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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

Energy v. Apathy - 4/22/25


I asked a couple friends who are much more scientifically-oriented the question: What is energy?  I didn’t mean E=MC2.  I meant physiologically, what is energy? They described a lot of things that sounded really good, yet far too advanced for my non-medical mind. Part of the reason why energy is of Read more

Prep Enough to Personalize - 4/15/25


Everybody loves Howie.  He is an account rep for the local air conditioning and heating company.  When I say Everybody loves Howie, I’m definitely talking about the customers.  His co-workers love him too, but customers are especially fond of him.  They seem to really enjoy their conversations with him, Read more

Get Your Customers to Brag, Not Bolt - 4/8/25


Here are two customer retention concepts that we discuss with some sports clients: BIRG and CORF.  BIRG is Basking In Reflected Glory.  CORF is Cutting Off Reflected Failure. You want BIRG.  You want the customers feeling so good about your organization that they want to be a part of your Read more

Narrow Your Focus to Seek Excellence - 4/1/25


You’ve probably heard companies use phrases such as: “We want to go from being good to great.”  Maybe they’ve said: “We strive for perfection, and although we’ll never reach perfection, maybe we can achieve excellence along the way.” These organizations find some kind of a catch phrase or slogan, but Read more

Avoid the Unfriendly Ghost - 3/25/25


Last week we talked about the qualities of “PERKI Customer Service,” essentially what attitudes and actions are characteristics of those who provide great customer service.  This week, let’s take the opposite approach.  What are some of the mistakes that people make?  Maybe these are mistakes of omission or commission; Read more

PERKI Customer Service - 3/18/25


After having worked on hundreds of projects over the years with thousands of thousands of individuals, some things become pretty clear. There are certain traits held by people who are great in customer service.  Look at this list, and do a self-assessment.  Which apply to you? Positive and Patient Do you Read more

It Helps to Downshift - 3/11/25


One of the first tips I heard when I was learning how to drive related to what to do when the brakes fail - downshift.  Shifting into a lower gear can slow down a moving vehicle.  I would explain this in technical terms to you, but considering I’m not Read more

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Higher Ed – All About Customer Service for Student Success?

Posted on October 5, 2016 in Business Advice, Education, World of Customer Service Please leave a comment

blog-10-5-16I was presenting results of mystery shopping research years ago to a Higher Ed client.  There were about 150 people in the room, and in the middle of the presentation, two professors stood up on opposite sides of the auditorium and starting yelling at each other.  They were arguing over whether students should be viewed as customers.

Without rehashing the details of that conversation 10+ years ago, let’s juxtapose that visual to the visual of Universities looking at customer service as a key to Student Success.

The transition is starting to happen – even in Higher Ed.

In the article Customer Service May Be A Key Ingredient To Increasing Successes And College Rankings Without Increasing Costs, the author highlights all the many initiatives that colleges and universities have underway to maximize student retention, graduation, and other measures of Student Success.

She states “Many schools are creating infrastructures that consider its students as customers; it wants its students to feel that the University is working for them rather than against them. This manifests itself in how students are treated in all aspects of their interactions with their university. It includes attention to course scheduling, ease of registering for courses, early provision of financial aid packages, etc. They want to make sure that students have a good experience.“

She offers as an example “Too often, classes are scheduled for the convenience of the faculty rather than the student resulting in most courses being scheduled between 10 and 4 Monday through Thursday resulting in conflicts for students when many of their classes are scheduled at the same time.“

The author highlights a University that has hired an executive to oversee the student experience strategy and to develop metrics to gauge performance.

Just as with any organization/business, it’s not all about the Education or the Price that keeps the student in school or facilitates their graduation.  Sometimes it’s conveying to the student that they’re valued, and customer service in the development of organizational strategies and the 1-on-1 Moments of Truth where those strategies are implemented can be the difference between a student feeling valued or looking elsewhere.

Use customer service strategies and techniques to show you value the student.

Would you like to learn about how CSS helps Education-industry organizations succeed?  Visit http://cssamerica.com/education-industry/


Superintendent Promotes Super Customer Service

Posted on January 22, 2016 in Education Please leave a comment

Blog 1-22-16Students are not customers.  Parents are not customers.  Vendors are not customers.  Co-workers are not customers.

I hear these statements all the time from people in Education who don’t like the concept of customer service – “we’re educators, not customer service reps!”

While it’s true that many in Education are educators, this lack of willingness to embrace the concept of customer service is like a roadblock to a healthy culture internally and respectful and responsive relationships with those not employed by the school system.

In the article Expert: Better customer service one answer to district’s out-enrollment, Newport Independent Schools Superintendent Kelly Middleton talks about the importance of customer service.  He’s in a district with another public school district and a private school nearby – he’s in competition.  In understanding that competitive concept, he looks for how his district can differentiate itself from others – and part of that difference-making equation comes down to customer service.

When Middleton offers examples of customer service, he uses examples of empathy (using the sporks to eat when he’s in the cafeteria with the children), having great communicators assigned with more customer-facing responsibilities (putting the right people in the right positions), and making home visits (going to the child’s home to learn more about them and develop relationships with their family).

Don’t let the term “customer service” keep your organization from serving others.

Interested in improving your customer experience?  Visit the Customer Service Solutions website.


For School Districts, the “Nebulous” is Important

Posted on April 20, 2015 in Business Advice, Education Please leave a comment

Blog 4-20-15Parent satisfaction and student satisfaction are easily measured. The employment rate of high school graduates and the percentage of graduates moving to college are also easily gauged. The attendance patterns of students and ACT scores are both measurable.

But in the survey results for Springfield Public Schools, there was something overall that was highly important…and highly nebulous.

In a survey of students, employees, parents, and community members, the third most important “measure” of school success was “Communication, collaboration and critical thinking.” This attribute was only less important to respondents than “Highly qualified teachers” and “Employment rate.”

This is important, because when we think of outcomes, we think of graduation, employment, and college entry. But to the stakeholders in this school system, the most important “causes” of these “outcomes” or “effects” were teachers, communication, collaboration, and critical thinking.

When many districts and other educational organizations work to improve student success, they work on the academic rigor, the testing, raising reading or math proficiency, and putting the right curriculums and programs in place.

But people make those approaches work, and what characteristics of the people and the organization make them work? Their communication, collaboration, and critical thinking make them work.

Whenever you launch an initiative to improve performance in your organization, don’t just create the perfect program. Ensure that the people are communicating, collaborating, and asking the right questions to make that initiative a success.

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

Learn about our CSS Education services at: http://cssamerica.com/education-industry


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