Really living service
Des Dearlove & Stuart Crainer
Marc Silvester and Mohi Ahmed of Fujitsu map talk about a new approach to service which they anticipate as being as powerful in the service world as Toyota's has been in manufacturing.
Make your customer service authentic and fast
Dan Bobinski
Training in customer service doesn't require much money. It's mostly about instilling a service mindset throughout the organization. Such a mindset reaps great rewards, yet time and again we see companies do badly and even fail because of poor customer service.
Customers: love 'em or lose 'em
Dan Bobinski
Do you ever wonder how many customers your business may have lost due to customer service blunders? Statistics show that after only two negative incidents at any place of business, people are likely to shop elsewhere – which makes customer satisfaction a more important goal than ever.
Customer service, or disservice?
Dan Bobinski
When was the last time you approached your business as if you were a brand new customer? What would your customers say about how you greet them, how you treat them, and how you talk about/treat your co-workers?
10 questions to ask your customers
Andy Hanselman
Lots of organisations invest a lot of time and money in getting customer feedback. But much of this time and money is wasted because they either ask the wrong questions or ignore the answers. So here are 10 questions that can't be ignored.
How to lose a customer in two steps or less
Dan Bobinski
When our shopping experience is negative, statistics show it takes only two such incidents and we're likely to shop elsewhere. That's not a lot of wiggle room. Think of it as 'two strikes and you're out.'
Seven characteristics of remarkable businesses
Andy Hanselman
What makes a business remarkable? What gets people talking about it and recommending it to others? The simple answer is that they are dramatically and demonstrably different.
10 characteristics of customer-focused businesses
Andy Hanselman
Customer-focused organisations are dramatically and demonstrably different from their competitors. They don’t just meet customer expectations, they consistently try to exceed them in everything they do.
What every company should learn from United Airlines
Rod Collins
In a hyper-connected world, everyone in an organization should remember they work for their customers, not their bosses. Companies never go out of business because they lose their bosses. They only disappear when they lose their customers.
Your voice and your identity
Janet Howd
Technology has made it possible to identify anyone by their unique voice pattern within about three seconds. That has some interesting implications - for good and for ill.
Four takeaways to improve your customer relationships
Andy Hanselman
How do you measure up when it comes to customer focus? Do you find, attract and keep the customers that you want? Do you maximise the opportunities and the profits that they can deliver? Here are some takeaways to help you do just that.
10 ways to maximise your customer relationships
Andy Hanselman
Maximising customer relationships means proactively developing relationships that give the best to, and get the best from, the customers you want. Here are 10 key ways you can go about doing that.
Forget CRM, think MCR
Andy Hanselman
Maximizing your customer relationships - MCR - has nothing to do with fancy CRM systems and everything to do with giving the best to, and getting the best from, the customers you want.
Are you and your business thinking in 3D?
Andy Hanselman
Businesses today face a long list of challenges. But some aren’t just surviving, they’re thriving. And they're doing that by thinking in 3D - by being dramatically and demonstrably different from their competitors.
The ABC of great customer experiences
Andy Hanselman
In the A-Z of great customer experiences, the letter ‘C’ obviously doesn’t stand for ‘Comcast’. Every business needs to think about the letter ‘Q’. It stands for ‘queues’ and for ‘question’ – this question. What's it like to be a customer of your business?
10 Ds of customer differentiation
Andy Hanselman
We're often told to segment our markets, but how? By size, age, sector, location? Here's a different way to look at your potential and actual customers to get you thinking about the sort of customers you want – and the ones you don't.
Don't treat your customers the way you want to be treated
David Livermore
Yes. You heard us right. Because 'customer service' can mean different things to different people. So what might seem like good customer service when viewed from one cultural perspective can actually be harmful in another.
How storytelling creates a connected workforce
Andrew Thorp
Encouraging employees to share their experiences and insights connects an organisation to itself and to its customers, and it is something that should lie at the heart of every organisation's communication policy.
What's culture - and what's yours?
Andy Hanselman
Customer experiences don't happen by chance. Often they're a reflection of the culture of a business - good or bad. But because culture is all about the behaviours that people demonstrate, it can be one of the hardest elements of management to get right.
Today's profits come from being nice
Peter Shankman
So long, hard-ass CEOs! If you hadn't noticed, the era of Gordon Gekko and 'greed is good' is over. Today's profits come from being nice. And that's not hard – all it means is revamping your customer service to be one level above horrible.
Why you need an empty chair at important meetings
David Livermore
Amazon founder, Jeff Bezos, frequently leaves one seat empty at the company's most important meetings. It's there to remind his fellow executives about the most important person in the room - the customer.
The Applebee's debacle
Dan Bobinski
This past week a server was fired from Applebee's for violating the company's social media policy. Since then, a firestorm has erupted, with tens of thousands of people saying they won't eat at Applebee's anymore unless the company rehires the server. Here's my take on the situation.
Thoughts on first impressions
Dan Bobinski
In the past, whenever I've returned to the United States after travelling abroad, I've always been glad to get home. But this year, for the first time in my life, the way I've seen U.S. airport employees treat the public has made me embarrassed for America.
Don't disappoint your online customers
Andy Hanselman
With the inexorable rise of social media has come a headache for businesses. When customers talk about you online, they expect a response. Fail to meet these expectations and they will be disappointed – a disappointment that can quickly turn to outright disaffection.
Leadership and customer loyalty
Duane Dike
In customer-facing organizations where front-line staff can make or break your reputation, having the right leadership from the top down is fundamental.
What you say. What your customers think
Andy Hanselman
Have you ever stopped to think what glib scripted responses to customer enquiries say about your business? Perhaps you should try waiting in your own queues or dealing with your own call centre.
The bold employee experience
Shaun Smith
If you want to deliver a great customer experience you must first create an engaging employee experience. And what what motivates employees is feeling connected to the brand promise.
Customer strategy and the art of listening
Robert Heller
The mantra that 'the customer is King' is mouthed by senior managers in every industry. True in theory, it is an ignoble lie in most companies, because executives prefer their ivory towers to the store floor.
The ingredients of customer delight
Andy Hanselman
In truly customer-focused organisations, 'customer delight' is an integral part of the culture. It's just the way things are done. And whatever your industry or sector, there are some common ingredients that can help you achieve it.
Recent Podcasts
More on Customer Service
How powerful are your customers?
Bob Selden
For too long, customers have taken a back seat to investors. But are they now making their voices heard? Three recent news stories suggest to me that they are.
Competitive advantage and UBER culture
Andy Hanselman
In real customer-focused businesses, 'culture' is integral to competitive advantage becuase it is the thing that gives customers a reason to come back and to tell others.
Why customer focus is overrated
Martin Koschat
It's simply not true that an organization has to be customer-centric to be successful. In fact, many companies are successful with a minimal amount of customer focus and customer engagement.
Dealing with disappointment
Andy Hanselman
One sign of good customer service is how an organisation deals with customer disappointment. In fact, successful companies go out and look for complaints because they know that the easier they are to complain to, the more customer-focussed they are likely to be.
Plan a bit of spontaneity
Andy Hanselman
Planned spontaneity is a great way for any organisation to enhance the customer experience. Not just that, it's also a great way of engaging your people in helping demonstrate to your customers that you do actually care.
RIP the 4Ps
Andy Hanselman
Traditional marketing theory has for years been based on a fundamental principle known as the 4Ps. But it's time to forget about them. The original 4 Ps are Passe, Past it, kaPut and Pointless. Instead, I offer you a new set of P's for the age of customer control.
Give, give, give
Andy Hanselman
What could you give your customers or colleagues this Christmas? I'm not talking about discounts or donations, but things that won't cost you anything but still add real value to others.
The £15 billion black hole
Andy Hanselman
Poor customer service is costing UK businesses an astonishing £15.3 billion a year. So what does 'poor service' mean in practise? And what can orgainsations do to provide better service?
Service with a smile
Bob Selden
You can try whatever gimmicks you like to try to get staff to provide excellent customer service. But good service starts with good management. Unless managers treat their staff the way they want their staff to treat their customers, they'll never get good service results.
Surviving the downturn and forging ahead
Robert Heller
The great economic disaster rumbles on, but the 21st century economy will continue to thrive and grow in the astonishing environment of the Digital Revolution.
Contemporary management is obsolete
Robert Heller
Management is out of date. Managers are failing to take advantage of a unique moment in history where the gathering pace of change opens the door to revolution and new types of organisation.
Keep on keeping on
Andy Hanselman
When I'm asked how organisations can create devoted customers, I reply 'just keep doing great things to them'. It seesm obvious, but creating 'devoted' customers is about consistently doing things that make customers feel valued.
The lessons of total quality management
Robert Heller
How could a project as high-profile and important as the opening of Heathrow airport's new Terminal Five have gone so disastrously awry at such a sensitive moment? Robert Heller dissects the fiasco.
Do you know who your customers are?
Bob Selden
Knowing who its customers are is the foundation for any successful organisation. And as the US Federal Aviation Administration has demonstrated, getting this wrong can be disastrous.
Don't write off those old fashioned ways
Andy Hanselman
I received a handwritten postcard recently from a supplier of mine last week. It had a real impact on me and reminded me that sometime, doing things the old way is a great way to stand out from the crowd.
Forget Resolutions, think Revolutions
Andy Hanselman
January is traditionally the time for New Year Resolutions. But instead, here are 10 ideas for New Year Revolutions - simple things that can help revolutionize your approach to your customers in 2008.
In praise of praise
Andy Hanselman
Many organisations are quick to act when things go wrong. But what about when things go well? Given the importance to staff of praise and recognition, why is customer praise not handled with the same energy as customer complaints?
Every little difference can be magic
Max McKeown
If you're looking for that ground breaking, market changing new idea, you need to think big, right? Well, not necessarily. The biggest advances often come from focusing on the smallest things.
Sometimes you need to apologize
Dan Bobinski
When a customer brings a complaint to our attention we have a choice. We can be arrogant and pigheaded, or we can listen carefully - and, if necessary, apologize and make it right.
The ties that bind
Andy Hanselman
Tying customers into your business has huge benefits, but only if it's their choice. The best businesses aren't just easy to buy from, they ought to be easy to walk away from, too. In the long run, keeping customers locked in against their will is no good for anybody.
Keeping up with your customers
Adrian Slywotzky
Have you ever been blindsided by changes in your customers' behavior? These shifts may happen gradually or literally overnight. Either way, they can destroy a business unless you take steps to ensure that they don't.
Don't mind the gap, expand it!
Andy Hanselman
The attitude of many businesses towards customers is all about consistency. Consistent mediocrity, that is. It's 'aim low, reach your goals, avoid disappointment'. And by focusing on minimum standards, they become the norm. The only way to break this habit is to break the rules.
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