Do you know why your customers choose your workshop, instead of going down the road to your competitor?

Knowing the answer to this question is hugely important. It’s what allows you to grow, evolve and succeed as a business. It’s your unique selling point, your value proposition to your customers.

Of course, there could be more than one reason your customers choose you. And different customers might have different reasons for giving you their business.

In this article we’ve taken, customer service expert and New York Times bestselling author Shep Hyken’s list of 10 top reasons customers choose one workshop over another – and outlines potential strengths and flaws for you as the workshop owner or manager.

1. Price

Some people choose price as a primary reason. Those workshops that get customers because of low price will lose those customers when someone else has a lower price. Their loyalty is to their back pocket, not you or your business.

2. Convenience

Who doesn’t want an easy and frictionless experience? People are often willing to pay a higher price if the experience is convenient. Convenience isn’t just about location, it can also be about the systems you have in place, like online booking or webchat.

3. Customer Service

Your customer loves the way you treat them. Your team are friendly, knowledgeable, and quick to respond. The customer feels you take care of them, so they take care of you by giving you their service and repair work.

4. The Culture

If the customer feels like your values match theirs, they’re more likely to want to be associated with you and do business with you.

5. A Cause

Do you believe in what the customer believes in? Shep said, “At some level, this ties into culture and values, but this is more about giving back and community involvement. It can be a charity or any other cause that is important to you –everything from saving elephants to curing world hunger.”

6. Trust

Do they trust you? Do you deliver what you say you’ll deliver, every time. If customers don’t trust you or your team, they probably won’t do business with you again in the future.

7. Reputation

They’ve heard good things about your workshop. Maybe it was comments from friends or colleagues, or maybe it was from Google or Facebook reviews. Reputation is a big part of the decision-making process for many consumers.

8. Consistency

This ties in with trust and reputation.

“Outside of lying, if there is something that erodes trust quicker than anything, it’s a lack of consistency,” Shep said. “You want customers to use the word ‘always’ to describe their experience with you. ‘They are always friendly, knowledgeable, helpful.’ You get the idea.”

9. The Way

This refers to the way you do business – how you operate: This is about your process, policies, the hours you’re open, your location and much more. These are very tangible reasons for customers choosing your workshop over your competition. But while these may get the customer in the door, it’s the other reasons listed here that keep customers coming back.

10. The Why

According to Simon Sinek, author of Start with Why, “people don’t buy what you do; they buy why you do it.”

All of these reasons (and more) may contribute to a customer choosing your workshop over your competitor. When you figure out a customer’s “why” you can then scale that up to meet the reasons and needs of a larger group of customers.

Do you know why your customers choose you? If not, find out! It could make all the difference to your business going forward.