Service Untitled

Elizabeth’s online business is selling merchandise on eBay. She started her company a few years ago when she decided she no longer wanted to be a banker, and in the back room of her home and a two-car garage to warehouse merchandise, her business has grown by leaps and bounds. Elizabeth used to spend countless hours replying to customers and answering questions by email; so much time that she didn’t have time for her own family, so what did she do?

Elizabeth has become streamlined and innovative, but still strives to reply to customers, improve customer support, and reduce time. Her first strategy was to refer customers and contacts to a website, and there she  introduced  her knowledge base. Up went an obvious link stating, Frequently Asked Questions. She started with the very basic questions and answers customers would repeatedly ask her and has been adding more ever since.

Next came the forum that Elizabeth set up. With nearly a one-click installation, different categories were organized giving people the opportunity to discuss pre-sale questions, member questions, customer support, while creating a personal touch. Since Elizabeth has chosen at this time not to participate on social media sites such as Twitter or Facebook, her forum still gives her the opportunity to participate and answer questions or give suggestions. When Elizabeth is not able to participate on her forum, frequently there are other members who are more than happy to supply information to new members. She does use a moderator, but has rarely had to intervene. It’s interesting to add that her forum has a search function for customers and members to find related posts, which in turn brings more knowledge to readers, participants and interested prospects.

When the FAQ and forums are not enough to help her customers, Elizabeth also has a Help Desk. A customer logs in and sets up a user account. The software program has pre-written responses for repetitive questions. If a customer still needs further assistance, she can set up an online ticket, attach files, and credit card information, and feel confident all information has been sent confidentially and securely.

Consequently there are fewer emails now to answer and a lot more time to devote to her family. Customer service has improved, and Elizabeth’s thriving enterprise continues to expand.

photo credit: muddanudo

Customer focus should be at the heart of everything a company does to achieve customer satisfaction and customer loyalty. Essentially there are five steps to recognizing and implementing a successful program:

1. First, we must identify who are our customers.
2. We must find out exactly what they want and what kind of services and products they want and be able to hone in on that service to meet their needs.
3. We must design our sales and service processes around the needs of the customers we have identified.
4. We must thoroughly train our employees and use whatever successful training and mentoring programs available to us.
5. We must consistently measure our service and delivery procedures and use our customers to provide the necessary feedback and improve and upgrade our processes.

From a practical point of view, the Envision 2010 Awards for Customer Excellence were awarded by Envision, a provider of workforce optimization solutions and creator of Click2Coach, a coaching team which works on performance improvement. The recipients of their 2010 Envision Excellence Awards brought some interesting information how companies can improve their customer-centricity to improve their quality and business performance or as Envision states “to think outside the box.” Winners were listed as Alaska Airlines, Delta Hotels, WestJet, and Partners Healthcare.

Delta Hotels customer service representatives trained via coach remote agents using technology to focus in on peer-to-peer coaching techniques. They have successfully worked on faster techniques to serve customers better. Delta Hotel now uses social networking on a daily basis to monitor questions and service issues.

WestJet, a Canadian airline organization has continued to work on their efficiency and effectiveness, and have relied on coaching with agent participation to improve customer service. Social media has helped the company accommodate more customer inquiries, and Twitter and Facebook helped customers during the rollover in the company’s reservation systems.

Alaska Airlines has implemented an at-home agent program where 50% of the agents are able to work from their own homes. This new innovative program has reduced the company’s real estate footprint by 32%. The work-at-home program has improved productivity, morale, and decreased absenteeism.

And finally Partners Healthcare has, according to Envision, used the coaching and developing of employee knowledge to improve the quality of interactions between employees and customers.

Can some of these suggestions work for your company?

photo credit: j.sauerzapfe

There are a lot of factors that get rolled into one final exclamation of really poor customer service, and haven’t we all felt at one time or another the ardent desire to just scream in pure frustration? Of course the main factors of incompetence, rudeness, minimal training, and economic cutbacks have made their profound impact on negative customer service experiences, so why not help ourselves feel better, help to improve the company’s customer service, and earn some perks at the same time?

We can define perks as anything extra we receive that were not in the original agreement. Examples of perks awarded for poor customer service can include coupons, discounts, free upgrades, travel miles, free hotel accommodations, movie tickets, and the list goes on. As customers, we just all need to know how to ask for them. Ranting only raises your blood pressure, but biting your proverbial tongue, and adjusting your attitude, gratitude, and patience can make the difference in an otherwise very unsatisfactory customer experience.

The most important aspect of effective complaints is to be specific when speaking to a customer service representative. Actually I prefer to write letters and fax a copy of the letter with the initial problem, names, dates, circumstances, and solution. Whether you are speaking to a customer representative in person or corresponding by mail, it is imperative to stay calm and polite. When writing, always remain courteous, and it’s important  not to blame, insult, or whine.

Make Google your friend, and research the person or the department that will get you results. If you just send a letter to the company, chances are you will not hear much or just get a generic apology. Find the department where you will get results, and include in that ever important correspondence  the suggestions how you would correct the problem. As an example, my son (who you know as Douglas, the founder of this blog) was recently traveling and stayed at a well-known hotel chain, but was disappointed that the accommodations were less than stellar. The carpeting was stained, the room was poorly presented, and the maid service left no clean towels daily.

My son researched the hotel chain, wrote a letter explaining his experience, and offered suggestions for improvement. It is of note to mention that my son also complimented the past excellent experiences he has had with the company, and therefore wanted to make sure the company knew why this experience was so disappointing. The hotel chain was very apologetic, and has offered him points in their frequent traveler program which can be applied to future hotel stay discounts.

You don’t have to just rollover and accept the bad service; just have the patience and extend the grace to the company allowing them to make it up to you. When you have to wait too long for your car servicing because the service manager ordered the wrong part, ask for a free oil-change the next time. When your waiter spills wine on your cashmere jacket and offers to pay for the dry cleaning, ask for a complimentary dinner next time for all of the inconvenience. Companies do want to please you; just know how to do it right.

photo credit: all of olive.

There’s no one immune from receiving lousy customer service. I cringe at rudeness, robotic phone systems, and general incompetence, but I have learned the business world still marches on, and great customer service does exist. Companies that have figured out exemplary customer service aren’t just about direct business to customer interactions, but instead have made CEOs approachable while creating innovative procedures and actions to benefit customers, and have pulled away from the mediocrity most of us try to avoid. Here are some of the lessons I have learned:

1. A certain amount of automation is enough. There always has to be a way to opt out of the robotic phone answering systems. Aren’t there days when we just need to speak with a human?
2. Be prompt answering me when I have a problem with your company. Email is very convenient, but if I am annoyed by a product or service, I really want an answer before 24 hours. That’s why I have to use the phone, but if I get caught up in a robotic system with no way out, I get even more frustrated.
3. I am the customer, and you keep the records because I pay you. When I call with a question about a product that you know I already own or a service you provide, I don’t want to have to remember passwords. I forget them as quickly as I create them. I expect you to know the identification number on the equipment I lease from you. Why do I have to climb around dark cabinets to repeat it? You should have my customer account number already.
4. Work with me, and develop my trust. If you want me to spend a lot of money, I need to have fostered a relationship with you first. For instance, buying a home is the most expensive purchase I will ever make, and it’s not just about writing a contract to buy a home. I want all the information you can show me to make me feel this is the right decision to make. For instance, tell me about the schools in the area, tell me about taxes and industry in the area; tell me everything about this new community I need to know.
5. Be enthusiastic about your product. I want you to make me feel you believe in the product or your company, and you’re just not answering the phone or talking to me because you are just treading water waiting for payday.
6. Provide guidance and assistance for me when I ask you, but don’t hover over me. I find salespeople following me around in a store to be really annoying, especially if I tell them up front that I am just browsing. If I need help, then I want to know someone is nearby. It’s a fine line, but I think sales people should know the difference.
7. Sometimes I need online support. I really appreciate when I can find a telephone number predominantly displayed on a website. When I purchase a product or service online, and the phone number is convenient, it makes me think the company is completely transparent, and they want me to call if I have a question or problem.
8. Train your employees to be part of the company culture. I know it costs more money to train employees, but when I see employees living the philosophy of great customer service as if they were born with the talent, I am inspired and grateful to be doing business with such a stellar company.
9. Be aware of your competition, and ask my opinion. If your competition does it better, maybe it’s time for a change. Ask your customers how you can deliver a better product, be more innovative, or provide better service. We know because your competition is knocking at our doors every day.

I want to be loyal to you if you deliver innovative products at competitive prices and deliver services to me with respect and proficiency.

photo credit: Orin Zebest

US Airways ranked first on reliability after three consecutive months during April, May, and June; showing statistics of 83 percent of flights arriving within 14 minutes of their scheduled time in June. They also ranked first in customer service for May and June with complaints listed at 1.87 per 100,000 passengers. All 31,000 employees will be rewarded with a $100 bonus each, which represents a $3.1 million payout.

Most airlines operate on the same air routes, and every day packed planes travel the same routes, so is rating arrival times and customer service just splitting hairs? Statistically the airlines with the best on time records operate out of less congested airports and have less planes. For those of us who have to travel to the busiest destinations, on-time records seem nothing more than myths. After all the country’s arrival times are only as good as current air-traffic technology.

On-time percentages may say something, but not everything. For instance, for some carriers to improve their on-time percentages, why not board passengers earlier? How many times have we all been seated on airlines close to the moment of scheduled take-off when passengers are still finding their seats, still finding space for their baggage, and still having to check baggage because there is no more room on the over-heads or under the seats? Wouldn’t airlines benefit a percentage point or two if passengers boarded five minutes earlier, or if there were no extra fees to check bags? Delta, which Douglas flies on a regular basis, starts boarding 40 minutes prior to departure instead of the standard 30.

Airlines could also save a percentage point or two if employees were scheduled to arrive earlier.  How many passengers have waited around airport lounges extra time only to see pilots and support staff arriving late? Airlines could employ more fleet service workers to load baggage at peak travel times to help maintain schedules.

And finally, one of the basic customer service policies is to accept blame, apologize to the consumer, and correct the mistake immediately. When a flight leaves late, the airline personnel should discuss the problem, figure out a solution, and avoid the problem from happening again. After all it is the expectation of the customer to arrive at their intended destination safely, in comfort, on-time, and with minimal inconvenience.

I do congratulate US Airways for their achievement this quarter, and assume they have succeeded because of their customer service policies, but how many passengers take on-time percentages into account when buying airline tickets?

photo credit: asrusch

A quick trip to any museum not only provides an interesting picture of yesteryear, it reveals an instructive barometer on the ways we have changed. What would be the artifacts and displays in a Service Museum? And what would it tell us about the ways customers have changed?

In the not too distant past, retail stores had sales clerks on the floor (not just at the register), grocery stores had bakers, elevators had operators, gas stations had a mechanic, and mail-order catalogues were all-purpose and not specialty. Stores had layaway plans and returns clerks; banks had signature loans. Doctors made house calls and treated whatever malady they encountered.

What has changed? Obviously, there has been a dramatic push toward self-service. But, there has also been a swing toward reliance on specialists. We often hear “we don’t carry that item, check with…” or, “I need to refer you to…” or, “you might look it up online.” We now talk with an IVR or a robot instead of person, forcing us to use a language driven by the service provider. Our nods and “uh uh’s” no long mean “yes” since the machine cannot “talk with us” with the intuition of a person. We get self-service channeled and offshore directed.

The day of the all-purpose, full service experience has been altered to be the purview of specialists. Where did you buy your last stereo, telephone, or book? At a Wal-Mart or Sears or at a specialty store? As customers are unable to “take care of it myself” and are forced to deal with an expert, their standards of service excellence go up and out. That means customers assume competence of every expert and assume expert in every service provider. What steps are you taking to make all front line employees the smartest, best resourced, most empowered service providers on the planet?

Chip R. Bell and John R. Patterson are customer loyalty consultants and the authors of the best-selling book, Take Their Breath Away: How Imaginative Service Creates Devoted Customers. They can be reached at www.taketheirbreathaway.com.

Making that first impression in business with the appearance of your web site, the decor, the marketing, or just the friendliness of the first company representative a customer encounters, helps to brand your business. You don’t always have to be faster or cheaper to keep your customers from straying off to the competition, but you need to maintain a consistent brand of professionalism, speed, and convenience.

Customers may leave because they don’t like your product, their friends have influenced them to move to another company, or the competition simply has you beat, but according to statistics, most customers leave because of a change in attitude or indifference by the business. Customers always have to think you care, and customers want you to make them feel good.

Using the time-honored tenet of it being easier to keep an old customer than to find a new one, companies need to concentrate on customer user groups, periodic surveys, social networking, blogging, and above all – customer service. When you have hired the right people, and your employees know how to make customers feel important, customers keep coming back.

For instance, the hairdresser at the salon I have used for years recently relocated to another state. As most of you know, a woman’s hairdresser is really important, and never to be taken lightly. And, so after my hairdresser left, the owner of the salon called me, and asked me what she could do for me to help meet my needs. I was a bit elusive at the beginning since I didn’t feel as if the owner had been paying attention, but within a few days the owner called me, continued to stay in contact, offered suggestions, and made me feel as if I was a very important client. I was able to openly discuss some reservations I had about changing products and stylist, but she was informative, honest, and won my confidence back.

Customer retention strategies are an ongoing process. Concentrate on the most important elements:

• Hire the right people who have the right attitude. Are they friendly? Do they thank you?
• Do what you promise. Customers remember, and customers leave if you disappoint them by not delivering what you promise.
• Pay attention to your customers, and what is going on around you in your business.
• Help the customer even though it might not mean a sale at that particular time. Go beyond your own needs.
• Handle complaints in a mature manner. Admit when something has gone wrong, and correct your mistake. Always apologize to the customer.
• Stay in contact with the customer, and know their needs.

If you keep a database of addresses and email lists, send your customers birthday cards, promotions, and current interesting information. You want to stay in their minds, but never make it seem as if you are being a pest.

photo credit: Art Pets Photography

My friend Linda is a power-seller of long-standing on eBay. For years she has been getting up on Saturday mornings at 5:00 AM to scour local garage sales for equine clothing, bridles, halters, and saddles. She purchases the gear, cleans it up, repairs it, and sells it on eBay. She has reached gold-level power-seller status and prides herself on great customer service. She has hundreds and hundreds of positive feed backs. I thought I would offer some of her advice, observations and suggestions for the entrepreneurial online eBay sellers, and at the same time show how excellent customer service continues to have a positive impact on our lives.

If you have decided to sell something on eBay, research your item thoroughly. Let “Google” become your friend, and use the search engines to capture more information about the items you are selling. The more specific the headlines and description of your items, the more attention you will get. It’s also a good idea to look at what your competition is selling and how your similar items are priced, and marketed.

Take pictures with a digital camera, and take the photos from all angles. This will give bidders a good idea of the condition of your merchandise. Many sellers use a third-party hosting site to display additional pictures to save money. You can place the link on your description.

Make sure you monitor your emails. Potential buyers often have a lot of questions. Seasoned sellers commonly create a FAQ which gives buyers information about policies. For instance, be clear about delivery charges, possible problems, refunds, and procedures. Confirm by email when a buyer has won the bid, and at the same time add the payment terms, and the postage charge information so there can be no confusion. Some sellers send out all items first class so it can be easily tracked, but make sure to specify if the buyer has the choice.  Thank every customer for their payment, and confirm when an item is shipped and instructions on how to contact you with any problems.

Take customer service even further by professionally wrapping any items you are sending out. It gives a buyer a good impression when you use the right sized boxes and the safest packing material to ensure the merchandise arrives in pristine condition. Don’t forget to include an invoice which should include the picture of the sold item.

Follow up on your sale in a few days. Excellent customer service reduces complaints. Let your customers make suggestions for the future which will reduce bad feedback that definitely can affect your eBay reputation.

photo credit: BinaryApe