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Transparency in Customer Service- 7/14/26


We’ve worked with a lot of clients in the local government sector, and many of these clients have Customer Service Standards and/or corporate values that include Transparency. Think about an old-fashioned transparency sheet, that malleable see-through page you put on an overhead projector.  You can see everything on one side Read more

See the Customer’s Journey from Their Perspective- 7/7/26


That customer is face-to-face with you right now, and you are fielding their questions or delivering your service to them.  And oftentimes and understandably, we are so immersed in the moment that we don’t think about what came before or think enough about what comes next. But in the life Read more

Gaining the Benefits of the Greeter- 6/30/26


Most likely, we’ve all entered some establishment – a retail store, restaurant, or service center - when there is a greeter at the door.  The most famous greeter position is probably the Walmart greeter.  I often thought that my father-in-law would have been a fantastic Walmart greeter, because he Read more

Seamlessness - Why the Customer Thanked You - 6/23/26


This doesn’t happen enough nowadays, but the employee received a long thank you e-mail from the customer.  A financial services account manager had taken care of the client during a period of time that was stressful for the customer. Life was unexpectedly changing quickly, and personal emotions, additional financial responsibilities, Read more

When to Avoid the Escalation - 6/16/26


The customer calls with a complaint, and the easy thing to do is to escalate it to your supervisor. That may also be the right thing to do, but how do you know when to avoid the escalation? Why You Would Escalate The first thing to consider is why you would Read more

Let’s be Clear on Clarity - 6/9/26


When trying to manage expectations, it’s vital to be clear with the customer.  But what specifically does it mean to be “clear?” Clarity is in the eyes and ears of the beholder, so what may be clear to one customer may be unclear to another.  However, there are some basic Read more

Allow Yourself to Solve a Couple Puzzles Every Day - 6/2/26


Frank had never been a dog owner before, and when he first got Bosco at the shelter, Frank didn't really know what he was doing.  He would try to be a good parent - feed the dog, play with it, take it on walks - but he was doing Read more

Improve with a Purpose - 5/26/26


If you’re reading these customer service tips, you likely want to get better.  You want an idea, a technique, a reinforcement, or a question that helps you improve. But why improve? At some point you may waver on the commitment to improve, because it can take effort, introspection, time, and change.  Read more

Reciprocate the Thanks - 5/19/26


Jasmine had a great experience with the company, and the company sent her a link to provide an online evaluation following the visit.  So, she clicked the link, gave a rating, and made a comment about her experience. The company monitored their online reviews, saw the positive response, and replied Read more

Don’t Skip the Recap - 5/12/26


The playoff hockey game goes on for almost 3 hours.  There’s non-stop action, with plenty of penalties and takeaways and hits against the boards…and a few goals, as well. You didn’t get to watch the whole game because you had other plans, but you wanted to know what happened.  So, Read more

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Transparency in Customer Service- 7/14/26

Posted on July 14, 2026 in Customer Service Tip of the Week Please leave a comment

We’ve worked with a lot of clients in the local government sector, and many of these clients have Customer Service Standards and/or corporate values that include Transparency.

Think about an old-fashioned transparency sheet, that malleable see-through page you put on an overhead projector.  You can see everything on one side of the document from the other side.  And that physical example has a lot of similarities to what transparency means in customer service.

Think about Openness, Honesty, Clarity.

Openness includes a willingness to say something that may be uncomfortable to share with the customer.  It’s the fact that a price increase is coming.  It’s a willingness to answer their question, even if it puts you and your organization in a negative light.  Therefore it’s 2-way: an openness of sharing, and an openness of listening to the customer and being willing to respond.  It’s letting them know you have a fee increase – not hiding it by saying you simply have a new pricing structure.

Honesty is obviously saying the truth, but again, it may not mean that you’re conveying the most positive side of your business.  You’re stating that you’re asking them to resubmit a document because there was an error on your end.  It’s letting them know that the delay was due to a keying mistake which caused the customer’s submittal to be put on hold.

Clarity is about effectively setting and managing customer expectations with some specificity.  Don’t say it’s only going to be “a minute” if it’s going to be literally 1 hour.  Avoid describing something as a “brief” review process when it’s going to be 10 business days.  It’s letting them know the specifics of time and place and people involved more precisely.

Just to be extra clear on one point, we can be open about good things, honest about happy news, clear about positive next steps.  Transparency is not inherently about communicating the negative, but a willingness to have those less-than-positive conversations is where many of us fall short.

If transparency is something important to you and your organization, focus on being more open, honest, and clear with the customer.

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See the Customer’s Journey from Their Perspective- 7/7/26

Posted on July 7, 2026 in Customer Service Tip of the Week Please leave a comment

That customer is face-to-face with you right now, and you are fielding their questions or delivering your service to them.  And oftentimes and understandably, we are so immersed in the moment that we don’t think about what came before or think enough about what comes next.

But in the life of the customer, they have a journey, often an ongoing one with your organization.  So, it helps to understand their perspective, so that you can deliver a better experience, foster a stronger relationship.

Need and Awareness

Let’s start very high-level.  Their journey usually begins with them identifying a need or issue to be addressed, followed by their creating an awareness of your product or your service, or their need reminds them of having heard of your service.

Research and Purchase

Then, they conduct research on the service, or they make an inquiry.  They want to learn more.  That’s when the sales and customer service kick in, and it can lead to an acquisition or a purchase.  This is what most people think of when they think of that customer transaction.

Receipt and Evaluation

Then they receive the product or the service that you deliver.  They are experiencing that product or service and every process/person/policy associated with its delivery, and they’re forming opinions.  They’re going through an evaluation process.

Support…or Not

Then they need support, they need guidance, they need questions answered or issues resolved, and they have to determine or research how to make that happen.

They get that support…or not.  They get that answer from your team…or elsewhere.

Word-of-Mouth and Repurchase

Finally, they decide what that word-of-mouth is going to be.  Will they talk you up positively, be indifferent and not mention your organization at all, or complain to their friends and co-workers?

And that word of mouth – formed from their opinions and experiences – could lead to the potential repurchase of your product.

Understand where you are in this journey, but realize everything that comes before and everything that comes after.  The nature of your encounter with the customer is going to be framed by what happened before, and the experience that the customer and your co-workers have down the road is going to be framed based on the customer’s encounter with you.

See the customer’s journey from their perspective.

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Gaining the Benefits of the Greeter- 6/30/26

Posted on June 30, 2026 in Customer Service Tip of the Week Please leave a comment

Most likely, we’ve all entered some establishment – a retail store, restaurant, or service center – when there is a greeter at the door.  The most famous greeter position is probably the Walmart greeter.  I often thought that my father-in-law would have been a fantastic Walmart greeter, because he just loved people, was very cheery, and he was a never-met-a-stranger type of person.

And when we look at the impact of the greeter, there are many layered benefits.  Let’s focus on the key one – the first impression.  The greeter is the tone setter.  They create the environment for the encounter by simply being welcoming up front, initiating the conversation, letting the customer know that they are seen and heard.

There are ancillary benefits, as well, in terms of people getting their questions answered right off the bat.  The customer receives directions so that it saves them some time.  And customers who may have some unsavory reason for entering the building will realize they are not so inconspicuous, and they may change their mind about what they had planned.

But again, the core benefit is that initial warm welcome.

Maybe we’re not as gregarious as most greeters, but we all have the ability to use our words to welcome someone.  We all can initiate a conversation with someone.  We all can look people in the eye and smile so they feel seen and heard.  We all have the knowledge to answer questions and to direct people, or we likely know a co-worker or a resource that can do that when we don’t have the best answer in the moment.

In other words, we can still gain the benefits of the greeter, by just seeking the customer, engaging the customer, and setting a positive tone for the visit.

Create a great first impression by channeling the greeter inside you.

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