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Acting on the Guiding Principles for Great Customer Service - 11/19/24


In last week’s tip, we shared 5 Guiding Principles for Great Customer Service.  This week, let’s address what “taking action” looks like on those key principles.  If last week was about what to do and WHY, this week is about the HOW. Engage with Interest: To engage with interest, proactively Read more

Guiding Principles for Great Customer Service - 11/12/24


It’s hard to know every procedure, every policy, every technique possible to handle every situation correctly.  After all, maybe our procedures are standard, but our customers are not.  Maybe our policies stay pretty consistent, but our customers’ needs and issues, their attitudes and actions can change from customer to Read more

From a Simple Question to an Exceptional Experience - 11/5/24


Phyllis loves her job.  It’s not just because she loves being a customer service representative, not just because she really likes her co-workers, and not just because she enjoys her company.  It’s because she really appreciates her customers, as well. A customer had ordered a register book off the company Read more

Fix One Problem without Creating Another - 10/29/24


If you’ve ever had an issue with your dishwasher, this will sound familiar.  I’ve dealt with so many dishwashers over the years, and they always seem to have some kind of an issue.  Maybe it’s because of the mix of water and technology, but for whatever reason, these never Read more

Delight Your Customers - 10/22/24


Buddy the Bug Man was different.  His company was new, and the only reason why Janet tried him out was that the service she had used for years just wasn’t working.  Whether it was mosquitoes in the yard, ants in the kitchen, or cockroaches flying through on their way Read more

A More Complete Definition of Responsiveness - 10/15/24


I was purchasing something recently that was being custom-developed.  At one point, the company’s employee and I had a good 20 e-mails going back and forth - 10 from each of us.  Unfortunately, I broke my own rule, and I did not pick up the phone after 2 or Read more

Have a Game Plan to Address Their Anxiety - 10/8/24


It seems like we all get deliveries - whether it is UPS, USPS, FedEx, Amazon, the local courier, or all the above.  We order.  They deliver.  Or do they? It’s times like these, when we’re expecting that package, that item that we’re looking forward to or need urgently or are Read more

How Persistence Saved the Day - 10/1/24


Sherrie saw the customer walk into her store holding his cell phone, and Sherrie immediately knew that was William.  She had spoken to William on the phone about an hour ago, he said he would be at Sherrie’s cell phone store in less than an hour, and there he Read more

Notice the Little Changes - 9/24/24


“My, how times have changed.” Yes, times have changed.  As a matter of fact, one of the biggest reasons why an organization’s customer service deteriorates is that times have changed…customers have changed…and the company has not… If we think about customer service delivery today v. decades ago, changes in technology alone Read more

Don’t Hurry…Be Quick - 9/17/24


No, this is not a take off on the Bobby McFerrin song:  Don’t Worry Be Happy. It’s actually a take off on the John Wooden quote:  Be quick, but don’t hurry. When I read Wooden’s book with this title, I liked the concept, and not just because John Wooden was a Read more

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Move on to the Next One – 8/15/23

Posted on August 15, 2023 in Customer Service Tip of the Week Please leave a comment

The ultimate game in professional American football is the Super Bowl.  In this past year’s Super Bowl, James Bradberry of the Philadelphia Eagles was called for a penalty with less than two minutes to go in the game.  The penalty gave the other team a first down; the other team was able to run the clock down until there was almost no time left, and then they kicked the winning field goal.

The penalty was one of those that, technically, was the correct call.  Bradberry briefly grabbed the shirt of a wide receiver, and that’s a penalty.  In a lot of games, in a lot of situations, that penalty is not called.  But at the end of the most important game of the year, Bradberry made a mistake, and he was called on it.

In the lead up to this upcoming season, Bradberry was asked about this play.  He said “A play’s going to happen. Good play. Bad play. You’ve got to move on to the next one.”

Ours is an Imperfect World

The working world that we live in – about customer experience, retaining clients, delivering good solid customer service – is an imperfect world.

And we are imperfect.  Despite our best intentions, our best training, our best skills, and our reading of weekly customer service tips, we make mistakes.

Even though I’m someone who has run a management consulting firm focused exclusively on customer service, client retention, and customer experience for the last 25 years, I make customer service mistakes.  I may make a mistake in how I respond, or maybe I don’t respond timely enough.  Recently, I left someone off the list of invitees for a meeting to debrief on a research project.  We make mistakes, and hopefully we apologize sincerely when we do.

Don’t Stay in the Negative

But like Bradberry, we need to move on.  We can’t get consumed by the mistakes of the past, because then we are allowing ourselves to get mired in mediocrity and negativity.  We need to acknowledge our mistakes, learn from them, and move on.

There will always be opportunities to do better, to improve, to take care of our customers.

So, the next time one of us imperfect people makes a mistake, let’s make sure we’re able to move on.

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Change on the Fly – 5/30/23

Posted on May 30, 2023 in Customer Service Tip of the Week Please leave a comment

Situational service requires some advanced engagement skills.  It involves seeing each situation independent of any others, reading the moment, and changing on the fly to create the best possible customer experience and outcomes.  So, what are some keys to situational service?  Keep these guiding principles in mind:

Start Open-minded: When the customer engages you, avoid assumptions about them and their situation.  Don’t let the first impression cloud what might be the deeper issue or need, the background of the situation, the person themselves.  It’s more effective to start by being open, and then narrow the focus after gathering information; it’s less effective to start with a preconceived notion, and then have to later backtrack or restart the conversation.

Gauge the Emotion: While we focus on words, since that conveys much of the specifics of a situation, the emotions can convey how they feel about the issue or need.  Note in their tone and body language, specifically, how they feel so that you can use that information to determine how to handle the situation.

Uncover the Urgency: Determine whether time is a concern, whether that’s in-the-moment or for the final resolution.  That time consideration will help you to understand their feelings better, but it will also help you to understand whether to respond by reiterating timing and next steps, or to focus more on their feelings and solution options.

Adjust to the Situation: The first 3 guiding principles ensure you get the information you need (the facts, their emotions, and time considerations) to handle the situation most effectively.  Now, adjust.  Settle them down first, addressing any anxiety, anger, confusion, or upset with the right technique for the emotion, or move directly to the issue and solutions if the negative emotions aren’t present.  Be patient if they care more about the conversation and the process, or quickly get to the point if there’s urgency involved.

When you’re engaged with the customer, get the facts, gauge the emotions, and clarify times.  Then focus on providing the best service for the situation.

To excel in service, develop your ability to change on the fly.

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Try an Empathy Exercise – 5/23/23

Posted on May 23, 2023 in Customer Service Tip of the Week Please leave a comment

We often note that empathy is the most important quality to have in order to be great at customer service.  Empathy enables you to view people uniquely.  It helps the customer not to feel like just a number.  And the more we can view people as individuals, the better chance we have of addressing their specific issue, need, or goal.

But what does it mean to view people uniquely?

To address this question, with one education industry client, we created the following exercise.   Without going into too much detail in terms of how we conducted the activity, let’s just say that, as a group, workshop participants filled in these blanks to paint profiles of different students at the college.

I am a _________________ student at this community college.

I have been at this college for _______________ (time).

I’m going to college in order to _________________________.

I enjoy the ______________________ aspect of attending this college.

Outside of classwork, the most frustrating part of being a student is __________________.

I also get confused by processes like ________________ and terms like __________________.

Form the Story

Once the blanks were filled in, stories started to be told.  For example, one student story formed:  I’m a veteran.  I have been at the community college for 6 months, and I’m going to college to start a different career.  I enjoy having affordable education near my home.  However, I am frustrated by miscommunications and difficulties with the advising process.  I got confused about refund policies when I needed to drop a course, and terms like SOP don’t make any sense to me.

Respond based on their Uniqueness

To build your own capacity for empathy, or to illustrate empathy to others, create your own Empathy Exercise.   Come up with similar statements for you and your co-workers to complete.  Fill in each blank, and then discuss the individual.  What makes them unique?  How should we address them, respond to them differently based on who they are, what they enjoy, or what is frustrating or confusing?

The conversations you have in addressing these two questions are some of the most important discussions you can have when trying to build a better understanding of and appreciation for your customers.

To build your ability to view people uniquely, try an Empathy Exercise.

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