csweek | Customer Service Solutions, Inc.

The Secret Sauce for Great Customer Service - 3/26/24


I was working with the League Office for a major American sport several years back, and one of the executives asked me to describe our Secret Sauce that helped our clients improve the fan experience and customer retention.  I gave him a sense of what makes us unique and Read more

The Miracle of an Apology - 3/19/24


Unfortunate but true story… The manager basically lost his mind.  He terminated his employee on the spot.  She had told the customer that there was going to be a delay in the shipment.  The employee called up the customer ahead of time to let the customer know what was about Read more

It’s Not About the 5-Minute Wait - 3/12/24


Robert went into his supervisor’s office to update her on a situation at the payment desk.  Robert said that a customer was about fourth or fifth in line, waiting to be served, and the customer was complaining loudly about the wait.  He was there to make a property tax Read more

Lessons from the Greats - 3/5/24


I was recently facilitating a workshop on the customer experience, and I made the point that it’s usually beneficial to look at your personal life for great experiences; identify what really resonates with you in a positive way in order to uncover ideas to improve your own customer service. So, Read more

The Empathy Roadmap - 2/27/24


For some people, empathy comes naturally.  There’s an innate desire to learn about the other person and to sincerely convey that sense of interest and caring.  But for many of us, sometimes it helps to have a communication plan.  It helps to know what to do in order to Read more

“You’re the Boss” - 2/20/24


Terrence is excellent at what he does.  From a technical standpoint, he knows how to keep the facility clean.  He’s the lead custodian, and he knows that keeping things straight does not necessarily mean keeping things sanitary.  He knows what chemicals to use and not to use, how to Read more

Customer Understanding Leads to Relationship Growth - 2/13/24


We’ve worked with educational organizations at all grade levels over the years.  One special and unique characteristic about the staff who work in these organizations is that there’s a clear intent to know about the students as individuals, to focus on them rather than purely focusing on what’s delivered Read more

Define Customer Service Success Differently - 2/6/24


When I’m watching television, listening to the radio, or listening to a podcast, it’s always interesting when the topic moves to the question:  How can you be a success?  The speakers often discuss the process of becoming a success with the assumption that people believe success is defined by Read more

Care Enough to Give Them a Heads Up - 1/30/24


Nothing bad at all might happen.  Every day in the office could seem like every other day.  Sights and sounds and smells might continue to be the same.  But we have a lot of construction going on around our offices, and the building manager knows the type of work Read more

Be Better than AI Customer Service - 1/23/24


There was a recent CBS Sunday Morning Show story called: How artificial intelligence is revamping customer call centers. The journalist described how artificial intelligence is being used in customer service, and he noted the millions of pieces of information that can be processed in a matter of seconds. There are clear Read more

Poll the Kids?

Posted on in Business Advice, Education Please leave a comment

In a recent article on azcentral.com (http://www.azcentral.com/community/phoenix/articles/2010/09/23/20100923glendale-deer-valley-district-poll.html), the Arizona Republic notes how a local school district polled students on such aspects of the school experience as safety, friendship, and the likelihood to graduate.

Our firm conducts these studies for many of our clients as well as providing mystery shopping services at the primary education, community college, and university levels. And while you can argue with some of the methodologies used for delivering the survey, what makes the information in the article particularly interesting is the fact that the survey asked about the student as a person – it asked about their personal feelings.

Think about your customers; when you conduct surveys, you’re often asking about demographics, preferences in products, certain aspects of the customer service you provide or your facilities and processes. But many customers create an affinity for the businesses they patronize based on how that company makes them feel, about how the experience makes them feel.

So why not ask them about their feelings?

One of the last things you want from a customer is apathy; so the best way to identify those that are apathetic is to ask about their feelings. Remember that 2/3rd of lost business is because the customer feels like you don’t care. So if their feelings contribute to their loss, you need to get in the habit of asking about their feelings.

Look at your surveys, and ensure they address how your customers feel about their relationship with your company, how they feel about the experience they have in interacting with your business – the people, processes, facility, and website.

To get a feel for your customer’s true satisfaction, ask how they feel.

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

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