Building better business relationships

Learning to build relationships is a very important skill every manager needs to have. Building business relationships will allow you to rely on people when you need discounts and other things. Building relationships can also provide you with healthier relationships with your employees as they will feel valued and appreciated by your company. They are likely to work harder and to be more productive for the organization.

Some people think that smiling and saying "hello" on the phone is all they really need to do in order to build relationships. You cannot shake another person's hand and then expect this to provide you with good relationships. What are some of the things that you appreciate about companies that have taken the time to get to know you and the things that you appreciate? Learn from these companies and consider using some of their tactics with your own customers and your employees. Treat people the way that you like to be treated and it can help to make a big difference in your reputation and in the way that customers respond to you.

The small things you do will make a big difference in your relationships with your employees and your customers. Things like offering the customers "thank-you" discounts for their continued support will help them to see how much you really do appreciate their business. Then you also need to turn to some other things such as using your employees to call the customers and to show them how much you appreciate them and to see if there are things you should do differently in order to keep them happy. Customer surveys are a big way to find out what your customers are thinking and to see what you can do in order to provide them with better products and to help keep them happier.

When you are meeting with your customers and even with your employees, look for the common ground that you have. You need to understand how you can better their lives in some way. Have a real interest in the person that you are talking to and make them feel special. This is a great way to understand how you can emotionally connect to them and to also see how you can build better partnerships.

One thing to know when you are building relationships is that it needs to come naturally. You need to watch out for forced relationships. No one likes to be forced into anything and people hate being forced to do things so you don't want to take away their choice to build a relationship with you. If you do this, it will lead to a relationship that will end and might not end pretty for your business. Instead you need to encourage a relationship with your company through small steps like sending them marketing pieces with a personalized letter and other simple things like this. As you are able to do this, it will draw their attention and will make it easier for them to consider pursuing the relationship with your business.

How well do you listen? This is another big part of building relationships. You must be able to listen intently to what people are saying and to make sure they feel that you are actually listening to them. As you do this, it helps to form better relationships as people feel that you respect them and that you are taking the time to actually do something about the things they are telling you. Really listen to them by shutting off the distractions and also make sure that you are watching your body language as well to communicate that you are listening.