expectations | Customer Service Solutions, Inc.

Home  /  Dear Customer, What do you expect? – 8/31/21  /  expectations

A Simple Phrase to Transform Your Customer Feedback Approach - 2/18/25


I went to a restaurant called Big Ed’s (no relation) in Raleigh, NC recently.  It’s basically country cooking with fantastic breakfast options!  On the menu there was a quote that said: If you enjoyed your meal, tell a friend.  If not, please tell us. That was an excellent statement that embodies Read more

What Phones and Football Have in Common - 2/11/25


Congratulations!  You made it through weeks/months of hype for football’s Super Bowl!  You made it through hundreds of pregame shows and podcasts, endless debates on things endlessly inconsequential, 10 hours of pre-game shows on Sunday, what seems like 100 commercials designed specifically for the “Big Game,” and the longest Read more

Create Awareness of Alternatives - 2/4/25


Sandy was hungry, and she was on the move.  Driving between meetings, she saw the restaurant sign and pulled in.  The fast-food restaurant had two drive-thru lanes.  One was for any customer who wanted to place an order on the spot. The other was for mobile orders only.  The Read more

Listen with Your Eyes - 1/28/25


Out of the corner of his eye, Patrick saw the customer enter the lobby.  The customer was carrying a large shoulder bag with several papers in her hand.  The customer was shuffling the papers and looking down; then she stopped, looked up, and saw the staff navigator sitting at Read more

When You’re the Educator, What Should You Teach? - 1/21/25


The best customer service professionals are also excellent educators.  Not only within the organization, but I’m talking specifically about the role they play as educator with their customers.  With all the self-service options that technology provides, customers often have the opportunity to do things on their own, to investigate Read more

Wrap It Up Right: Why Follow-Up Communications WOW Customers - 1/14/25


Dena had some questions about her water bill, so she looked for answers on the utility’s website.  She didn’t find specific answers, and she really didn’t want to get on the phone with somebody at the time and risk staying on hold.  She had lots going on, but she Read more

From Conversation to Connection: Defining Customer Engagement - 1/7/25


Maggie was sitting in the Service Excellence Training class, and the instructor kept talking about staying engaged with the customer.  Proactively engaging the customer.  Being fully engaged in the conversation. After hearing this same phrase (“engage”) used in various ways, Maggie raised her hand and asked a question probably several Read more

Self-empower for the New Year - 12/31/24


Jeff joined the company, in part, because he loved their approach to culture.  Leadership tried to create an empowerment culture.  They tried to develop an environment where, within certain parameters, individual team members could make a decision and feel confident that they would be supported by leadership. The reality was Read more

2024 Holiday Poem - 12/24/24


I sometimes hear it said That things have never been like this before. That challenges are unique, That stresses seem like more.   I sometimes hear it said That we're asked to do much more with less. That workloads are increasing, And we're resource-constrained at best.   And others often say That things are really very good. That they enjoy those Read more

Is Their Poor Planning Your Emergency? - 12/17/24


Have you ever heard the saying:  Your poor planning is not my emergency. I’ve heard it said often – not necessarily directly from one person to another.  More typical is that I hear it from the person having to drop everything and do something immediately because someone else didn’t think Read more

•••••

Dear Customer, What do you expect? – 8/31/21

Posted on August 31, 2021 in Customer Service Tip of the Week Please leave a comment

Studies show that 40% of customer dissatisfaction was because the company didn’t meet the customer’s expectations.  The company overpromised and under delivered, or the company didn’t even do the bare minimum of what the customer expected.

To avoid dissatisfying your customer, meet or exceed their expectation.  Simple, right?  It only gets simple if first you know the customer’s expectation.  So, when you’re interacting with your customer, here are some good questions to ask to uncover your customer’s expectations about the product or service you’re delivering:

  • For WHO, ask: Will you need guidance in setting this up/getting this to work? Reason to Ask:  If you’re providing a service, you’ll identify what they expect in terms of educational support.  Make sure they know what to do with the product or service you’ll provide.  This question is all about them.
  • For WHEN, ask: By when do you need this service? Reason to Ask:  If you’re shipping a product, you want to know when they need it delivered so you don’t provide it later than needed.  This question is about timing.
  • For WHERE, ask: Where would you like this product delivered (or this service performed)? Reason to Ask:  If they want something delivered, you’ll identify where they’d like it delivered, how they’d like it packaged, etc.  Don’t deliver to the wrong location; don’t package the service/product incorrectly.  This question is about location.
  • For HOW, ask: How do you intend to use this? Reason to Ask:  Make sure you understand how they plan to apply your service/product to their need.  This question is about the product’s use or benefit.

 
These questions address the “Who, When, Where, and How” of “What” service is being delivered.

Identify the expectation; deliver the satisfaction.

Signup for FREE Tips!    Contact Us    More Resources for You    Visit Our Home Page


It Matters How They Heard About You – 8/10/21

Posted on August 10, 2021 in Customer Service Tip of the Week Please leave a comment

In the 1,000+ surveys that CSS has conducted over the past 20 years, it’s interesting to read how our clients’ customers heard about them.  This question is typically asked of first-time customers, and it’s especially helpful for those customers because you don’t typically have a lot of information on them, so it’s hard to categorize them, align them with your customer personas, or get a feel for what they expect.

So, it’s great when those first-time customers will answer that question, because how they heard about you matters.  It gives you a strong sense of what they expect.

It tells you what method of communication (website, an advertisement, word-of-mouth, etc.) made an impression in the customer’s mind – a positive enough impression for them to contact your business.

It also helps you to understand what expectation the customer has of the experience they’re about to have with your business.  If it’s a website referral, your site has certain expectations it’s setting about the products you have or what the customer is about to experience.  If it’s a word-of-mouth referral, they have expectations based on a friend who actually experienced your business.  If it’s an ad, it’s an expectation based on the product or event or characteristic that you promoted and what expectation your ad set.

To take this analysis a step further, ask the customer “What about the – ad, friend’s referral, website – brought you in today?”  This will encourage them to tell you more specifically what they expect.  And the more precisely you know the customer’s expectations, the more precisely you can meet and exceed them.

Ask the customer where they heard of your business; ask what brought them to your business.  Then exceed that expectation.

Uncover your first-time customers’ expectations.

Signup for FREE Tips!    Contact Us    More Resources for You    Visit Our Home Page


Social Customer Service, and Customer Expectations

Posted on January 12, 2012 in Business Advice, World of Customer Service Please leave a comment

In the article 20 minutes is too long for Twitter Customer Service, Michael Pace notes that the “@HyattConcierge Twitter response time goal (service level) is 20 minutes.” He then talks about whether that is the right goal – particularly from the customer’s perspective. Mr. Pace offers several standards based on the type of social media that customers are utilizing – interesting data, so check out the article.

So this begs several questions for your business – whether or not you’re in the Twitter world. What expectations do you have for the timeliness of responsiveness to customers? How do your organization’s expectations match up with the customer’s expectations? How do you find out your customer’s expectations? How do you share your organization’s expectations with your employees? How do you address your processes and systems to help employees meet those expectations? How do you measure expectations vs. reality? Finally, how do you communicate those expectations to customers so their expectations are more realistic?

This is a lot about expectations, but remember that studies have shown that 40% of customer dissatisfaction is because the company didn’t meet customer expectations. Maybe they overpromised, or they just didn’t do the bare minimum of what a customer would expect.

So get with the customer service and marketing leaders at your business, and talk about customer expectations. What is realistic? How do we communicate realism in a positive manner? What needs to be improved? How do we improve? How do we become GREAT?

There’s a lot that businesses try to do every day to improve customer service – but those efforts need to include a clear focus and strategy around setting, meeting, and striving to exceed customer expectations.

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

Listen to our latest podcast episode of “Stepping Up Service” on The MESH Network at http://themesh.tv/stepping-up-service/

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