Small Business Success Story: Zane’s Cycles

A great business model, wonderful products, and excellent customer service create the perfect combination for a successful small business. Read on to see how this combination worked for Chris Zane and Zane’s Cycles in Connecticut.

What is Zane’s Cycles?
Zane’s Cycles is an incredibly popular bicycle store located in Branford, Connecticut. Opened in 1981, Zane’s Cycles has transformed from a small and simple hobby shop to one of the area’s most impressive and inspiring bicycle distribution stores. Today, Zane’s Cycles offers everything needed for bikers of all ages and skill levels. Inventory includes clothing, shoes, accessories, and bicycle parts. Zane’s also offers bike fittings and hosts group rides and special events.

Who Started Zane’s Cycles?
Every small business success story has a beginning. This one began when 12-year-old Chris Zane started working on bikes in his parents’ garage. Just 4 years later, Chris convinced his family to help him finance the purchase of a failing bike shop. The family worked together to bring a new life and personality to the shop, transforming it into Zane’s Cycles.

How Did It Become Successful?
Chris Zane was not the average 16-year-old when he decided to start his own business. That is a big part of how this store became so successful. With his family’s help, Chris was able to turn his beloved hobby into a successful profession. During his days at school, Chris’ mom would watch over the shop. Once the school day ended, Chris would appear and put in the hard work required to attract customers and provide excellent service.

How Can This Story Help Your Business?
Zane’s Cycles is now a million dollar business. You can take inspiration from this story to help your own small business find success! Working hard and finding the right support system is essential for maintaining a strong business and gaining success in the future.

Get the help you need to find success from Contact One Call Center! Give us a call at 1-800-278-3347 to learn about our call center, customer service, disaster preparedness, and other great services for your small business.

Live Chat that Isn’t Live Isn’t Live Chat!

As more businesses create more attractive and easy-to-use websites, they are also looking to provide new forms of customer service. Live chat provides a simple and effective way for companies to interact with customers and improve their experience with products and services. Learn the difference between automated live chat and real live chat before enhancing your website:

What is Automated Live Chat?

Customers are always looking for easy ways to get the information they need about different products and services. That is why so many businesses have put more focus on their websites and social media profiles. Many of these businesses choose automated live chat, hoping to provide more assistance to online visitors. Automated live chat typically includes a chat box where customers can enter their questions. The chat service is trained to look for keywords and figure out the most appropriate response.

What is Real Live Chat?

Automated live chat is not really live, so it is not really live chat! Real live chat uses a similar chat box system, but features a real person on the other end instead of a keyword-based computer system. These systems allow customers to ask real questions instead of relying on keywords that are the most related to what they want. Real people read these questions and provide accurate responses instead of searching through a computer database filled with automated responses.

Why Do Customers Use Live Chat?

Customers do not always have the time to call companies during their regular business hours. This leaves many customers unable to get their questions answered, potentially leading them to turn to a different company. Live chat is an incredibly useful service that allows customers to get the information they need on their schedules. Providing a real person makes it easier for customers, which in turn leaves a better impression of your company!

Are you ready to boost your website with live chat? Let Contact One Call Center help you. Call us today at (800) 278-3347 to find out how our customer service specialties can help you create better relationships with your clients.

Phone Etiquette: There’s a Right Way

Good phone etiquette is an essential component of your business’s success. The way customers are handled on the phone is a marker of your business’s overall quality and may even determine if you retain your customers. As such, it’s important to understand the basics.

Be Polite and Respectful
Answer the phone with a polite greeting such as, “Good morning! This is XYZ company. How can we assist you today?” Starting the call with an upbeat greeting that immediately puts the customer’s request first makes them feel welcome and sets the proper tone for good customer relations.

If you have to put someone on hold ask, “Can you hold, please? Thank you very much.” Never forget the “please” and “thank you.” Showing respect to your customers is a good way to keep a customer happy. While being put on hold can be irritating, being asked if it is all right and doing it in a courteous manner can go a long way to gaining customer satisfaction.

If a caller is spending too much time on hold, check in with them to see if they would rather leave a message than continue to hold. By checking in, you show the customer how valued they are.

Smile
It may sound odd, but it’s true – answer the phone with a smile. When a person smiles, it can be detected over the phone and can immediately set the tone of pleasant customer service. This can put the customer at ease and makes them feel welcome right from the start.

Transfer Calls Correctly
Before you start answering phones, be sure you know who in the company gets what type of phone call. No one likes to be shuttled around from person to person, repeatedly explaining their problem. Understand your company’s departments ahead of time, so that calls can be transferred to the right person without delay.

How your customers are treated over the phone tells them a lot about how valued their business is to your company. By creating a pleasant customer service experience right from the start and being sure you understand your customer’s needs, you can lay the groundwork for maintaining customer satisfaction and loyalty for years to come. One way to create a positive customer experience is by trusting the call center professionals at Contact One. They can provide you with a live answering service that can guarantee customer satisfaction.

How to Stand Out When You’ve Got Big Competition

Being a little business in a sea of massive conglomerates can be quite overwhelming and intimidating. As the owner, you probably wonder that other businesses have better technologies and more money to create a lasting impression in the minds of the customers. Fortunately, as a small business, you can make your name ring out just as loudly in the minds of customers by providing excellent customer service.

Caring and Attentive
Customers really dislike when they are trying to have a problem resolved and the attendants are rude and nasty. They feel as though their inquiries do not matter at all. This is unfortunate, but it’s a problem that you can absolutely work to avoid as a small business. Since you are the owner, you can require that everyone takes the time to address each problem.

Offering Quick and Efficient Service
Sometimes, big businesses have convoluted procedures that they must follow to meet the requests of the customers. You do not have to play by these rules, and you can offer more personalized attention to needs. Your company can be flexible and help individuals to attain their goals in a short amount of time.

Actual People
What’s another problem that many customers complain about? They can’t get an actual human being on the phone! Massive companies have too many calls coming in on a regular basis, so they are unable to deal with the volume. As a result, they turn to automated machines that aggravate clients across the country. Since you are working with a smaller consumer base, you can provide actual human interactions. Customers are certain to appreciate this gesture.

Earlier in the day, you might never have considered how much power your small business can have. After considering the various elements of customer service, you can now see the immense possibilities.

Are you ready to maximize your ability to keep your customers happy? Call Contact One about a live answering service for your business. You’ll be glad you did!

3 Tips For Attorney’s Contact Us Pages

Many people turn to the Internet when dealing with legal issues with which they do not have much experience. Many of these people end up finding an attorney through their Internet searches, making it important for all attorneys to build a strong online presence featuring excellent customer service. Use this guide to improve your contact us page and attract more clients: 

Keep Your Phone Number Visible

Website visitors can’t call you if they don’t have your number! Keeping your phone number visible is essential for providing clients with the information they need to contact you and ask about your services. Make sure your phone number is in an easy-to-see location that viewers can find with no trouble and in no time. Select a simple font and a color that stands out from the website background. This will ensure that all clients will be able to spot and recognize your phone number without any confusion.

Provide a Colorful Call-to-Action Button

Calling may be the most traditional way to contact businesses, but it is not the only option for clients today. A lot of your website visitors will appreciate having other ways to contact you. That is why it is a good idea to include multiple types of contact information on this page of your website. A colorful call-to-action button is sure to catch your visitors’ eyes and inspire them to contact your office. This button can link to an email address, a live chat system, or an appointment calendar.

Use a Trusted Call Center

Make sure the people who contact you through your website are heard as soon as possible by utilizing a trusted call center. This service allows clients to speak with professionals who can take their contact information or even schedule appointments. Enhance your customer service by choosing an answering service with after hours support so clients can contact you any time they browse your website!

Learn more about the benefits of using a call center service by calling Contact One Call Center. Check us out online for a look at our customer services or call us today at 1-800-278-3347!

LaMonte Hunley

“The accuracy of the information we receive is exceptional. It helps to make us look our best.”

James Nunn, DVM

“Contact One always helps us get the job done with courtesy and attention to our needs and the needs of our customers.”