumer an understanding that there is respect of their privacy. PO Box can be used as another form of business privacy.
Maintaining communication with our customers is absolutely vital as it allows our business to be perceived as reliant and therefore more professional, so having fast email and social media response times is an important factor to consider. A quick solution to this is to hire staff to respond to all the queries put out by a customer. However, it is appreciated that many small businesses may not have the expense of hiring more staff. Fortunately, there are many programs that can be put in place that use a autoresponder feature, allowing businesses take charge of their customer communication and benefit from rapidly improved response times. Campaigner is one of those programs that lets you create sophisticated email templates which can be sent back to customers as soon as their email is received. This reassures customers that they are in contact with the business and are not being ignored, which creates a positive customer experience.
The modern business world is a lot faster pace than it has been in previous generations due to technological advances and the use of programs such as Campaigner, mentioned above. This means that emerging businesses have more established competitors, but there’s no need to strive to make your brand as big as possible as it is beneficially more significant to focus on customer communication, this is what really makes a business the most professional as we are creating a reputation that makes customers loyal to our business, which ultimately is what gives a business higher success rates.
Additional factors that will improve our professionalism:
Branding strategies and ethos tactics are crucial in maintaining a good reputation.
Paying special attention to our company ’s appearance (dress code- navy smart wear, lanyard)
Showing confidence in our company and our service, yet being polite and well-spoken
Attention to body language and facial expressions to communicate volumes during networking event and public speaking conferences.
Following through on promises in a timely manner
Being an expert in our field will ensure that clients are satisfied with out work
Following strict code of ethics
Maintaining poise
Phone Etiquette
Using formal tone when contacting our clients, developers
Showing structure and organisation
Owning up to our mistakes, allowing space for improvements in the future
Edited by Simone Polcik
Bibliography
Forbes.com. (2018). 7 Simple Ways To Make Your Startup Look More Professional. [online] Available at: https://www.forbes.com/sites/allbusiness/2018/01/20/7-simple-ways-to-make-your-startup-look-more-professional/#1e2e7de25db4 [Accessed 9 Dec. 2019].
Joseph, C. (2019). 10 Characteristics of Professionalism. [online] Smallbusiness.chron.com. Available at: https://smallbusiness.chron.com/10-characteristics-professionalism-708.html [Accessed 9 Dec. 2019].
Story My Studio (2019). Animation. [image] Available at: https://stormystudio.com/create-stunning-presentations-with-professional-business-animation/ [Accessed 9 Dec. 2019].
Whelan, R. (2017). Giving Your Business The Professional Edge | eReceptionist. [online] Ereceptionist.co.uk. Available at: https://www.ereceptionist.co.uk/blog/make-business-look-more-professional [Accessed 9 Dec. 2019].
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