Business Advice | Customer Service Solutions, Inc. - Page 75

Home  /  Fearing the Feds…in Customer Service  /  Business Advice

Complement with a Compliment - 9/9/25


We perform many tasks for our customers every day, and when we’re done with a step in the process, oftentimes we will tell the customer what’s been done.  But if we want to create more of a WOW experience, if we want to make the customer feel a little Read more

When Patience Begets Patience - 9/2/25


Jennifer, the server, walked toward the couple in the restaurant.  The customers had been seated for a minute or two, and they noticed the server was walking briskly toward their table.  Jennifer recognized the couple she was about to serve, because they had been in the previous week. Since the Read more

Address the Expectations that Were Set - 8/26/25


Before the caller ever got to Marco – the customer service representative, the customer had been working with the company for months.  They had read the marketing brochures, had a conversation with a sales rep, reviewed the new customer information on the website, and read all the information e-mailed Read more

When Technology Fails the Customer - 8/19/25


Technology is a wonderful thing…until it isn’t.  The website is down, the mobile app won’t work, the system keeps kicking them out of their account, or they received a spoofing phone call supposedly from your department. If you’ve ever been manning the phones or managing the department inbox, you know Read more

The Misunderstood Physician - 8/12/25


I was speaking with one of my personal physicians years ago, and when we were talking about my work – particularly customer satisfaction research - he started talking about online physician ratings.  He lamented that a few low ratings were dinging his overall score.  Then he shared that the Read more

Uncover Silent Concerns - 8/5/25


One of the customer service statistics we have quoted many times over the years is:  For every complaint you do hear, there could be 26 other customer issues that you don’t hear. And when we bring up that statistic, we bring it up because we want to make sure companies Read more

Talk Yourself Up to Take Down Their Anxiety - 7/29/25


I believe that most customer service people are pretty humble, so I’m not asking you to lose your humility.  But I do have one ask of you… When that customer is anxious or nervous, when they fear the future because the future is unknown or it could be laced with Read more

Use Little Acts to Make a Big Impact - 7/22/25


A WOW Experience is not always one instance, one act that blows away the customer.  It’s not always an over-the-top-the-employee-saved-the-day act of brilliance.  Sometimes a WOW is the sum total of a series of little things that others don’t do – those actions that differentiate you from others.  The Read more

Avoid Some Stress by Addressing Issues Quickly - 7/15/25


It’s good customer service to resolve issues quickly.  The customer sees the light at the end of the tunnel.  They more quickly bring their anxiety and stress, their negative emotions down.  And they more quickly get to a solution. But this tip is not about them.  This tip is about Read more

Better Customer Service through Better Teamwork - 7/8/25


We spend so much time talking about what great customer service looks like in those 1-on-1 Moments of Truth, that we often neglect to discuss what goes on inside the company that leads to those great moments.  We’ve talked about customer handoffs within an organization, but what does a Read more

•••••

Fearing the Feds…in Customer Service

Posted on March 30, 2011 in Business Advice, World of Customer Service Please leave a comment

Let’s keep the government off our backs! That’s the upshot of the article in CIO.com that addressed the mantra of Australian private sector industries struggling to deliver good customer service.

One of the telecommunications executives has heard rumblings from government leaders which suggest that the government is considering mandating that telecoms and ISPs start delivering a certain level or type of customer service. His solution is to get the private sector companies to work together toward improving customer service and reducing complaints – before the government forces them to do so.

Think about your business – imagine if your bank, your hospital, your shop, your university were to get federally mandated guidelines that addressed how or at what level you must deliver customer service.

A nightmare?

Yes, but it’s already happening. Hospitals, for example, will begin to have reimbursement from the Federal Government adjusted based on patient satisfaction scores in the U.S. including the patient’s assessment of their customer service.

The problem with a government mandate is that the business loses control over priorities or actions; the business gains an administrative burden; the business now has an 800-pound gorilla helping to manage it – the Federal Government.

Companies wouldn’t have to worry so much about government intervention if they took the time to measure the link between customer satisfaction, loyalty, word-of-mouth, repeat business, etc. and organizational profits. They wouldn’t be concerned with governmental edicts if they knew what percentage of this year’s revenue came from last year’s customers. They wouldn’t fear the repercussions of the government if they put a dollar value on the cost of the repercussions of their own upset or angry customers.

Put a dollar figure on the value of your customer. Let that number – not the government – be your incentive to improve customer service.

Read our New Book – “Ask Yourself…Am I GREAT at Customer Service?” http://www.amigreatat.com/

Interested in improving your company’s customer service? See more at our new website! http://www.cssamerica.com/


How Many Customers Did You Lose Today?

Posted on March 24, 2011 in Business Advice 1 Comment

They’re walking out the door, never to return.

According to a recent study conducted of 22,000 consumers, 22% of customers will stop buying from you because of a bad experience. Some of the top reasons for the customer exits included 34% leaving because of interacting with a rude or disinterested employee. When you compare that to the statistic we’ve quoted often during the years (that 68% of lost business was due to the fact that the customer perceives the organization to be indifferent), then you can surmise that approximately half of that perception of indifference comes from employees just being blatantly rude or seeming like they’re disinterested.

We’re talking about customer service basics, which too many organizations don’t understand. They think it’s all about the product or the price or the design of the shop or the website, but so much of what drives customers away is about the employee – how they’re perceived, whether they appear engaged, whether they use the right tone and body language, whether they talk about you and your needs or themselves and their personal issues. So much of customer retention comes down to hiring and training, motivating and rewarding, challenging staff to be great and holding them accountable to your standards.

Look at your organization, asking yourself these basic questions:

· When hiring staff, do we test/gauge an applicant’s ability to communicate effectively (orally and in written word)?

· Do we assess how prospective employees come across with their tone and body language?

· Do we have basic customer service standards, those expectations of the bare minimum of what we expect in terms of how they’ll treat the customer?

· Do we train them (continuously) on customer service standards, skills, principles, and techniques?

· Do we monitor performance, rewarding and recognizing excellence, and holding accountable when standards are not met?

· Do our leaders model what we expect of staff?

Limit the number of customers you lose because you answered “No” to these questions.

Read our New Book – “Ask Yourself…Am I GREAT at Customer Service?” http://www.amigreatat.com/

Interested in improving your company’s customer service? See more at our new website! http://www.cssamerica.com/


Quick Customer Service Technique Tips

Posted on March 21, 2011 in Business Advice Please leave a comment

Here are some quick hits for anyone in customer service…

  • To be great a customer service, you have to WANT to be great at customer service. Few people in history have been great without trying, practicing, improving, without WANTING to be great.
  • Did Michael Jordan just want to shoot hoops, or did he want to be great?
  • Did Dale Earnhardt just want to drive, or did he want to win races?
  • Did Abe Lincoln just want to manage, or did he want to lead this country to be better than it was?
  • Did Walt Disney just want to draw, or did he want to entertain in bigger, better, more personalized ways?

So to be great at customer service, make sure you’ve at least mastered these basics as a starting point:

  • Always answer the phone stating your department/organization, your name, and asking a question to start the conversation. A professional greeting should take less than 2 seconds.
  • When a customer is complaining, let them vent, empathize, and apologize or at least say “I’m sorry that happened to you…”
  • When closing a typical conversation, thank them for their business, their question, their inquiry, sharing their concern. Be memorable – in a positive way.
  • Be aware of your tone of voice on the phone – 86% of people judge you on the phone by your voice, not what you say.
  • Be aware of your body language and gestures when you’re face-to-face – 55% of people judge your body language, not your tone or what you say when you’re face-to-face.
  • Read the other person; are they anxious, angry, impatient, happy, upset? Tailor your interaction to address their emotion.
  • View your co-workers as customers. Even if you don’t interact with the consumer, the information or service you provide to your co-worker, the timeliness and attitude with which you provide the information or service – they impact your co-worker’s ability to serve that consumer.

These are a few quick tips to start your week.

Have a great one!

Read our New Book – “Ask Yourself…Am I GREAT at Customer Service?” http://www.amigreatat.com/

Interested in improving your company’s customer service? See more at our new website! http://www.cssamerica.com/


« Previous   1 2 ... 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 ... 109 110   Next »