Customer Service Tip of the Week

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How Better Customer Service is Better for You - 8/18/26


Oftentimes, we have employees in training or workshops who really want to understand what’s in it for them to deliver better customer service.  How does the employee benefit from a better customer experience? Noted below are 5 different aspects of a great experience desired by the customer.  What if... The customer Read more

Manage New Customer Expectations - 8/11/26


The fan had never been to a motorsports event before, but they had been to concerts.  They had been to big conferences.  At those other events, they could park right next to the venue, many of the activities were indoors, and weather was a non-issue.  So, they were not Read more

Complement Empathy with Action - 8/4/26


A man falls into a hole, and he can’t get out.  He starts yelling for help, and a doctor walks by and looks down the hole.  The man in the hole yells to the doctor “Please help me.  I’ve fallen into this hole!”  And the doctor takes out a Read more

My 8-Minute Visit at the DMV- 7/28/26


I needed to get a Real ID, which in North Carolina facilitates airline travel and other identity verifications.  My wife suggested I go to one particular DMV that was a LONG way away from home, but where she had experienced great customer service.  I was lucky to find an Read more

When They Might Walk Out the Door…Permanently- 7/21/26


Have you ever had one of those conversations with the customer where they literally tell you they’re about to stop doing business with your company?  This is it.  They may bring up a competitor or found another way to get their need met, or they are just leaving. When we Read more

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

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Be a Good Teammate – 1/3/17

Posted on January 3, 2017 in Customer Service Tip of the Week Please leave a comment


For few people in customer service, the customer experience always and solely is dependent on just them. More typical is for employees to rely on I.T. to keep the systems up and running. Staff rely on co-workers to offer suggestions and strategies to help inform decision-making. Oftentimes, staff have to work together to resolve issues or to deliver on a customer need.

In short, we’re teammates, and we need to be good or great teammates. The better we work together, the more efficient is the organization, the more harmonious are our internal relationships, and – oh by the way – the more satisfied are our customers.

But what does it mean to be a good teammate?

One strong definition to consider is this: A good teammate makes others around them better.

And how is that done? Think about football players trying to motivate each other to make a comeback; think about community members working together to build a home for those in need; think about nurses, doctors, and aides working in a hospital to care for a patient.

Good teammates have a sense of the psyche of their co-workers. Who needs encouragement? Who needs a gentle boot to the fanny (figuratively speaking, of course)? Who needs to be more self-aware? Who needs to be asked for their input?

Good teammates enable the success of others. Reply quickly to requests for help. Give clear, specific, documented communications. Do your part of the job by the deadline, and communicate it’s done.

Good teammates don’t intentionally put co-workers in a bad spot. Share information that may help the other. Don’t aggravate a customer that might complain to one of your co-workers. Do things right the first time with customers so co-workers don’t have to clean up your mess.

For 2017, think about how to be a good teammate.

Make others around you better.

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Turn it Off – 12/27/16

Posted on December 27, 2016 in Customer Service Tip of the Week Please leave a comment


Prior to starting Customer Service Solutions, Inc., I worked as an internal consultant in a large urban hospital. To help the leadership quickly gauge overall performance of individual departments and create a focus on key metrics for individual department heads, my team was charged with creating “Excellence Reports.” These were brief reports which highlighted the 1-3 most important metrics for each department.

For the first 12-18 months, my team compiled the metrics and created reports, and the reports fostered great dialogue with department heads about how to use the information, the causes of downward trends, and how to best share the information.

Then for about a 2-month stretch, it was crickets. I received no questions or feedback from any department heads. So I went to my COO, told him the situation, and asked what he’d suggest. I thought he’d recommend creative ways to re-engage the managers, to reconfigure the reports, or to adjust my communications.

Instead, the COO said “Turn it off.”

“What?”, I replied. He said “Turn it off. If they start calling and asking where the Excellence Reports are and are wanting the data, then you can inquire about how it’s being used, it’s value, etc.”

So I turned them off. One month passed – no contact from managers. Two months passed – no contact from managers. The crickets continued.

Sometimes we start something in work that has great purpose and value, but if we’ve been holding that meeting, sending that memo, creating that report for years, at some point we have to question if it’s still of value to others, if it’s still worth my time to produce, if it really helps me to better serve my customers.

If not, then consider turning it off. It could save everyone time and release at least one of the many things you’re responsible for in the new year.

Once in a while consider turning it off.

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2016 Holiday Poem – 12/20/16

Posted on December 20, 2016 in Customer Service Tip of the Week Please leave a comment

There are a thousand things to consider, a thousand things to do
And as we get near year-end, our focus should be just a few.

Just like the thanks at Thanksgiving that we all seem to share
Our priorities should be on the who, definitely not on the where.

We travel and visit; we shop and we wrap.
We rush over there, and we run to buy that.

But the who of the that and the who that is there,
Is the what’s most important at this time of year.

Please take time to refresh yourself in the presence of those
Who love you and care for you in the way that you choose.

For in the coming year, we’ll be asked to serve others
So we need time to rest and be cared for by brothers (and mothers).

Enjoy your time away, let the full mind settle to dust
May your holidays bring great joy and rest with those whom you trust.

Hoping you rest, recreate, and get renewed and inspired during a happy holiday!

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