The Power of Good Customer Communication

Communication has been one of humanity’s greatest feats since the beginning of time.

The learned ability to communicate has been instrumental with everything from hunting during the early ages of man to producing the world’s greatest inventions.

If communication has been such a valuable asset in the past, it’s even more critical today, especially for the life of your business.

“Good communication can be the deciding factor for keeping and acquiring customers for your business.”

Creating a Smooth Process

When customers engage with your business, they want a painless process, not an aggravating one.

A typical speed bump that anyone in society has experienced is miscommunication. The unfortunate truth is that our brains are not all connected within society. We all need to communicate with each other to exchange ideas or instructions in order to receive a full understanding. Being that you work in a professional environment, your customers expect you to understand what they want and execute it as such.

To ensure that you avoid miscommunication, here are a couple of things to remember:

Become an active listener to your customers.

“Slow to speak. Quick to listen.”

Make this your mantra. Ask questions and confirm what your prospects and customers want, so that the message can be translated down the line and into production.

The questions you should be asking are simple: What, How, When and Who.

  • What printed piece do they want? 
  • How do they want the printed piece to be done?
  • What type of paper and quantity?
  • When do they need the piece by?
  • Who do you need in your business to get the job done?

Once you get these base questions answered, you’ll set yourself up for a pain-free process for not only the customer but your business as well.

Trust, but verify.

Along with asking the right questions, send the customer a proof so that they can see what you understood from their request.

“The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place.”
– George Bernard Shaw

Taking the extra time to create a proof ensures the customer that you care about getting the job done right for them. It allows for edits to be made and creates the opportunity for the customer to correct you if something was misunderstood. You can keep this back and forth process going until the artwork is approved.

As printers, we know this, but this is your reminder not to skimp or rush this process.

There are a lot of indecisive customers, and this process will help you create better communication as well as cater to each customer individually. By communicating with the customer effectively, you’ll enjoy better production (because your team will know what the art is supposed to look like), and a seamless process to get the job done correctly.

If you’re not focusing on your business communication skills, now is the time to get started. After all,  every business wants fewer mistakes, and good communication is just what you need to make that happen.


Written by

Joseph Casagrande

Graphic Designer, Banyan Printing

Joseph Casagrande has been a Graphic Designer at Banyan Printing since 2016. Joseph also provides digital content as the Social Media Manager and has a Bachelors in Computer Graphics as well as a Masters in Business Administration. Joseph’s knowledge and experience in the print industry have given him success in maintaining customer satisfaction and loyalty.