complaint | Customer Service Solutions, Inc. - Page 20

Home  /  Contractors Determine Your Reputation?  /  complaint

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

Finalize the Solution with the 6 Step Checklist - 5/5/26


In last week’s Tip, we showed why and how to Use the 6 Step Checklist before Resolving the Issue.  We noted the importance of taking 15 seconds to mentally walk through the Who, What, When, Where, Why, and How to feel confident that you know what’s needed to fix Read more

Use the 6 Step Checklist before Resolving the Issue - 4/28/26


We talk about trying to resolve the issue right the first time, sharing the technique on how to manage the conversation to get clarity on the real issue, need, or goal, and confirming your understanding before moving forward. But what are you trying to clarify?  What are you trying to Read more

Use the Customer’s Words - 4/21/26


The customer is describing a problem on what they call their “computer.” They mentioned that the “screen” doesn’t “move from one page to the other.” They say that the “website’s name is typed at the top,” and it says sample.com with a “line, and then it says ‘home’ after Read more

Affirming the Customer with Empathy - 4/14/26


We’ve spoken and written about empathy for the 20+ years of these customer service tips, noting empathy as the most important quality any individual can have if they want to be great at customer service.  We’ve shared that - in order to serve our customers most effectively – it’s Read more

•••••

Contractors Determine Your Reputation?

Posted on December 9, 2010 in Business Advice, Education, Sports Please leave a comment

Columbus City Schools are coming under scrutiny recently because of their bus system. Do buses sometimes pickup/drop-off late? Yes, but no K-12 system is perfect.

What has made them come under scrutiny is that the school system apparently doesn’t know how often buses are on time. Why? According to an article on dispatch.com, it’s because the service is outsourced, and the vendor doesn’t supply that information.

While the school tracks complaints (what we call “external” metrics of performance, since the data is collected from an external source – the parent), there are few internal operational metrics (like departure, arrival, on-time performance) reported within the school system.

This is a microcosm of what organizations need to be wary of when they privatize, outsource, or contract out services. Having an outside organization provide a function does not allow a business to abdicate responsibility for the quality, timeliness, or service-level of that function. To the customer, that contractor IS your business.

We’ve worked with many sports organizations, and a common issue for them is the staff who provide security or take tickets or man the concession stations or serve as ushers are rarely employees of the teams, but they often have a huge impact on the customer’s experience.

When you contract out to others, make sure you have metrics in place to measure their performance. Make sure you have processes in place to ensure their quality. Make sure you train them on your customer service standards and philosophies. Make sure you – whenever possible – have service-level agreements which require them to perform to a certain level to get full compensation.

Make sure if the contractor’s performance can determine your reputation, that you’ve done everything possible to ensure that performance is great.

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/


Mediocrity Runs Rampant – How I Made Employees Disappear

Posted on November 5, 2010 in Business Advice, World of Customer Service Please leave a comment

Snap-snap…snap-snap. Think of electrical lines that you’ve heard “snapping.” That was the sound of my computer’s power adapter recently. I looked at the adapter and could see the silver coils unraveling in the cord; then I looked at my computer, and it said it was “hibernating” due to a low battery.

After a few seconds of confusion, I realized that my adapter had died, and my computer was in for an extended nap.

Good on the Phone!

Being Saturday morning, and since I was heading out of town, I didn’t have time to call the manufacturer and have the adapter shipped. So I called a computer “superstore,” and the manager was exceptionally helpful. She had a universal adapter but it didn’t specify that my computer was part of the universe that it would help. So she went on the internet to see if her model would work for my computer. Since she couldn’t find a “yes” or “no” answer, she suggested that I come to the store and she’d do whatever she could to help, even opening up an adapter package and testing it on my computer.

Bad in the Store…

When I entered the store on my way out-of-town, I couldn’t find the section where they keep adapters. So I asked for help and was directed to the right location, but the associate (Marla) didn’t know which – if any – of their adapters would work. So she paged the manager that had helped me on the phone, and Marla went off to another part of the store. Five minutes later, I went in search of the manager and instead found Marla. She took me to the repair center and yelled for someone to help. Joe, the repair technician, came out. Just then, in walked the manager (she had been outside on a break). All three employees huddled around to help. I had brought in my adapter to check versus theirs. The adapters looked alike, but the manager asked if I had my computer and could bring it in to test it. So I said “Sure!”

I’m a Magician – I Made Employees Disappear

I went out to my car and brought in my computer, but all three employees had disappeared. I found Marla again, and she asked if it had worked. I told her that everyone had walked off during the 45 seconds that I was out of the store. Frustrated, Marla said “nobody respects me around here. Joe! He’s back!” And in the repair shop, I heard Joe say “OK.” After a few seconds, Joe slowly began to meander out front. After about a minute of verbal sparring with a co-worker, Joe arrived and opened the adapter case. We plugged it in, booted up my computer, and the computer said that the adapter was not compatible.

“It won’t work,” said Joe. And he turned around and left.

I eventually called the original manufacturer of my computer Sunday and spent 30 minutes on hold only to find out that the parts department didn’t open until Monday. On Monday, I ordered the part, and it arrived at noon Tuesday.

Did you see these universal examples of mediocrity? There is so much they could have done to go from delivering mid-level service to being top-notch.

Identify the differences between good and great, and opt for great.

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/


Don’t Let the Customer’s Bad Attitude Dictate Yours

Posted on September 29, 2010 in Business Advice, World of Customer Service 1 Comment

The customer called the service center, and the telephone answering system picked up.

“Thank you for calling ACME Wireless Systems Inc. If you’re in a really good mood, please press 1. If you’re upset but rational, please press 2. If you’re really irate, please press 3.”

Do you ever get the impression that companies want to deal with happy customers but don’t want to deal with unhappy customers? It’s as if the employees smile if the customer smiles, but if the customer’s unhappy, the employee gets a bad attitude himself.

Let’s look at this from the customer’s perspective. I’m angry, so would I rather talk with somebody who’s angry or somebody who’s in a good mood? I have a better chance of getting my emotional level down if I’m dealing with someone empathetic with my situation, someone on more of an even-keel emotionally, someone who listens and lets me talk about my frustration.

What I don’t like is someone who cuts me off mid-sentence. What I don’t appreciate is someone who doesn’t take responsibility. What drives me crazy is someone who is defensive. What is non-productive is someone who lets their emotions drive their attitude in a service recovery situation like this.

We always say that delivering high-quality customer service can be tough, especially when presented with a complaining customer. But these are the times that separate the best from the rest. These are the situations where employees truly committed to the customer shine, because in the face of a complaint or an irate customer, they still know how to take the customer’s perspective, to try to keep the customer, to try balance the needs and wants of the customer with the needs and wants of the business.

Check your attitude when faced with the complaining customer. Use these situations as times to shine!

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

Check out our new customer service book at http://www.amigreatat.com/


« Previous   1 2 ... 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25   Next »