When did you last walk through the customer entrance of your dealership and look at what is truly being experienced by the customer?

Forget for a moment whether a sales consultant’s work area is messy, or if there are smudges on the windows. Let’s look a little closer at what a customer could see, hear or feel when they interact with your dealership in any department. What’s really taking place behind the doors may be a real surprise to you. Taken from a customer’s perspective, you just might be failing to meet their most basic expectations. As a result, you could be damaging your dealership simply by being unaware of what happens on a daily basis down in the trenches.

Have you made an anonymous phone call to your dealership lately? Almost every store now utilizes some form of inbound call tracking. These systems all provide the ability to record and playback your customer’s inbound calls. When was the last time you actually listened to some of the recorded calls these systems provide?   Imagine a customer that calls your store, the receptionist gives a warm and friendly greeting but puts them through to the wrong department. Or worse, blindly transfers the customer to an employee’s voice mail (without giving them the opportunity to speak with another person that could assist them). Worse yet, many of the calls we have listened to clearly indicate the need for ongoing product training, as many times the sales consultant fails to answer even the most basic product questions. Would this be acceptable customer service?  How often is it happening in your dealership? The answer just might surprise you.

And what about your phone system itself -- Do you have a recording that customers hear when they are on hold? Is the message current and relevant? Imagine the embarrassment if you were still advertising a new car lease special for a 2012 model vehicle with the 2015 models sitting on the showroom floor. Or the “winterize your car today” message still running on July first. While obtaining current and relevant messaging may sound like a core, it’s really not. Visit the website Fiverr.com and you can have a year’s worth of professional messaging done at one time very inexpensively, and simply upload the recordings when the time is appropriate.

What about your Internet/BDC department and those individuals creating emails for marketing campaigns? If a customer “enters” your dealership electronically, are you making sure that those emails and marketing pieces are addressed in a friendly and personal way? It happens more frequently than you may think that an e-mail template is filled with the words “first name” and your message is literally addressed “Dear [First_Name].” It’s these little things that can make the customer turn right around and defect to another dealership. When was the last time you actually took the time to read the correspondence that is sent from you with your name on it? Who is responsible for checking the grammar and sentence structure of the thousands of pieces of correspondence your store sends out each month?

Pretend you are a customer and walk through your front door. Call your own dealership, both day and night, and listen to how you are greeted and what happens when a call is transferred, or put on hold. Is it perhaps terminated unexpectedly? 

Send yourself a test Internet lead from your website, or a third party site, and let the flow of emails find their way to your inbox for a month or two. Do any of these communications surprise, disturb or shock you?

Taking a little time to “walk through all the doors and peer through the windows of your dealership” could help erase mistakes, improve employee awareness, and reveal unnoticed problems. Take a different department each week of the month.  Your employees will welcome the added attention and your customers will only benefit from it. No matter what actions are found to be needed, if done in the name of making business better and improving customer satisfaction, you’ll reap the rewards. Customers will feel more comfortable and have a more enjoyable experience at your dealership. Encourage all of your employees to pretend that they are customers and to keep their eyes wide open – to take a better look at what is happening in their dealership. You’ll be amazed how different things look.

When did you last walk through the customer entrance of your dealership and look at what is truly being experienced by the customer?

Forget for a moment whether a sales consultant’s work area is messy, or if there are smudges on the windows. Let’s look a little closer at what a customer could see, hear or feel when they interact with your dealership in any department. What’s really taking place behind the doors may be a real surprise to you. Taken from a customer’s perspective, you just might be failing to meet their most basic expectations. As a result, you could be damaging your dealership simply by being unaware of what happens on a daily basis down in the trenches.

Have you made an anonymous phone call to your dealership lately? Almost every store now utilizes some form of inbound call tracking. These systems all provide the ability to record and playback your customer’s inbound calls. When was the last time you actually listened to some of the recorded calls these systems provide?   Imagine a customer that calls your store, the receptionist gives a warm and friendly greeting but puts them through to the wrong department. Or worse, blindly transfers the customer to an employee’s voice mail (without giving them the opportunity to speak with another person that could assist them). Worse yet, many of the calls we have listened to clearly indicate the need for ongoing product training, as many times the sales consultant fails to answer even the most basic product questions. Would this be acceptable customer service?  How often is it happening in your dealership? The answer just might surprise you.

And what about your phone system itself -- Do you have a recording that customers hear when they are on hold? Is the message current and relevant? Imagine the embarrassment if you were still advertising a new car lease special for a 2012 model vehicle with the 2015 models sitting on the showroom floor. Or the “winterize your car today” message still running on July first. While obtaining current and relevant messaging may sound like a core, it’s really not. Visit the website Fiverr.com and you can have a year’s worth of professional messaging done at one time very inexpensively, and simply upload the recordings when the time is appropriate.

What about your Internet/BDC department and those individuals creating emails for marketing campaigns? If a customer “enters” your dealership electronically, are you making sure that those emails and marketing pieces are addressed in a friendly and personal way? It happens more frequently than you may think that an e-mail template is filled with the words “first name” and your message is literally addressed “Dear [First_Name].” It’s these little things that can make the customer turn right around and defect to another dealership. When was the last time you actually took the time to read the correspondence that is sent from you with your name on it? Who is responsible for checking the grammar and sentence structure of the thousands of pieces of correspondence your store sends out each month?

Pretend you are a customer and walk through your front door. Call your own dealership, both day and night, and listen to how you are greeted and what happens when a call is transferred, or put on hold. Is it perhaps terminated unexpectedly? 

Send yourself a test Internet lead from your website, or a third party site, and let the flow of emails find their way to your inbox for a month or two. Do any of these communications surprise, disturb or shock you?

Taking a little time to “walk through all the doors and peer through the windows of your dealership” could help erase mistakes, improve employee awareness, and reveal unnoticed problems. Take a different department each week of the month.  Your employees will welcome the added attention and your customers will only benefit from it. No matter what actions are found to be needed, if done in the name of making business better and improving customer satisfaction, you’ll reap the rewards. Customers will feel more comfortable and have a more enjoyable experience at your dealership. Encourage all of your employees to pretend that they are customers and to keep their eyes wide open – to take a better look at what is happening in their dealership. You’ll be amazed how different things look.

A couple generations ago, if you didn’t carry cash on your person, perhaps a personal check was accepted at your favorite store.  Then credit cards became an option, followed quickly by debit cards.  And now, with technology changing seemingly overnight, two new payment options are becoming available to consumers at select and very notable retailers.

Apple Pay and CurrentC are two smartphone payment systems.  CurrentC is a new (yet unreleased) smartphone payment system from a group of retailers, including the likes of CVS, Best Buy, WalMart, Sears, and Target. When it is up and running, with a CurrentC transaction, the customer’s payment will be debited from a connected bank account. Whereas Apple Pay’s system is partnered with banks and major credit card providers.  The new Apple Pay system works only on the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus and integrates security technology that requires a fingerprint to conduct a payment transaction.

Apple Pay was launched on October 20, and has been greeted with lots of hype and controversy. In just three days one million new credit cards were added to Apple's integrated Passbook app. Despite the fact it is only compatible with the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, there is clearly phenomenal interest.  This is great news for the retailers that have jumped on board and have started accepting this payment method. But perhaps not such good news for other retailers – consumers may soon stop shopping at places where their new preferred payment method is not accepted.

Retailers are taking notice of the interest in Apple Pay and some are turning their backs on this payment system. This is perhaps not a wise decision as essentially it means turning down customers and prospective new customers. It may be wise for these retailers to observe how quickly Apple Pay has caught on. It is likely to continue to expand as more consumers upgrade their phones.   If the demand warrants it, aren’t more businesses likely to give the customer what they want? That’s the way it usually works. Why not keep your customers happy right from the beginning?

Loyalty doesn’t happen overnight. But losing customers because their wants or needs aren’t being fulfilled can occur instantly.

Every day we are hit with advertising and marketing messages. As consumers, we gravitate to a select number of places that offer the products we want or need to purchase.  If we usually visit Wal-Mart and CVS, but they don’t accept our preferred method of payment, we may drive down the road to another store that will take our money. Will we return to Wal-Mart and CVS? That’s the question with unknown answers. Will retailers jeopardize consumer’s immediate business and the long-term loyalty ramifications if they do not accept the payment the customer prefers?

If two like companies are offering the same product with comparable prices, but one accepts the consumer’s preferred payment method, it’s only logical that it won’t be long before a the customer starts shopping at the place that allows the customer to pay their way.

As Apple Pay (or other virtual payment options) become more popular, businesses will lose the ability to track transactional data. The one thing to keep in mind, however, is that Apple’s Passbook app (which is built into iOS 8) also allows consumers to carry all of their loyalty cards within their virtual wallets. Loyalty programs of the future may end up being the only way for businesses to leverage transactional data to improve and target their marketing efforts.

The question has now transformed from “What’s In Your Wallet?” to “What’s Not in Their Wallet?”… And you better hope that the answer isn’t your business.

A couple generations ago, if you didn’t carry cash on your person, perhaps a personal check was accepted at your favorite store.  Then credit cards became an option, followed quickly by debit cards.  And now, with technology changing seemingly overnight, two new payment options are becoming available to consumers at select and very notable retailers.

Apple Pay and CurrentC are two smartphone payment systems.  CurrentC is a new (yet unreleased) smartphone payment system from a group of retailers, including the likes of CVS, Best Buy, WalMart, Sears, and Target. When it is up and running, with a CurrentC transaction, the customer’s payment will be debited from a connected bank account. Whereas Apple Pay’s system is partnered with banks and major credit card providers.  The new Apple Pay system works only on the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus and integrates security technology that requires a fingerprint to conduct a payment transaction.

Apple Pay was launched on October 20, and has been greeted with lots of hype and controversy. In just three days one million new credit cards were added to Apple's integrated Passbook app. Despite the fact it is only compatible with the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, there is clearly phenomenal interest.  This is great news for the retailers that have jumped on board and have started accepting this payment method. But perhaps not such good news for other retailers – consumers may soon stop shopping at places where their new preferred payment method is not accepted.

Retailers are taking notice of the interest in Apple Pay and some are turning their backs on this payment system. This is perhaps not a wise decision as essentially it means turning down customers and prospective new customers. It may be wise for these retailers to observe how quickly Apple Pay has caught on. It is likely to continue to expand as more consumers upgrade their phones.   If the demand warrants it, aren’t more businesses likely to give the customer what they want? That’s the way it usually works. Why not keep your customers happy right from the beginning?

Loyalty doesn’t happen overnight. But losing customers because their wants or needs aren’t being fulfilled can occur instantly.

Every day we are hit with advertising and marketing messages. As consumers, we gravitate to a select number of places that offer the products we want or need to purchase.  If we usually visit Wal-Mart and CVS, but they don’t accept our preferred method of payment, we may drive down the road to another store that will take our money. Will we return to Wal-Mart and CVS? That’s the question with unknown answers. Will retailers jeopardize consumer’s immediate business and the long-term loyalty ramifications if they do not accept the payment the customer prefers?

If two like companies are offering the same product with comparable prices, but one accepts the consumer’s preferred payment method, it’s only logical that it won’t be long before a the customer starts shopping at the place that allows the customer to pay their way.

As Apple Pay (or other virtual payment options) become more popular, businesses will lose the ability to track transactional data. The one thing to keep in mind, however, is that Apple’s Passbook app (which is built into iOS 8) also allows consumers to carry all of their loyalty cards within their virtual wallets. Loyalty programs of the future may end up being the only way for businesses to leverage transactional data to improve and target their marketing efforts.

The question has now transformed from “What’s In Your Wallet?” to “What’s Not in Their Wallet?”… And you better hope that the answer isn’t your business.

Is your car dealership doing everything possible to keep your customers satisfied and happy?  Now, more than ever, your reputation for building relationships and retaining customers may depend on your company’s focus on providing the very best customer service.

How is good customer service defined?  There isn’t a clear cookie-cutter answer to the question on what makes up “good” service, however bad service is easier to define.  In your dealership, an extended time to receive a price on a vehicle, a phone that goes unanswered, or an email inquiry that takes hours, not minutes for a reply, could fall in the category of poor, or at least less than satisfactory customer service. And something as simple as giving the customer upfront, factual information the first time could mean the difference between a good customer service experience and a bad one.

Would you believe that failing to properly respond to a customer could haunt your car dealership for years to come?

According to this article, on Forbes.com, a poor customer service experience could result in a customer avoiding doing business for two years or longer.    

Today’s busy customers don’t want to wait to get answers or assistance.  It may be hard to convert minutes into dollars, but the longer a customer waits to receive information, answers or a resolution to a problem, the likelihood of dollars lost increases. Simultaneously, the probability of that customer returning to your dealership decreases  

According to the article, a quick resolution to a reported problem will more than likely yield a positive customer service experience. The root of great customer service begins and ends with the customer’s belief that you have their best interests in mind. Let’s face it; even though the auto industry’s reputation has improved over the last few years, consumers are generally still cautious when it comes to auto dealerships.

Imagine John Smith, a business executive with a six-figure income.  After his initial online research, he has chosen your dealership, based on customer reviews and the prompt, well-written email that he received after he submitted a lead to your store.  Upon his arrival, a sales manager greets John warmly when he steps inside the showroom.  He is shown the vehicle he inquired about and is given a fair and upfront price.  John appreciates the friendly, no-pressure approach of the sales consultant and manager that handles the sale.  Within a couple hours, he’s driving home his new luxury sedan.  John didn’t encounter any hassles while he was at your store, he was treated with respect and was given the opportunity to share his opinions and provide feedback about the store and the employees he dealt with.  Because of this, John is a satisfied customer and promises to be in for all of his service work.  A relationship was born.

From the receptionist to the general manager, everyone at a dealership has the opportunity to show that they care and have a genuine interest in the customer.  Sometimes it doesn’t take much more than a smile to have a good customer experience, but retaining customers for life takes outstanding service by outstanding employees.

Is your car dealership doing everything possible to keep your customers satisfied and happy?  Now, more than ever, your reputation for building relationships and retaining customers may depend on your company’s focus on providing the very best customer service.

How is good customer service defined?  There isn’t a clear cookie-cutter answer to the question on what makes up “good” service, however bad service is easier to define.  In your dealership, an extended time to receive a price on a vehicle, a phone that goes unanswered, or an email inquiry that takes hours, not minutes for a reply, could fall in the category of poor, or at least less than satisfactory customer service. And something as simple as giving the customer upfront, factual information the first time could mean the difference between a good customer service experience and a bad one.

Would you believe that failing to properly respond to a customer could haunt your car dealership for years to come?

According to this article, on Forbes.com, a poor customer service experience could result in a customer avoiding doing business for two years or longer.    

Today’s busy customers don’t want to wait to get answers or assistance.  It may be hard to convert minutes into dollars, but the longer a customer waits to receive information, answers or a resolution to a problem, the likelihood of dollars lost increases. Simultaneously, the probability of that customer returning to your dealership decreases  

According to the article, a quick resolution to a reported problem will more than likely yield a positive customer service experience. The root of great customer service begins and ends with the customer’s belief that you have their best interests in mind. Let’s face it; even though the auto industry’s reputation has improved over the last few years, consumers are generally still cautious when it comes to auto dealerships.

Imagine John Smith, a business executive with a six-figure income.  After his initial online research, he has chosen your dealership, based on customer reviews and the prompt, well-written email that he received after he submitted a lead to your store.  Upon his arrival, a sales manager greets John warmly when he steps inside the showroom.  He is shown the vehicle he inquired about and is given a fair and upfront price.  John appreciates the friendly, no-pressure approach of the sales consultant and manager that handles the sale.  Within a couple hours, he’s driving home his new luxury sedan.  John didn’t encounter any hassles while he was at your store, he was treated with respect and was given the opportunity to share his opinions and provide feedback about the store and the employees he dealt with.  Because of this, John is a satisfied customer and promises to be in for all of his service work.  A relationship was born.

From the receptionist to the general manager, everyone at a dealership has the opportunity to show that they care and have a genuine interest in the customer.  Sometimes it doesn’t take much more than a smile to have a good customer experience, but retaining customers for life takes outstanding service by outstanding employees.

​There are many stories of young kids or teens starting successful businesses. And there are as well the simple stories of kids mowing lawns or washing cars to earn extra money while their friends are out playing. A similar story gained national media attention when a 12-year old decided to open a lemonade stand in his neighborhood. He even convinced a neighbor to allow him to display a sign advertising the lemonade stand in his yard. Most people would applaud this behavior. However, apparently, one of the neighbors wasn’t too keen about it. In fact, this neighbor actually complained to the city about this teen’s “illegal business” – 4 times. City officials investigated and stated, “We’re not out there trying to put lemonade stands out of business.” Kudos to them.

This particular neighbor complained because he said the lemonade stand “causes excessive noise, traffic and trash and illegal parking.” Ironically, it appears that his repeated complaints have actually made city officials aware of the fact that he is also operating a home-based business illegally. That’s karma for you.

All businesses, and especially car dealers, have people who just don’t like them. Whether that’s because of a poor experience the customer had, or is based on something the customer heard about, they will exist. Typically, these are the customers that you listen to the most due to fear that other customers and potential customers will hear their complaints. Many dealership managers take these personally and, while some may have merit, their initial reaction is one of anger.

People all have opinions. Rather than dwell on the detractors, change your focus to all of the positive comments you receive from happy customers. To when things have gone right. It’s certainly important to handle legitimate customer complaints, when possible. And these complaints can have a positive aspect – they should be used as a learning tool to prevent reoccurrences of similar problems. It’s way too easy to get sidetracked by negativity and allow it to negatively alter your behavior. If you keep your focus on ensuring that your customers have the best experience possible, you will see happier customers. In this way, just as the community around the boy with the lemonade stand did, your customers and local community will rally behind you when you need them most.

I’m fairly certain that this teenager did not set out with a goal of creating a booming lemonade stand that would rake in a fortune. However, through the media and the assistance of a local radio host who actually committed one of his staff to assist in its operation, business has been surprisingly good!

And it all started with a dream, a little hard work, and a commitment to overcome obstacles.

​There are many stories of young kids or teens starting successful businesses. And there are as well the simple stories of kids mowing lawns or washing cars to earn extra money while their friends are out playing. A similar story gained national media attention when a 12-year old decided to open a lemonade stand in his neighborhood. He even convinced a neighbor to allow him to display a sign advertising the lemonade stand in his yard. Most people would applaud this behavior. However, apparently, one of the neighbors wasn’t too keen about it. In fact, this neighbor actually complained to the city about this teen’s “illegal business” – 4 times. City officials investigated and stated, “We’re not out there trying to put lemonade stands out of business.” Kudos to them.

This particular neighbor complained because he said the lemonade stand “causes excessive noise, traffic and trash and illegal parking.” Ironically, it appears that his repeated complaints have actually made city officials aware of the fact that he is also operating a home-based business illegally. That’s karma for you.

All businesses, and especially car dealers, have people who just don’t like them. Whether that’s because of a poor experience the customer had, or is based on something the customer heard about, they will exist. Typically, these are the customers that you listen to the most due to fear that other customers and potential customers will hear their complaints. Many dealership managers take these personally and, while some may have merit, their initial reaction is one of anger.

People all have opinions. Rather than dwell on the detractors, change your focus to all of the positive comments you receive from happy customers. To when things have gone right. It’s certainly important to handle legitimate customer complaints, when possible. And these complaints can have a positive aspect – they should be used as a learning tool to prevent reoccurrences of similar problems. It’s way too easy to get sidetracked by negativity and allow it to negatively alter your behavior. If you keep your focus on ensuring that your customers have the best experience possible, you will see happier customers. In this way, just as the community around the boy with the lemonade stand did, your customers and local community will rally behind you when you need them most.

I’m fairly certain that this teenager did not set out with a goal of creating a booming lemonade stand that would rake in a fortune. However, through the media and the assistance of a local radio host who actually committed one of his staff to assist in its operation, business has been surprisingly good!

And it all started with a dream, a little hard work, and a commitment to overcome obstacles.

In the past, the right mixes of traditional and media buys wrapped up in the bow that is your demographic was all it took to catch consumer’s attention and bring them into your dealership. Then Al Gore invented the Internet and everything changed. Not all at once, mind you, but it did and still is. Attracting attention to your business today is more difficult than ever. It will continue to get more difficult and your options will continue to expand. The youth of today are growing up and these young people are becoming the consumers that brands are courting.

The discussion around Millennials and how to effectively market to them and create loyal customers has been going on for years. Those Millennial are in or nearing their thirties now and we have Generation Z replacing them in marketers’ minds. Millennials used to be a Rubik’s Cube that could be solved with enough study. However, as the digitization of the world has increased, reaching Generation Z has become a more daunting task then ever.

Chegg, a student hub that is a leading provider of homework help for high school and college students, released a study during Advertising Week in September 2013 titled “Engaging the Made-to-Order Generation.” The results were generated through an online survey of over 4,000 college students. According to the study, college students consume an average 47 hours of media per week. While that might not surprise you, consider that 32 of those hours are via online or from their mobile devices. Mobile device use has grown 250 percent since 2011 and 84 percent of college students say they use a smartphone; and which 43 percent of those reported that they’d used it to make a purchase within 30 days. Tablet use has also doubled from 16 percent in 2011 to 34 percent in 2013. The young people of today are heading online for just about all of their activities; including communication, media consumption, shopping and information.

The consumers of tomorrow are migrating to technology to satisfy that instant gratification desire they’ve become accustomed to. As a result, technology companies are adapting to accommodate them. Transparency is increasingly demanded and companies are meeting those demands. You would think that for the generation that made “selfies” a trend it would be difficult to win over their business. However, according to the study, that would be wrong.

The study found that college students are eager to give their loyalty to a company and to also become a brand advocate. In fact they were pretty forthcoming on what they’re looking for in order to back a company.

• 88 percent said it was important that companies give back to the community.
• 84 percent are willing to advocate for brands that reward their loyalty.
• 82 percent were willing to be frugal in some areas so that they could spend more in others.
• 80 percent expect real-time customer service
• 80 percent said that it was important to buy from companies with responsible business practices.

Generation Z is decisively willing to award you their loyalty. However, they have what may seem to be some pretty steep demands in return. When you drill it down to basics, the formula is simple: Do the right thing. Pay attention to your customers needs. Give back. Show them that you appreciate them.

These young consumers aren’t any different than consumers of the past. What’s changed is that information is instantaneous and expectations have evolved along with it. These young people expect to be treated right and appreciated by businesses that care. 

They want to feel special by receiving discount offers and coupons. They like free stuff like everyone else. The students surveyed reported that they “notice timely communication and appreciate gentle reminders.” They’re loyal but they expect that loyalty to be rewarded.  The only difference between Generation Z and past generations is that technology has opened up a world of near instantaneous communication and information.

Long gone are the days of sending a letter and waiting a response. Today, young consumers expect your business to be available via any communication channel they choose whether that’s phone, e-mail, chat, text, or social media. Be there for them and they’ll be there for you... and be pretty impressed.

Generation Z is not the Rubik’s Cube that we think it is. They are there, ready and willing to be courted by a company that is willing to adapt. Don’t think for a second that they are asking businesses to adapt to them. They are a product of technology just as text messages are.

They simply want a business that understands and utilizes the same technology that they do.  

In the past, the right mixes of traditional and media buys wrapped up in the bow that is your demographic was all it took to catch consumer’s attention and bring them into your dealership. Then Al Gore invented the Internet and everything changed. Not all at once, mind you, but it did and still is. Attracting attention to your business today is more difficult than ever. It will continue to get more difficult and your options will continue to expand. The youth of today are growing up and these young people are becoming the consumers that brands are courting.

The discussion around Millennials and how to effectively market to them and create loyal customers has been going on for years. Those Millennial are in or nearing their thirties now and we have Generation Z replacing them in marketers’ minds. Millennials used to be a Rubik’s Cube that could be solved with enough study. However, as the digitization of the world has increased, reaching Generation Z has become a more daunting task then ever.

Chegg, a student hub that is a leading provider of homework help for high school and college students, released a study during Advertising Week in September 2013 titled “Engaging the Made-to-Order Generation.” The results were generated through an online survey of over 4,000 college students. According to the study, college students consume an average 47 hours of media per week. While that might not surprise you, consider that 32 of those hours are via online or from their mobile devices. Mobile device use has grown 250 percent since 2011 and 84 percent of college students say they use a smartphone; and which 43 percent of those reported that they’d used it to make a purchase within 30 days. Tablet use has also doubled from 16 percent in 2011 to 34 percent in 2013. The young people of today are heading online for just about all of their activities; including communication, media consumption, shopping and information.

The consumers of tomorrow are migrating to technology to satisfy that instant gratification desire they’ve become accustomed to. As a result, technology companies are adapting to accommodate them. Transparency is increasingly demanded and companies are meeting those demands. You would think that for the generation that made “selfies” a trend it would be difficult to win over their business. However, according to the study, that would be wrong.

The study found that college students are eager to give their loyalty to a company and to also become a brand advocate. In fact they were pretty forthcoming on what they’re looking for in order to back a company.

• 88 percent said it was important that companies give back to the community.
• 84 percent are willing to advocate for brands that reward their loyalty.
• 82 percent were willing to be frugal in some areas so that they could spend more in others.
• 80 percent expect real-time customer service
• 80 percent said that it was important to buy from companies with responsible business practices.

Generation Z is decisively willing to award you their loyalty. However, they have what may seem to be some pretty steep demands in return. When you drill it down to basics, the formula is simple: Do the right thing. Pay attention to your customers needs. Give back. Show them that you appreciate them.

These young consumers aren’t any different than consumers of the past. What’s changed is that information is instantaneous and expectations have evolved along with it. These young people expect to be treated right and appreciated by businesses that care. 

They want to feel special by receiving discount offers and coupons. They like free stuff like everyone else. The students surveyed reported that they “notice timely communication and appreciate gentle reminders.” They’re loyal but they expect that loyalty to be rewarded.  The only difference between Generation Z and past generations is that technology has opened up a world of near instantaneous communication and information.

Long gone are the days of sending a letter and waiting a response. Today, young consumers expect your business to be available via any communication channel they choose whether that’s phone, e-mail, chat, text, or social media. Be there for them and they’ll be there for you... and be pretty impressed.

Generation Z is not the Rubik’s Cube that we think it is. They are there, ready and willing to be courted by a company that is willing to adapt. Don’t think for a second that they are asking businesses to adapt to them. They are a product of technology just as text messages are.

They simply want a business that understands and utilizes the same technology that they do.