Making a Great First Impression: Small Business Technology

Small Business Technology & First Impressions

As we all know, we only get one shot at first impressions. This is especially true for small businesses. We want to put our best foot forward so that the introduction is the beginning of a long term relationship.

And this impression now more than ever starts on the Internet from our website, our social media profiles and online reviews. But that is not where it stops. There are some very beautiful websites out there but the real world interaction doesn’t match up to initial impressions.

So how can technology help to make an even stronger first impression.

1. How is your business phone answered? Is there a professional and friendly voice answering your phone? If you miss a call does your message let the caller know that you value their call and you will return their call? Have you considered an answering service because a missed call is a missed opportunity? VoIP technologies offer a ton of options.
2. Your calendar can be your best ally in making a great first impression but it does require that the information inputted into the calendar is accurate. Information to include in the calendar includes: full address information, details surrounding the appointment, phone numbers and email. If you are going to be late than you have all the information you need to make sure that you can let your client know as soon as possible. Don’t leave your clients wondering where you are. With our Google calendar we often use the mapping to navigate to an appointment.
3. If you are on the road a lot then you should have these key tools as part of your road warrior survival kit: charging cables, portable battery ie Mophie, SmartPhone, laptop or tablet, back up cables for presentations ie HDMI or VGA adapter, mobile hotspot. We created a mobile office in his truck. This  client  wanted the ability to present to clients a professional quotation within 10 minutes of concluding an on site job review. He was able to take pictures of the project, discuss costs & time commitments with the client, go to his truck upload the pictures, costs & dates, and then present a printed quotation back to the client. And all the information he entered into his programs was automatically synced to his CRM back at his office. So much better than scribbles on a notepad.
4. Turn off all notification on your mobile devices once you are in front of your client.

For more ideas on how technology can help you with your small business give us a call at 416-904-7873 or 705-999-0699. We are here to help.