What’s the best way to win and retain customers? Traditionally, it’s been about value for money and it seems that still holds true.
There’s a saying – attributed to Sir Henry Royce – that “quality is remembered long after the price is forgotten”, and for private hire customers there’s probably more than an ounce of good sense in this.
It’s for this reason that many coach operators have a pleasantly long list of loyal customers who know that while they might not be getting the cheapest deal, they are content that they are getting the best deal.
In the old days, it was about an ad in the Yellow Pages, and a phone number on the back of your clean, well-presented coach.
These days, it’s not difficult to put together a flashy website with pictures of smart-looking coaches – even if they aren’t your own. As Google is the first place that so many turn to, this false shop front is a way that some unsuspecting customers are lured into parting with their money – or at least a deposit – to receive neither what they excepted, or indeed in some cases even a coach.
Once bitten, twice shy, they can post all the bad reviews they want on the internet in public forums, but that doesn’t seem to prevent serial offenders of this practice continuing. It’s left to other, often better and more considerate, operators to pick up the pieces.
And it’s here that detail remains all-important, from handling the initial enquiry, to having a proper booking/confirmation form and taking trouble to check with the client. Did they really mean 0300hrs, or is it actually 3pm?
This caring side of the industry has always been its strong point. From the outside, running coaches appears to be easy, and that’s because good operators make it look easy.
The attention to detail and care with which your relationships are treated mean that people will return. They know that they are more important to you than just being a name and a sum of money on a spreadsheet.
Those relationships last for much longer than one hire, one job, one day. Long-established operators often remark that some of their current private hire customers were once pupils on a school coach. Look after the details, and the rest will follow.
Mel Holley, Editor
