Customer Service Tip of the Day: May 9

Customer Service Tip of the Day: Be a Difference Maker! You do not need a fancy office or title to make a difference in the lives of others. You have the power to decide if you are going to be an average employee, only doing enough to get by, or if you will start each day determined to serve your customers and do more than what is expected of you.

Customer Service Tip of the Day: Tuesday April 19

Customer Service Tip of the Day: Relationship skills are critical to your success! 85% of all employees who lose their jobs do so because they cannot get along with the customer, leader, or co-worker. Only 15% are terminated because they could not do the job. Too bad we finally get good at relationships when it is time to retire.

Customer Service Tip of the Day: Monday, April 18

Customer Service Tip of the Day: A customer does not want to, nor should they have to, understand the structure of your organization in order to do business with you. It is anyone's job who is approached by a customer to get them to the right place. Never say: "It's not my job."

Remember a Name. Make Someone's Day!

I was just watching one of my favorite movies, Pretty Woman. (Don’t laugh) There are a couple of scenes that I wanted to reflect on for a minute. Early in the movie, the hotel manager is finishing a conversation with Edward Lewis (played by Richard Gere) and as Edward turns to walk away the manager mentions that his name is Bernard Thompson. It appears that Edward ignores the manager.

At the end of the movie, there is a scene when Edward is again talking with the hotel manager. Edward asks the manager to return some jewelry for him. The conversation ends with Edward thanking the manager by saying: “Thank you Mr. Thompson.”

You can see the pride in the face of Mr. Thompson. He had thought that the important Mr. Lewis did not know his name, but being called by name made him feel special.

Regardless of who you are and your position in society or within a company, work on remembering the names of people to meet. Calling someone by name is a sign of respect and a great secret to delivering exceptional customer service! Work on it! Develop a method to help you recall someone’s name. You never know when you will make someone’s day by simply calling them by name.

It's the Experience!

We live in a time period when we expect to be entertained at every moment. It starts with our kids having multiple game systems, including portable systems that they can take with them in the car. As adults, we just graduate to more sophisticated toys.

Even eating out can be viewed as a form of entertainment. With limited financial resources, many families are becoming more selective with how they choose a restaurant. Within 15 miles of my house there are over 100 restaurants, providing every possible choice of ethnic food and every brand of fast food. For the most part, the quality of the food and the variety of menu items has improved substantially in the past 10 years.

So what makes a hungry customer choose one restaurant over another? It is all about the experience! Just this past week, I had an example of this concept. Last Friday I was driving between appointments at the noon hour and was looking for a place to grab a quick lunch. A friend of mine is responsible for a large chain of sandwich restaurants. My eyes caught the sign of one of these establishments, so I made a quick turn into the parking lot.

The concept was unique and the food was very tasty. The physical layout of the sandwich shop was clever and the floor, tables, restrooms and counters were clean. Will I go back again? Probably not.

What was missing? It was the overall experience. The leadership and staff at this location need a class on how to engage their customers. The person taking my order did not even look up from the cash resister. The order was written down on a paper bag, so he did not have to interact with me. I know it was busy, but it does not take but a few seconds to welcome each guest and determine if they have any questions. The people making the sandwiches were obviously not having a great time. Not one of them looked up or even smiled. The person at the end of the line called my name when my order was complete. Not once did anyone thank me for my business.

When I see an establishment like this, I immediately question the skill of the manager or owner. It is their responsibility to set the overall tone for the guests and the employees. If the leader in charge is not enjoying what they do, FIND ANOTHER JOB! Life is too short to spend the majority of your waking hours doing something you can’t stand. If you view what you do as just a job, you are missing the boat.

Customers may not put their finger on exactly why they are drawn to one location over another, but it is the overall experience and how they feel when they walk out the door that drives their future choices.

Anyone who interacts with a customer is in the entertainment business.

Learn to put on a good show. Your future depends on it!

Grocery Store Switch!

My wife just walked in the door and said: “I am switching to Albertsons!” There are two grocery stores within 3 miles of our house. A Krogers and an Albertsons.

This was the final straw after countless bad experiences with this particular Krogers location. (We have been to other Krogers stores with a much better outcome.) They are constantly understaffed at the checkout lines, and a management team that does not seem to understand that the number one customer turnoff is a long line.

My wife is preparing an appetizer for our adult Sunday school party tomorrow night. She is making “Ham Balls” and needed a ham finely ground. She approached the man in the meat department at Krogers with the ham and asked if he could grind the meat. He replied by saying he could not because they only have one grinder and it is used for red meats only.

My wife put back the ham and drove across the street to the Albertsons. She was greeted upon entering the store and had several positive encounters with helpful staff on her way to the meat counter. She asked the meat manager if he could grind the ham. They also only have one machine, but his response was very different: “Sure. It will take me a few minutes to clean the machine if you don’t mind waiting.”

What a different response! In an economy where every business should be working hard to keep their customers, it is surprising that the Krogers employee did not seem to care.

We spend over $100 a week on groceries, with the majority of it for the past five years going to Krogers. That is over $5,000 of annual business that this store just lost and the Albertsons picked up, all because of how the two meat managers handled a simple request.

When we first moved to Frisco, the Albertsons was the only close grocery store. They were horrible in customer service! I have noticed a vast improvement in the past year. They are obviously paying attention to their customers and have trained all of their team members to deliver excellent customer service.

Customer Service in a Down Economy

For the past five or more years, most industry segments in the United States have experienced steady growth and a healthy bottom line. While that may be great and we all enjoy the economic stability, it can lead to practices and habits that are not conducive to excellent customer service. When I mention that I work with companies to help improve their customer service, I often receive a list of companies that could use some help.

Having an abundance of customers has created the following attitude: “If the customer is not happy, he or she can leave. We can always replace them with a new customer.” This attitude may not be verbalized, but it creeps into our communication and service delivery practices. As Tom Peters once said, “Customer service is so bad, that if you treat your customers with common, ordinary, garden-variety courtesy you have the lion’s share of any market you want because you will be alone!”

Then it happens!!! We have a slow down in the economy and everything changes. No longer are there more customers than we know what to do with. The power has shifted and the consumer is now in charge and gains an advantage that was missing in the strong economy. Suddenly there are countless companies clamoring to earn their business and convince the prized customer to spend their precious dollars on their company’s product or service. Not only are there fewer paying customers wanting what you sell, but there are more motivated sales people hungry to steal them away. Someone who has been a steady customer will now be presented with better deals and tempting offers to move their business to one of your competitors. Even your loyal customers will be watching what they spend with a new sense of scrutiny.

Economic slowdowns may be painful, but they are actually good for business.

Three things happen when a company is forced to tighten their financial belts:

1. Processes that are not adding value miraculously are no longer needed and are eliminated, or at least trimmed down.

2. Leaders and staff who have not been pulling their weight are eliminated, creating a more effective organization after the dust settles.

3. Employees at all levels start understanding the need to practice excellent customer service and they start listening to the end customer.

The best and most profitable companies figure out how to apply these three concepts during the strong economic times. The remaining 90% of organizations require a little pressure to do what they should have been doing all along. So don’t feel bad if you are in one of those companies that is scrambling to make changes and win the right to continue doing business with your existing customers.

Following are a few steps you can take to improve the way you work with each of your customers.

1. Increase the level and frequency of communication with each customer. Where a call every quarter to check on a regular customer used to be fine, you may want to check in with select customers on a more frequency basis to ensure you are meeting their needs and they are not considering other options.

2. Respond to all customer complaints and issues with a heightened sense of urgency. Understand that your customers are less likely to put up with problems and errors in your service delivery. They now have options and other companies wanting to prove how they can do a better job at meeting their needs.

3. Go after those customers who are currently with your competitor. Look for the gaps in the other company’s service and move quickly to demonstrate how your organization can meet their needs and even save them money.

4. Develop a passion of flawless internal service. During a tight economy, there is no room for internal politics and turf wars. You are in the middle of a battle! All hands should be on deck and supporting each other to increase the level of service provided to the end customer.

Remember, if you are not fully committed to providing the best possible service to your customers, there will be someone who is, and they will be more than happy to take the customer’s money. Don’t fear these times. Seize the opportunity to raise the bar and develop a culture where delivering excellent customer service and assuring customer loyalty are the primary reasons you exist as an organization and even have a job.