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Use AI to Improve Your Performance - 7/23/24


Many companies are integrating Artificial Intelligence (AI) into some aspect of their business.  This could greatly change how they operate, how they communicate with customers. This AI wave reminds me of a story from 20+ years ago when a stock brokerage firm launched a new website that greatly enhanced the Read more

The New Burger Experience - 7/16/24


Floyd loves a good hamburger. Any chance he gets to try a new spin on an old standby, he takes it. Recently, a burger joint opened near his house, and Floyd was very excited! It was owned by and named for a world-renowned chef, so it had to be Read more

Boost Customer Happiness - 7/9/24


There’s a cooking show that a friend of mine watches, and the premise is all about reverse engineering food.  They may take a Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup, analyze it, and determine the ingredients just by tasting it.  Then they figure out a recipe.  The cook will try to make Read more

Brainstorm to Better Yourself - 7/2/24


I’ve led enough sessions with clients on continuous improvement topics to have solid experience on how to lead ideation exercises, brainstorming to develop new ideas.  Oftentimes these sessions start with the right question; the first answers may not be the ultimate solution, but they can serve as a jumping Read more

The Power of the Pause - 6/25/24


When I’m facilitating a meeting, and it feels like it’s going off-track or the discussion is going a little longer than it should, I may say something like “let me pause the conversation so that…” or “let’s pause just for a minute and consider…” I don’t like the word STOP. Read more

Handle Interruptions Heroically - 6/18/24


In the middle of a project, Jimbo, the customer service team member, had to stop what he was doing because he received an e-mail from a customer complaining about their experience at a recent event. Later that day, Jimbo was asked by his boss to put everything on hold for Read more

From Employees to Teammates: The Shift - 6/11/24


Be a great teammate. Be a good team player. We’re all part of the team. We’re no longer employees, we’re team members! The phrase “Team” is used in describing co-workers so much more than it was used years ago.  Then, we would be talking about employees, talking about staff, talking Read more

Nurture New Relationships - 6/4/24


Freddie was a new business owner in town.  He was launching a franchise, had acquired some funding from a local bank, and was in search of staff who cared about customer service. All the while, he was in the process of renovating a storefront for his business, so he was Read more

There’s Positivity in Patience - 5/28/24


The employee at the financial services firm was working with a new client on a relatively simple loan.  The documentation was about as clear as it could get to the employee, but the customer had lots of questions.  The employee calmly, clearly, and specifically answered each question.  The meeting Read more

The Goal – A Great Experience - 5/21/24


The following is a narrative of a great experience (people, process, service, facility) at a minor league sporting event – key points that could apply to any business are in bold… Mark and I pulled into the parking lot, excited about the game.  The Slapshots had been on a roll Read more

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Cloud and Customer Retention

Posted on October 17, 2012 in Business Advice, World of Customer Service Please leave a comment

Customer retention becomes a hotter topic every time the economy tanks. Most recently we noted in the early 2000s and starting in early 2009 that businesses were talking more about customer service, loyalty, and retention. That focus increased because the backlog of customers and the levels of disposable income greatly decrease in recessions, so the demand for products/services generally decreases.

As demand decreases, so does either volume or pricing, and thus begins the pinch on profitability. So organizations begin to realize something they forgot – that customer retention initiatives generally provide ROI multiple times that of acquisition initiatives, and to maximize profit, they have to redirect marketing dollars to retention.

With the advent of cloud computing, a new twist on customer retention can be taken. The cloud enables businesses to house the client’s data – using the cloud to hold and backup information so the client doesn’t have that responsibility. But to truly understand how the cloud really enables customer retention to grow, refer back to the 1990s book “The Discipline of Market Leaders.” In that book, the authors note that industry-leading companies typically master one of three key disciplines, Product Leadership, Operational Excellence, or Customer Intimacy.

Customer Intimacy focuses on generating loyalty by knowing your customers so well, having relationships so strong that your customers will stick with you. But don’t view “customer relationships” as some “soft” relationship, and this is where the cloud comes in. Build loyalty by having your products and services become vital to the day-to-day operations of your clients. Build loyalty by becoming integrated with your customers. Build loyalty by using the cloud, cloud computing in particular, or access to (or storage/backup of) client data to fill a need for your client.

To create more loyal clients and build your customer retention, find ways to use the cloud to get your clients housing their data on your systems. Use the Cloud for Customer Retention.

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/


What’s the Page?

Posted on March 16, 2011 in Business Advice Please leave a comment

Who’s on the same page in your organization? Who’s not? Let’s start with this question.

What is “the page?”

Most organizations try to create a certain culture. “We’re an entrepreneurial organization!” or “We’re leading-edge innovators.” or “We’re all about quality.” or “We’re about empowering employees.”

All that’s well and good, but what’s the point? You’re entrepreneurial to do what? Your being innovative why? You’re about quality for what reason? You’re empowering employees to accomplish what?

You’re trying to create a certain culture or image or mindset or reputation, but don’t create those things for the sake of creating them. Start with defining the goal, the Vision, the purpose, the Mission – the “page.”

Maybe being entrepreneurial isn’t the best thing if you need operational excellence to compete. Maybe being leading-edge isn’t the best thing if your customers are risk-averse. Maybe quality being the top priority requires your cost per unit to rise above competitors. And maybe empowering employees isn’t the best thing if your company is poor at defining parameters for decision-making, holding others accountable, and rewarding risk.

I’m not saying these characteristics of culture aren’t important. I’m saying “don’t get the cart before the horse.”

Know who you want to become and where you want to go. Only then should you identify the culture you need to get there.

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/