If You Do This Your Customers Will Never Trust You Again
September 29, 2007
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I’ve seen this same mistake made over and over again - especially on the Internet. If you make it your customers will never trust you again.
And it’s a simple one to avoid. Don’t refer your customers to products or services that suck. Unfortunately, many people do it, just to make a quick profit, and they must a) think their customers are incredibly stupid, or b) not realise the value of a long term relationship with a customer.
This can really become a problem for affiliate marketers, because often, they recommend dozens of different products. And sometimes, they can’t afford to buy the item themselves to check out the quality, especially if they’re recommending expensive stuff.
But, there are precautions you can take to protect yourself:
1) Don’t recommend a product that sounds like it may be a rip off. Some of them are pretty obvious - like the ones that promise to turn you into a millionaire overnight. If you don’t want to sample the product yourself, and you’re unsure of the quality don’t recommend it.
2) Don’t ever deliberately rip someone off. Recently I paid for a service which ended up being way overpriced and of little value. I didn’t bother complaining because when someone is ripping you off to that extent, they know they’re doing it and they probably don’t care. The worst thing is, the same person keeps trying to refer the services of several of her friends to me. The latest was a MLM company, with overpriced products and more bad internet reviews and warnings than Amway. She must be absolutely off her rocker if she thinks I’m going to buy from any of these people. But unfortunately - some people try to push their luck and it usually backfires in a big way.
3) Never recommend something just because the commissions are high. A few months ago, on a forum, I read a post asking where it was possible to get cheap, or free photos for your website. Now there are plenty of good cheap resources, but one woman recommended a service which sells photos for $1000 plus per photo - with her affiliate link of course. I don’t know how she expected anyone to take her recommendation seriously, or any other recommendations that she made in the future. After all, someone who is looking for cheap website photos doesn’t want and probably can’t afford to pay those prices. But, obviously, the slightest chance of a big commission was more important to her than her integrity.
4) Do your homework. If you are recommending high cost products - eg furniture etc, do as much research as possible into the supplier and/or product. If there are several unfavourable reviews, don’t recommend them.
5) Never feel obliged to give a testimonial. If you get a sample of a free ebook, and it sucks, politely tell the author that you can’t endorse it. And don’t get yourself into joint ventures with people who’s products you wouldn’t honestly recommend if there was no benefit to you. Always ask yourself this question: Would I sell this product to my parents? And if the answer is no, don’t sell it to anyone else either.
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9 Responses to “If You Do This Your Customers Will Never Trust You Again”
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Wise words!
Recommend because you know it’s good. Not that you know you’ll make good commissions from it.
I looked up that cj.com link evnetually and after a bit of messing about, found a load of affilliate links.
But this post came just in time!
I know what not to do, but it’s timely to get a reminder to check out the products before you commit!
Your customers are most important. Short term gains are just that. After the short-term, you’re left with nothing unless you keep your integrity!
Indeed. In property management, we often refer contractors to our (lazy) tenants. That can be very difficult in some situations. For example, we can’t actually find good architects in our area. So we have a contract with some mediocre ones. (By we, I mean my bosses, I’m the AA.)
This means that when tenants are trying to modify their space we tell them which architect we work with. But we always emphasize that our choice doesn’t mean they should choose these people too. We just have to approve of their choice. As it is, though, a lot of people take them and then complain that they’re mediocre.
I am guilty of this when I first began IM 6 months ago :-O
Mrs Micah - it is a tricky situation when your customers need someone and you don’t know anyone really good to recommend. Where do you live? If your tennants need an excellent plumbing service - I can definitely help out.
Sean - what did you sell that was bad? Never mind - you have your own product now. Have read it already - and it’s good. I really love the ebay idea too. I’m going to start testing it out tomorrow. Hopefully it should bring heaps of traffic!
those are some good points you make there.
I totally agree.
Particularly when we are put under the pressure, we get tempted to get any business we can from our customers. And that creates the downward spiral.
Every time, we are about jumping onto an opportunity that does not benefit your customers, we have to remind ourselves the patience will pay off eventually.
It really requires discipline. The temptation is everywhere, getting known through giving a testimonial, higher margins, quick sales opportunity, etc.
My great mentor always says his job is telling no to his employees. When the sale force tries to add a low quality product, he says no. When he is asked to make presentations, he says no.
Great article, Catherine. Please keep reminding me on these important lessons!
Totally agree. I really don’t have a soft corner for such crooked marketers.
In fact, the other day I was so ticked off by the lousy tactics such marketers use that I had to vent my anger in this guest post at Nusuni.com
(link removed)
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