By Alex Schnee
If you are looking to make improvements to your service-based business, one of the first things you should consider is seeing how you can improve your your communication among your customers, your employees, and yourself. This can require a deep look at your business model and to see where your strengths and weaknesses are, as well as which areas you might need to find a better way to organize your business.
Here are some reasons why communication should be at the forefront of your mind when you are a service-based business.
Organizational problems
One of the most difficult aspects of running a service-based business is that you often have a number of moving parts all at one time. If you haven’t created a system that can help you determine who is doing what job, then you might want to consider creating one with a service dispatch software or some other process. While it might seem as though everyone understands what is going on, you could be surprised how easily your employees might be confused—especially if they are in charge of multiple tasks at once.
Tensions between clients
This lack of organization and communication can cause big problems with customers. If they aren’t sure when your employees are arriving or if they are scheduled correctly, then you might start to see some irritation. It’s up to you whether or not you choose to put your employees in charge of contacting clients, but you want to make sure that there is a clear structure when it comes to letting them know when they are planning to arrive, when the job will be complete, and when they should expect an invoice.
Loss of business
Of course, in the absolute worst cases where you or your employees are not in touch with your clients, you can end up losing their business. Jobs can also fall through the cracks if there is no proper way to track them or show at what stage they have been completed. This is why finding a way for you to stay in touch with both your workers and your clients can be essential for both to feel heard. Without some form of communication, you can end up losing out on people who want to work with you.
Tensions between employees
Not only can this cause tensions with clients, but it can also create problems within your company, as well. You should have some register or way for your workers to see who is doing what. Otherwise, if there needs to be some changes done or you need to bring someone else in, you might notice some frustrations among your employees. A simple way to fix this is by creating better communication systems.
In summary
Your business is likely to require a few different systems in order to keep it organized, and you should have a simple way for employees to keep you updated on the type of work they’re doing. With this in place, you can better track your projects and fix problems efficiently and quickly.
