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Highlight the Hidden Value - 7/1/25


Marketing campaigns often highlight a particular product and ALL the features and extras that the customer will receive… “For 3 low, low payments of only $39.99, you not only get these world-renowned chef knives, but you can also get this free laser-etched spatula!  AND THAT’S NOT ALL!  We will also Read more

Don’t Harp on the Customer’s Mistake - 6/24/25


Seth’s daughter, Sarah, had missed some swim classes, and Seth remembered that the aquatics center had several make-up classes available late in the summer.  So Seth pulled up the class schedule on his phone, found one that worked on his and Sarah’s schedules, and planned to attend a session Read more

Create Customers for Life - 6/17/25


Veronica has gone to the same automotive service shop for at least 20 years.  She bought a new car about a year ago, and this is the third car she’s brought to the shop instead of taking her car to the dealer where she bought it.  She’s had three Read more

Don’t Turn the Customer into the QA Department - 6/10/25


Roberta received a form with information filled in by the company after her conversation with the account rep.  Roberta just needed to review the information, fill in some of the blanks, sign it, and resend it in order to set up a new account. She noticed that the effective date Read more

Imitate to Improve - 6/3/25


Oscar Wilde said that “Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.”  Now this doesn’t mean that plagiarism is the sincerest form of flattery.  Nor does it mean that great impersonators such as Rich Little, Dana Carvey, or Frank Caliendo are always offering flattering portrayals of those that they imitate. Wilde’s Read more

How the Customer Perceives a Truth as a Lie - 5/27/25


You’re the customer, you’re asking about an unused item that you’re returning, and you hear the employee say: “The refund process takes 7-10 days.”  You’re thinking: “Great!  I can get the refund check as early as a week from today!”  The reality is that the company means that they’ll Read more

Tell Customers What’s Next - 5/20/25


In most businesses that have been around for a while, how a process was originally designed is not how it currently operates.  Sometimes this change is referred to as “practical drift,” where the actual process moves further and further away from the documented steps over time.  Maybe the changes Read more

Questions to Guide You to Empathy - 5/13/25


“If I was him, I would do ABC…” If you’ve ever heard somebody say this - whether it’s a friend or acquaintance, whether it’s some TV reporter or podcaster - you may get as frustrated or as annoyed as I do. I get annoyed because we are not that other person. Read more

Negate the Nervousness - 5/6/25


The customer needed a loan, so he walked into the bank, but he was a little nervous.  He knew that launching his business would be easier if he had some working capital, but that’s about all he knew.  He was anxious because he didn’t know what to expect in Read more

Don’t Rush to Resolve Quickly - 4/29/25


The customer is angry, so you use the CSS LEAD technique as designed.  You, listen, empathize, accept responsibility, and deliver on a remedy.  But it doesn’t work.  The customer is still upset, and maybe even a little more frustrated than when you started…why?! If the use of this technique fails, Read more

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The Secret Sauce for Great Customer Service – 3/26/24

Posted on March 26, 2024 in Customer Service Tip of the Week Please leave a comment

I was working with the League Office for a major American sport several years back, and one of the executives asked me to describe our Secret Sauce that helped our clients improve the fan experience and customer retention.  I gave him a sense of what makes us unique and successful in helping our clients.  Remembering that question recently, I started thinking…

What’s the secret sauce for delivering great customer service?

While it’s not like talking about Delighting Your Customers or The WOW Experience, consistency is truly appreciated by customers.  If the customer understands what they’re going to get, when they’re going to get it, and why something’s happening, it sets and meets their expectation.  They develop comfort and confidence.  And it’s great when you’re confident that a business is going to deliver a positive experience.

But consistency can be somewhat of a nebulous term.  So, let’s talk about 3 concepts you can adopt to provide consistently positive customer service:

Be clear on WHY you’re doing something.  What is your goal for the day?  What are you trying to accomplish short-term and/or long-term?  It’s easier to become consistent if you have that North Star, you have that goal, you know what direction you are heading.  If you don’t allow each individual activity or task or challenge or interaction to pull you away from your goals, it’s easier to be consistent.

Create a consistent cadence.  This is about building some structure into your day or week.  Knowing when you are doing your daily or weekly plans.  Knowing when you take your breaks or hold recurring meetings.  Knowing when you do your check-ins with co-workers or customers.  Essentially knowing when and how frequently you are addressing your priorities, in particular.

Have a standard way or model of working.  I was on a call with a client recently, and they asked me a strategic question, and I gave them a very holistic strategy for addressing their need.  They really liked the model that I shared, and it’s something I’ve used for 20+ years to address certain problems.  The model can be applied to an educational organization, government organization, retail organization, sports, healthcare – you name it!

By having a model, or having a standard process or way of doing things, you create some structure for yourself.  You can create some consistency.  Now, within that model or process, you might have different focus areas for different situations or different customers, but if you can create a standard process you go through or a standard model which serves as the lens through which you look at certain situations, it helps you to be more consistent.

Build your Why, When, and How in order to provide consistently positive customer service.

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Navigate their New Experience – 7/18/23

Posted on July 18, 2023 in Customer Service Tip of the Week Please leave a comment

Everything is changing for customers.  How they buy products and services…how they get customer service…where they get information from, and who provides the information.

So, confusion and frustration can ensue.  Let’s help customers navigate our new world, our new systems and processes.  It’s about Empathy and Expectations; it’s about Input and Improvement:

  • Empathy: If customers are upset or frustrated, and you show empathy, they’ll feel you’re listening. Listening conveys that you’re an understanding person who cares about them, their situation, their feelings.  Don’t argue or interrupt; instead, agree with some of what they say.  They’ll feel that they’re interacting with someone who’s on their side, and that can bring down the emotion.
  • Expectations: If customers are used to different processes, systems, and wait times, be proactive in communicating what they should expect from now on; in e-mails, texts, letters, onsite signage, and in discussions, explain processes simply and succinctly.  Describe timeframes, and share what they need to do v. what will be done by the company.  And when the customer is engaged with your business, ensure that your best teachers are charged with engaging the customers on the new steps.
  • Input: Getting through the implementation of change is a success; but it’s just the start.  How can we get feedback from the customer?  If satisfaction and retention of the customer are important, then we need to find ways to get them to weigh-in on the process.  What’s the experience like from their perspective, and how can we be set up to pivot based on the input?
  • Improvement: Take the customer input; use it to consistently improve the processes, systems, communications, and training.  Consider 90-day post-implementation action planning – make continuous improvement just how you operate.  Seek input to drive progress.

When changing the customer experience, help the customer to navigate their new world.

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Change on the Fly – 5/30/23

Posted on May 30, 2023 in Customer Service Tip of the Week Please leave a comment

Situational service requires some advanced engagement skills.  It involves seeing each situation independent of any others, reading the moment, and changing on the fly to create the best possible customer experience and outcomes.  So, what are some keys to situational service?  Keep these guiding principles in mind:

Start Open-minded: When the customer engages you, avoid assumptions about them and their situation.  Don’t let the first impression cloud what might be the deeper issue or need, the background of the situation, the person themselves.  It’s more effective to start by being open, and then narrow the focus after gathering information; it’s less effective to start with a preconceived notion, and then have to later backtrack or restart the conversation.

Gauge the Emotion: While we focus on words, since that conveys much of the specifics of a situation, the emotions can convey how they feel about the issue or need.  Note in their tone and body language, specifically, how they feel so that you can use that information to determine how to handle the situation.

Uncover the Urgency: Determine whether time is a concern, whether that’s in-the-moment or for the final resolution.  That time consideration will help you to understand their feelings better, but it will also help you to understand whether to respond by reiterating timing and next steps, or to focus more on their feelings and solution options.

Adjust to the Situation: The first 3 guiding principles ensure you get the information you need (the facts, their emotions, and time considerations) to handle the situation most effectively.  Now, adjust.  Settle them down first, addressing any anxiety, anger, confusion, or upset with the right technique for the emotion, or move directly to the issue and solutions if the negative emotions aren’t present.  Be patient if they care more about the conversation and the process, or quickly get to the point if there’s urgency involved.

When you’re engaged with the customer, get the facts, gauge the emotions, and clarify times.  Then focus on providing the best service for the situation.

To excel in service, develop your ability to change on the fly.

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