It’s been a challenging year for business owners of all kinds. From adapting processes on the fly to staff reductions, the pandemic has forced business owners to make difficult decisions to keep moving forward. The pandemic has proven that business leaders must be nimble and able to quickly adapt to stay afloat during trying times.
While there are a lot of ways you can adapt your business when times get tough, there’s one thing that should remain constant—treating customers right. It’s no question that treating your customers with honesty and integrity will make for happy, loyal clients. And while it might seem attractive to skimp on customer service when times get tough, studies show that customers are looking for companies they can trust now more than ever. The pandemic has posed a unique opportunity for companies to demonstrate they are committed to delivering on their purpose and values.
Unfortunately, in the hyper-competitive world of merchant processing, corporate players often overlook this insight in order to achieve short-term profits and growth. As a result, the norm is for these players to lock in small business owners with a low introductory price on a long-term contract and then increase pricing multiple times during the course of the contract. These practices are so widespread that the average Net Promotor Score—a metric that measures customer satisfaction—is -10 (on a scale from -100 to +100). At Beyond, our NPS score is fifty points higher than the payments industry average. Learn more about NPS here.
That’s because we know the value in treating customers with the utmost respect. Thanks to the Beyond Promises, we never lock our clients into pricing or long-term contracts—and customers can leave at any time with no penalties or cancellation fees. Our team of local Business Advocates help their clients with everything from payments and payroll to digital marketing and business capital. Our advocates work in the heart of communities, bringing our customers a friendly face and go-to partner whenever they need help. And if they aren’t immediately available, our Louisville-based support team is available day and night.
Even when times are tough, doing business the right way pays off. Top electronic payments analytics and consulting firm The Strawhecker Group (TSG), reported that the average growth for the SMB market in Q2 2020 was -19 percent. During the same time period, Beyond’s was +23 percent. This displays Beyond’s impressive client attrition rates even through the COVID pandemic. Positioning your business as not only a trusted partner, but a fair and honest teammate should be a top priority during uncertain times. With the future unknown, businesses are relying on their partners more than ever.
Learn how Beyond is transforming the payments industry—and proving that business ethics matter.
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