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Don’t Bury the Lede - 3/17/26


Mary was working at the office, and she received an e-mail alert from the water company.  There was a water outage in her neighborhood.  It looked like it was going to be a couple hours to fix the issue. Sure enough, a few hours later around mid-afternoon, Mary received another Read more

Confirm the Real Issue Before You Start Solving - 3/10/26


Have you ever gone “down the rabbit hole?”  It involves going deep into some topic, some discussion – with analysis that creates complexity as much as it resolves it.  And that dive into the rabbit hole often starts with a simple question. Going down that rabbit hole takes time and Read more

One Question to Prevent a Follow-up Call - 3/3/26


The way some performance metrics work, you would think companies would prefer for their staff to talk to the same customer 4 times on the same topic for 8 minutes each rather than talking to them once for 10 minutes.  Many management metrics are too focused on average length Read more

Stay Calm When the Customer Isn’t - 2/24/26


There are all sorts of others’ emotions that you have to deal with as a customer service professional.  The other person could be anxious or upset, they could be angry or agitated.  It can run the gamut of emotions, but for you to deal with them in the best Read more

Don’t Begin with the Dead End in Mind - 2/17/26


Habit #2 of Stephen Covey’s “Seven Habits of Highly Successful People” is “Begin with the End in Mind.”  It speaks to the need to have a clear vision or goal for what you’re trying to ultimately achieve, so you understand the purpose of what you’re doing.  It helps you Read more

Explain without Over Explaining - 2/10/26


The customer has a question, and we have an answer.  They need to learn something, and we’re in the position to be the educator.  There’s a process they have to go through, and we need them to understand. We know so much, and we could impart so much, but sometimes Read more

Look for a Stop Sign - 2/3/26


As a customer service professional, what you say matters.  The information you’re providing is useful.  The direction you’re giving the other person is helpful.  But... As you’re speaking, you also need to be reading.  Reading the other person.  Watching the customer, determining whether and how they’re receiving what you’re sharing.  Read more

When They Want the Supervisor - 1/27/26


Maybe you did your best with the customer, or maybe the customer didn’t even give you a chance.  They want to talk to your supervisor.  They see you, notice your title does not have “supervisor” or “manager” or “director” or “President and CEO” in it, so they want to Read more

Identify Your Point of Empathy - 1/20/26


I was watching a webinar recently on empathy.  The speaker mentioned that empathy - to a large extent - is something that you are born with.  It’s something that’s very difficult to learn.  And while I agree that some people are predisposed to being empathetic and understanding of others Read more

Pressure is a Privilege, but... - 1/13/26


When athletes are asked about the pressure of a playoff match or a late-game situation, many times they will say that “pressure is a privilege.”  In other words, usually pressure exists because you’re in a match that matters most.  It exists because you are a player put in a Read more

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Teamwork Spurs a Title

Posted on June 26, 2014 in Business Advice, Sports Please leave a comment

Blog 6-25-14Basketball can be a beautiful game. While dunks are great shows of physical force, it’s the constant movement of the ball ending with a slash to the basket, a 3-pointer from the corner, or – yes – a vicious dunk that make it beautiful.

The San Antonio Spurs won their 5th championship last week in 15 years, but it wasn’t just a tribute to the longevity of their star players. It was also a tribute to teamwork; it was meshing of young talent and an “over-the-hill” 38 year old. It was about a coach who would yell at you one minute for using poor technique in guarding a shooter and then encourage you the next. It was about that leader showing what Vince Lombardi called “football love” – love of a teammate or a player even if you don’t love the action. Working together for the good of the whole, even if that means that statistics of the individual may suffer.

How does this relate to customer service? Well it relates to the culture of an organization, and to sustain great customer service, it’s not about hiring a few key individuals and hoping they overcome the shortcomings of others or overcome bad leadership or overcome poor processes.

Service EXCELLENCE requires having a culture that fosters teamwork for the good of the organization and the customer. Great customer service requires everyone to understand how they impact the success of co-workers and to work to make those fellow employees successful.

The Spurs story for this season, in particular, was one of selflessness and continuous movement – players working in concert on offense and defense – trusting the system and the leaders. It was a beautiful thing to watch – and it was successful, setting records for point differential in a playoffs and in a finals.

Does your company truly want to have great customer service? If so, keep the information moving. Work together toward a common goal. Make the team win more important than the individual accolades. Have leadership that can teach, redirect, reinforce, and reward. Do what you do for each other and the customer, and your personal success and rewards will follow.

Learn a few Spurs lessons in Teamwork.

Did you like this post? Here are other Sports-related posts:

Also, check out our CSS Sports Consulting, Training, and Research Page at: http://cssamerica.com/sports


Ensure Your Voice of the Fan Approach Includes These Key Points

Posted on May 1, 2014 in Business Advice, Sports Please leave a comment

Blog 5-1-14Voice of the Fan – we use that phrase with many of our clients, but to clarify its meaning, sometimes it helps to look at examples.

The University of Florida’s “University Athletic Association” (UAA) is forming a fan advisory group that will provide feedback on how to improve the fan experience at UF football games, in particular. According to the article UAA to improve gameday experience through new fan advisory council, the advisory group “will select representatives from several season-ticket-holder demographics, including current students and boosters…The issue that needs to be discussed is how we can help students come in, but at the same time help people who have been season ticket holders for 40 years still have a good time at the game.”

These comments go to the heart of why a Voice of the Fan strategy is so important in sports. We can’t make the assumption that all fans are the same. Conversely, we can’t make the assumption that the long-time fans don’t matter – which often turns out to be a concern in the heavily marketing/sales-oriented world of sports.

We have to develop a strategy of dialogue with our fan base, that not only includes the surveys and 1-on-1 discussions with staff, but it also includes the sit-down discussions that get you depth on issues, creativity on solutions, and the fan’s perspective on potential changes being considered for the future.

Develop a Voice of the Fan approach that has at least these characteristics:

  • Includes a quantifiable component to evaluate multiple aspects of the fan experience, preferences, renewal drivers, etc.
  • Includes trended data through ongoing (including real-time) research or point-in-time annualized surveys.
  • Includes Focus Groups for deep dives on specific issues or about consideration of future changes/improvements.
  • Includes Advisory Boards that provide some consistent feedback mechanism as ideas are developed, refined, and moved toward implementation.
  • Crosses all key demographics or fan types.
  • Has predictive characteristics about retention/growth likelihood.
  • Uses multiple platforms (face-to-face, web, social media, e-mail, telephone, etc.) to ensure breadth of response.
  • Results in actionable information.
  • Shares back with fans the results and actions taken.

When you’re thinking about an advisory board, focus group, survey, or other research method, first make sure it’s getting at the voice of your true fans. Create a strategic approach to listening to and utilizing the Voice of the Fan.

Did you like this post? Here are other Sports-related posts:

Learn about our CSS Sports services at: http://cssamerica.com/sports/


In Sports, Does Loyalty Matter Anymore?

Posted on February 20, 2014 in Business Advice, Sports Please leave a comment

Blog 2-20-14Does loyalty matter anymore?

This isn’t about free agents in basketball or players switching clubs in the MLS. It’s not about Robinson Cano or Wayne Gretzky. It’s about the fan.

Much of the sports world – on the business side – is driven by rabid sales and marketing efforts. It’s the TV ads, the freebies to newcomers, the perks, discounts, packages, and personal attention.

But for the typical sports club – 75%-90%+ of this year’s ticket revenue comes from last year’s season ticket holders. So loyalty has a huge financial impact, but what are teams doing to show appreciation for that long-term support?

In the article Season-ticket holders: Honoring loyalty, the NFL’s Jacksonville Jaguars tell a story of a 20-year season ticket holder and his commitment to the club, regardless of the performance on the field. According to the article, in this – the 20 year anniversary for the Jaguars – the team is recognizing that loyalty: “Each level of tenure will receive wearable memorabilia indicating length of association. They don’t just want recognition, they want to be able to show it off in the stadium. They want their hat to say, ’Twenty-year season-ticket holder.’ There will be things they can do and show people by what they can wear. Their names will be permanently displayed for people to see.”

We often tell our clients in and out of sports that customer loyalty is the easiest avenue to recurring revenue. Customer loyalty is the easiest path to business growth. But customer loyalty is also the easiest asset to take for granted.

Look at those clients that have been with you over time. Find ways to reward and recognize them. Find ways to nurture the relationship. Find ways to show that their loyalty matters.

Did you like this post? Here are other Sports-related posts:

Learn about our CSS Sports services at: http://cssamerica.com/sports


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