Thank you for your business!

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A friend went to his local hardware store recently to buy a drill. The store had recently been sold, and the new owner helped him to make a selection. When he paid for the drill, the owner said Thank you for your business.

It took my friend by surprise. Not that he didnt like being thanked for his business, but he just wasnt used to it. The previous owner acted as though customers should thank him for waiting on them.

Even though the last few years have seen a new interest in serving customers well, there are still more businesspeople like the former owner of that hardware store; people who act as though theyre doing you a favor by letting you purchase something theyre selling.

Its a pity that more sales and service people dont thank customers for their business. It may not seem like a big deal, but those few words can have a major impact. They can make a customer feel appreciated, and can add a touch of warmth and humanity to an otherwise cold business transaction. And besides, those words are an expression of fact. Customers should be thanked for their business, because there is nothing forcing them to do business with you rather than your competitors! Theyve made a choice to buy from you, and they deserve to be thanked for their choice.

Think about it. Customers always have options. Even if you work for a business that has no competitors, they still have the option of going to the local store. They can always say No to you.

Thanking customers is just an acknowledgement of how important they are to you and of how much you value them. Without customers, no business can survive. Just try it! The next time you deal with a customer, even if its only to sell the cheapest product your company sells, thank them for their business. Say it with a smile, and say it with sincerity.

You may surprise them. Youll certainly make them feel good. They might not acknowledge it right away , but that little Thank You will contribute to a good feeling about you and your company.

For this article, I went to the archives. This is something I wrote for a sales and service staff training program twenty years ago. So let me ask you a question? Does this apply today? In the next article, we will look at different kinds of satisfied and unsatisfied customers.