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Posts Tagged ‘Customer’

I browse an incredible statistic in a piece written by the Canadian Management Centre. “The common company loses 0.5 their customers in 5 years and [*fr1] their workers in 4 years?. This has important impact to overall client, employee, investor and provider loyalty.” Wow! Think about that statistic. 100% client turnover in five years and a hundred% employee turn over in 4 years. Management in the least levels must perceive the changing role and importance of front-line customer service operations to attain the core mission of the business, i.e., customer retention, client acquisition, client satisfaction, employee retention and increased profitability. When managers do not envision the relationship between management practices and front-line actions, the business has not recognized the evolution of the client’s Service Output Demands (SODS). Nothing short of service excellence will initiate and maintain customer relationship equity, that is the cornerstone of customer retention and increased client spend. The most successful businesses in any business are those who maintain relationships through ongoing customer satisfaction earned by meeting changing customer expectations, versus people who focus simply on new business and new sales however lose existing customers. Consequently, customer service requires a priority target existing client relationship equity. Customers have become accustomed to receiving “The Final Client Experience.” Today’s customers are simply smarter and utilizing the internet and therefore the proliferation of information accessible to them your customer is poised to expect your absolute best. They’ll grasp an awful heap concerning your company before you ever walk in their door. The importance of client retention and its relationship to profits and growth through existing account penetration and through referrals from existing satisfied customers is not an initiative. It’s a proven best practice success factor. Sales and Service Without customers, we have a tendency to don’t exist, customer service is useless and there would be no want for professional sales personnel. Next to employees, customers are the company’s most precious asset. Consequently, client service must become a core competency. Most corporations define customer service a very little differently than sales. That’s a broad definition and we must not lose sight of the fact that every employee in one manner or another is concerned in client service. Sales personnel simply happen to be one among the “Front Lines.” As a “customer driven organization” it is vital to discuss how you serve your customers. In one method or another, each employee provides customer service. Business studies position within sales, client service and counter service at center stage. Completely different studies document changing client expectations. They prove the first day-to-day contact with customers by within sales, customer service personnel or the counter represents the most important opportunity to develop and maintain customer relationship equity. Customer service is that the client’s window into the company. Through that window, customers see and experience the commitment to service excellence. All firms tout, “We have a tendency to have the most effective service within the industry.” Woo Hoo–the client these days demands that you walk the walk! As a customer driven organization, failure to provide service excellence encourages customers to readily switch to induce what they want. Operations and Logistics Accuracy is one in all the most important factors in service excellence. That issue applies to everybody within the organization, but it is particularly true on the front line. Logistics, for those customers requiring delivery is additionally a part of the formula for excellence. Filling the order suggests that knowing the inventory and location of all product to make sure client satisfaction. Filling an order with the wrong product size, kind, or inflicting unanticipated delays deteriorates client relationship equity. Customer Facing Inside sales, customer service and counter sales professionals are key links to the customer; a crucial ingredient in the service excellence formula. Don’t underestimate the impact on client relationships, sales growth and profitability. Customers have higher expectations of their face-to-face contacts and their regular phonephone contacts than anyone else in the company. They need to induce the proper product, at the right time, at the right price. They additionally need to talk to knowledgeable total resolution providers that do more than just write orders and handle complaints. All sales and support folks hold key positions within the organization and contribute favorably in all the aspects of the sales process. The flexibility to follow policy and procedures and to employ sensible judgment is also highly valued by management. A complete understanding of your role and also the role and operate of your teammates will improve your ability to service the customer. The foremost necessary concept is your role in developing relationship equity. Relationships play a key role in improved service, increased sales, improved profitability and deeper penetration at each account.

Did you know that 68% of customers who discontinue relations with a company do so due to poor customer service? It is the number one reason for customers to defect from a business. Everyone has experienced poor customer service at some point and it is infuriating and frustrating, prompting some to sever ties with a company even if they have had a long-standing relationship and been previously satisfied.

This is where Sold Out Trainers come in! We offer high quality, effective customer service training that is tailored uniquely to your business and its staff. Our customer service training is experiential, enabling your staff build new and better habits through learning by doing. Our customer service training has been used prestigious organisations and our training model has an excellent reputation.

Customer Service Training with Sold Out Trainers is bespoke to your company. We research your own business model and see the way things work in your office. After collating the data, we devise engaging and interactive role-playing situations and performances by our trained actors which highlight good customer service- and, of course, bad customer service too. This allows for a quality customer service training session which gives you real feedback on staff performance. Our training is designed to show staff how they can alter their behavioural habits, from tone of voice to phrasing to body language, to provide a better service to customers. This can prove a real eye-opener for staff, improving their individual prospects in the tricky field of customer service as well as your own business’ customer service performance. It can also lead to better staff retention, as your customer service team will be able to deal with customers more effectively causing increased job satisfaction.

The benefits of Sold Out Trainers are tangible and lasting. Keep your staff and your customers by investing in our innovative experiential customer service training which is designed to meet the specific needs of your organisation for real results.

For more Information visit : http://www.customerservicetraining1.co.uk/

Many businesses like to advertise that they have excellent customer service or top service records, but what does this really mean? More importantly what does this mean for customers? With so many businesses promising to be the best and have excellent service levels, customers are a little wary. They don’t just want to hear about how wonderful your company is; they want to see actual service delivery. So how do you go about implementing a customer service plan that really works? Here are some tips to help guide you through the process.

Have a Customer-Oriented Outlook

Many business owners have good intentions, striving to maintain high standards in their business. This is a good thing but unless your efforts are focused on how they will benefit your customers, it won’t translate into top customer service. Too often businesses are focused on what they are doing and what they have to offer. They don’t take the time to find out if this is what customers want or need. In order to be able to deliver a service that is of value to your customers, you need to put yourselves in their shoes. Ask how your product or service will benefit them. What tangible reasons do they have to buy from you and not someone else? When you demonstrate real value and benefits to your customers, this automatically translates into top-quality customer service. Customers will see that your efforts aren’t forced and are indeed genuine. The result is customers that leave happy and appreciated; as a result, they are more likely to return and purchase from you again in the future.

Develop Relationships with your Customers

Marketing studies show that it is far more cost effective to retain existing customers than to constantly have to prospect for new customers. By developing relationships with your customers, you will be creating a solid foundation from which to grow your business. At the same time, you will be learning more about your customers. You can find out why they buy from you, what they like about your products, and what is important to them. You can also find out about their likes and dislikes and this can give you ideas on how better to serve them. This information can also be useful when you are looking for ways in which you can offer better service or more value to your customers.

Train All Staff in All Departments

It is true that some employees will have more customer contact than others. However, when customer service is something that is ingrained into all work functions, it becomes part of the culture of the business. It is not enough to train the front-line salespeople in customer service. Everyone, including the accounting department, admin people and cleansers, should realize the importance of customer service. When they understand that their job is not just a job but an important part of servicing customers, they will be more conscious of being courteous and helpful with customers.

Get Customer Feedback

How do you know that your customer service levels are where they should be unless you get feedback from your customers? A simple follow-up phone call to customers can enlighten you as to how you are really doing in the eyes of your customers. It can either confirm that you are doing well or that there are areas of your customer service that need work and attention. At the same time, letting your customers know that you value their input and feedback shows your customers that you are serious about customer service. Just asking for their opinions can already improve their impression of your business.

Streamline Your Systems and Processes

There are many CRM systems that can help you manage and keep on top of your customer followups and appointments. Looking at your general office operations and systems is another way in which you can improve your customer service. When you operate more efficiently, this will benefit your customers. For example, if you use an online faxing system, customers can receive information via fax more quickly. When they want to send information through to you by fax then you can give them a dedicated fax number to send it to. You can also then assure customers that there is a greater level of confidentiality when dealing with their documentation. This is made possible because you can view the document on a screen without having to print it. Simple systems like this can help you to serve your customers better.

Many businesses like to advertise that they have excellent customer service or top service records, but what does this really mean? More importantly what does this mean for customers? With so many businesses promising to be the best and have excellent service levels, customers are a little wary. They don’t just want to hear about how wonderful your company is; they want to see actual service delivery. So how do you go about implementing a customer service plan that really works? Here are some tips to help guide you through the process.

Have a Customer-Oriented Outlook

Many business owners have good intentions, striving to maintain high standards in their business. This is a good thing but unless your efforts are focused on how they will benefit your customers, it won’t translate into top customer service. Too often businesses are focused on what they are doing and what they have to offer. They don’t take the time to find out if this is what customers want or need. In order to be able to deliver a service that is of value to your customers, you need to put yourselves in their shoes. Ask how your product or service will benefit them. What tangible reasons do they have to buy from you and not someone else? When you demonstrate real value and benefits to your customers, this automatically translates into top-quality customer service. Customers will see that your efforts aren’t forced and are indeed genuine. The result is customers that leave happy and appreciated; as a result, they are more likely to return and purchase from you again in the future.

Develop Relationships with your Customers

Marketing studies show that it is far more cost effective to retain existing customers than to constantly have to prospect for new customers. By developing relationships with your customers, you will be creating a solid foundation from which to grow your business. At the same time, you will be learning more about your customers. You can find out why they buy from you, what they like about your products, and what is important to them. You can also find out about their likes and dislikes and this can give you ideas on how better to serve them. This information can also be useful when you are looking for ways in which you can offer better service or more value to your customers.

Train All Staff in All Departments

It is true that some employees will have more customer contact than others. However, when customer service is something that is ingrained into all work functions, it becomes part of the culture of the business. It is not enough to train the front-line salespeople in customer service. Everyone, including the accounting department, admin people and cleansers, should realize the importance of customer service. When they understand that their job is not just a job but an important part of servicing customers, they will be more conscious of being courteous and helpful with customers.

Get Customer Feedback

How do you know that your customer service levels are where they should be unless you get feedback from your customers? A simple follow-up phone call to customers can enlighten you as to how you are really doing in the eyes of your customers. It can either confirm that you are doing well or that there are areas of your customer service that need work and attention. At the same time, letting your customers know that you value their input and feedback shows your customers that you are serious about customer service. Just asking for their opinions can already improve their impression of your business.

Streamline Your Systems and Processes

There are many CRM systems that can help you manage and keep on top of your customer followups and appointments. Looking at your general office operations and systems is another way in which you can improve your customer service. When you operate more efficiently, this will benefit your customers. For example, if you use an online faxing system, customers can receive information via fax more quickly. When they want to send information through to you by fax then you can give them a dedicated fax number to send it to. You can also then assure customers that there is a greater level of confidentiality when dealing with their documentation. This is made possible because you can view the document on a screen without having to print it. Simple systems like this can help you to serve your customers better.

And, this issue of customer service is not limited only to the U.S. Similar to their American counterparts, a majority of the
consumers in all other countries surveyed felt customer service is the most crucial area for companies in the current
economy. But they were equally concerned about the lack of focus on this key area.
Every company today has one or more ways of providing customer service. So if you are a senior customer service
executive and wondering why all that investment is not yielding results think again! In my opinion, the reasons for failure
of customer service could be:
Not listening’ to the customer: It’s very important for the agent handling the call to understand what the customer
needs and not just hearing them. This will depend on the quality of the call flow diagrams and on the regular training
provided to the agent. Feedback from internal quality monitoring and customer satisfaction surveys needs to get to the
agents in a timely manner, so that the feedback loop and improvement cycle can work properly.
Too much emphasis on AHT: Every agent has a target Average Handle Time (AHT) at the contact center, which is
guided by the call flow diagram. If these are not reviewed periodically to ensure that customers are getting enough time
to express their concerns and the data is being captured accurately, then customers will most likely leave dissatisfied.
It is important to put AHT in the proper perspective, as just one of the many measurements in a process. and not a
measure of the true outcome you are trying to achieve when your customers call.
Lack of innovative approaches in delivering customer service: Most contact centers do not invest in innovative
approaches for keeping customers happy. We believe the contrary. For instance, while managing lost baggage for a
leading airline client of ours, we realized how traumatized customers who were attending some important event would
be, to learn that their baggage was lost. So we began sorting information from the overall lost baggage list to identify
customers who needed to be informed at regular intervals about the status of their baggage, and started sending
proactive alerts to them. The fact that the airline was contacting them before they could, raised the customer
satisfaction levels to newer heights.
Even if you have got all the above right, unless you are able to resolve the pain point of the customer, your customer
service levels will always remain low! An article titled Stop Trying to Delight Your Customers’ by Harvard Business
Review, sums it up well by stating that you can create loyal customers primarily by reducing customer effort, i.e, by helping
them solve their problems quickly and easily, and not by delighting them in service interactions with a robotic greeting or
thank-you!

What makes a company successful over the long, long term? What characterizes the service relationship between companies and customers who do business together for decades, even generations?

How can your company stay close to your customers even as times change, technologies change and expectations continually rise?

What can you do to improve customer service quality and ensure your company’s future offers are relevant and valuable in the market?

One powerful step forward that will improve customer service quality is to explore your customers’ future needs and interests by cultivating Service Encounters of The Third Kind. In these unique encounters, your precious and loyal relationships for the future are built by your words and actions – today. You can improve customer service quality over the long haul by thinking proactively.

Let’s start by looking closely at Service Encounters of the First and Second Kinds and how they improve customer service quality.

Service Encounters Of The First Kind

In Service Encounters of the First Kind, your company approaches the customer with the most basic of all customer service questions: “What do you want (or need)?”

Your customer replies with equal simplicity, “I want your product X, by time and date Y, at your listed price Z.”

Your company’s priority and service focus should now be clear: Get the customer’s order right, and get it right the first time to improve customer quality!

Campaigns to accomplish this objective are widespread and easy to spot. “Do It Right!”, “Zero Defects” and “Six Sigma Quality” are all examples of slogans companies use to focus their workers on getting the basics right, first time, every time to improve customer service quality.

In this kind of encounter, breakdowns in service delivery are bad news since they don’t improve customer service quality. They are to be identified, analyzed, solved and, most of all, eliminated to improve customer service quality. The service system must be streamlined and standardized in every possible way to improve customer service quality.

Companies that consistently succeed in this undertaking (delivering X by Y at Z price) earn their reputations in the market as steady and reliable suppliers. This leads, as it should, to customer satisfaction and will improve customer service quality.

Training in these organizations is focused on product knowledge, technical skills, thoroughness, accuracy and adhering to proven procedures to improve customer service quality.

Marketing consists of powerful efforts to push proven products in the market. The customer is “sold to.”
Looking into the management mindset of these first kind organizations, we usually find a keen interest in cutting costs, increasing volume and decreasing cycle-time.

This need for speed is important: Competitors are often closing in with similar products, faster delivery and even lower prices. In this kind of competitive situation, profit margins are paper-thin and companies thrive only through continual increases in volume.

So far so good. But if we look into the staff mindset of such an organization, we find a different way of thinking altogether that doesn’t help improve customer service quality. Frontline service employees, focused on getting it right the first time, trained to carefully follow all procedures, and encouraged by management to achieve more and more results in less and less time, find themselves answering the phone, opening the mail or meeting the next customer in person thinking to themselves, “I hope this customer isn’t a pain in the neck!”

After all, customers with questions and unusual requests generally take more time, lead to more errors and can result in a general slowing down of the whole system.

No wonder so many customer requests for anything out of the ordinary are met with the retort: “We don’t do it that way” or “That’s not how our procedures work here.”

Service Encounters Of The Second Kind

In Service Encounters of the Second Kind, your company approaches the customer with a question that goes beyond standard offers of X product at Y time and Z price. Instead of the basic “What do you want,” your service representatives now pose a more inviting question: “How do you want it?”

Faced with such an open-ended question, the customer naturally replies, “I want it the way I want it. I want it special. I want it my way!”

Your company’s service focus must change if you are to deliver what your customer wants just the way your customer wants it. Special products, unique combinations, odd-hour deliveries, different schedules for pricing or payment – all are new challenges for your service team to understand and accomplish to improve customer service quality.

In Service Encounters of the Second Kind, breakdowns in the service delivery system are to be expected at first – and then overcome to improve customer service quality. Responsiveness and flexibility become your prime objectives to improve customer service quality. The organization focuses on being adaptable, accommodating and open to changing requests that improve customer service quality and satisfaction.

Your service system improves, not through vigorous efforts to standardize but through your willingness and commitment to customize to improve customer service quality!

Companies that succeed in this challenging undertaking (giving their customers what they want, when and where they want it and just the way they want it) earn their reputations in the market as quick, responsive and open to ongoing change. In short, they understand how to improve customer service quality.

When a company is recognized for welcoming and fulfil-ling unique customer requests, the result is not only customer satisfaction, but a well-deserved and valuable reputation for customer delight.

In these responsive second kind organizations, training programs include active listening, creative problem-solving, and attitude-building activities to improve customer service quality. Staff learn how to find a “yes” for the customer rather than rolling out the standard “no.”

Marketing isn’t a broadside of mass advertising. Rather, it’s a selection of specially modified programs gently pushing customized products to key segments of the market. Clients aren’t “sold to” here, they are served to improve customer service quality.

In the staff and management mindset of these organizations, we find a shared and sincere commitment to “bend over backwards” for the client to improve customer service quality.

For example, one adapting company proclaims, “We’ll go out of our way for you!” But this catchy phrase reveals the remnants of a first-kind encounter company being forced into second-kind levels of service. Here management is essentially saying: “We still have our way.

But don’t worry, we’ll go out of our way just for you.”

You can see this contrast in the advertising of two fast food restaurant chains. A&W features large posters that read: “You’ll love our way!” (That’s Service Encounters of the First Kind.)

Compare this with the slogan and jingle for Burger King: “Have it your way!” (That’s Service Encounters of the Second Kind.)

At which establishment will you feel more comfortable saying, “Two chicken burgers, please. One with extra ketchup and no pickles, and one cooked rare, hold the onions and two packs of mustard on the side?”

Burger King goes even further with its follow-up campaign: “Sometimes You’ve Just Gotta Break the Rules.” That’s a direct invitation to highly customized Service Encounters of the Second Kind: “Have it your way.”

Service Encounters Of The Third Kind

In Service Encounters of the Third Kind, your company welcomes the customer in a manner completely different from the standardized “What do you want?” or customized “How do you want it?”

In a Service Encounter of the Third Kind, your company looks to the customer with interest and patience, and asks the somewhat unlikely question: “What do you want to become?”

Most customers, if they are given an opportunity to reflect on this very open-ended question, realize that they are, in fact, still a bit uncertain about the future and will reply, “Actually we’re not entirely sure yet.” And then, availing themselves of the sincerity and interest you have shown, might add, “Could we talk about it together?”

Your question, and their response, opens the door to a very different and collaborative conversation: a Service Encounter of the Third Kind, which can work over the long haul to really improve customer service quality.

Your company’s focus shifts again as you enter into a new dialogue with customers, seeking to understand and add value to their plans and possibilities for the future to improve customer service quality. These conversations, held in a mood of mutual discovery, are concerned with much more than just meeting a customer’s existing business requirements. By exploring scenarios and possibilities, you and your customers work together to resolve breakdowns that might emerge only in the future and you improve customer service quality as a result.

For example, innovative financial service companies in Japan consistently ask their customers, “What do you want to become?” And customers consistently answer, “I want to become a homeowner, and I want to pass the home on to my children.”

But housing prices in Japan have climbed beyond the average customer’s reach. What was the jointly planned and innovative solution to improve customer service quality? Mortgages with payment terms spanning two generations – and customer relationships that endure beyond a lifetime. Talk about a measure to improve customer service quality!

In this third kind of customer service, companies must be willing to adapt, modify and in some cases entirely reinvent the purpose and procedures of their business to improve customer service quality. Rather than “standardize” or even “customize” existing products and systems, third-kind companies must make a commitment to “customer-ize” – to become whatever customers need them to become in order to work together in the future.

For example, railroads in America thought they were in the train business many years ago and nearly went bankrupt asking the customer, “What type of train car do you want to travel in, where do you want to go to and at what price do you want to travel?” They built coach cars, dining cars, sleeping cars and more to improve customer service quality.

But since they never asked the customer, “What do you want to become?”, railroad companies did not foresee the need for airborne shipping and travel, and missed evolving into airline companies altogether.

Today, government financial support is necessary just to keep American railroads alive.

Companies that do evolve and improve customer service quality get noticed and earn the respect of customers as relevant, dynamic and constantly changing organizations. They are focused on and committed to the future and taking steps to improve customer service quality. They are not stuck in the success of their past.

Committing to Service Encounters of the Third Kind means you and your customers enter into an intimate and closely linked evolution to improve customer service quality. As changes in the business environment demand greater innovation, more flexibility and even faster response, you learn to adapt, anticipate and actively support each other to improve customer service quality.

This association is not based on customer satisfaction or even on customer delight. Instead, the inventive and interactive quality of this relationship is founded on a level of customer loyalty that is precious to both parties, and can be vital to a vibrant future.

Competitors can steal away a satisfied customer by offering a little bit more satisfaction, and can even lure away a delighted customer by offering a little more delight. But a loyal customer is one who sees his future emerging in part due to your commitment to improve customer service quality. “Win-win agreements” and “building synergy” become passwords for communication between your company and your customer.

Adding long-term value is a goal you take responsibility for together and it will improve customer service quality.

Training programs in third-kind companies highlight the principles of cooperation, collaboration, creativity, invention and design to improve customer service quality. Real customers and suppliers are featured and included in the real-time training programs that improve customer service quality.

The customer is no longer sold to, nor simply served. He is genuinely cared for through a conscientious relationship that builds trust and momentum over time while helping improve customer service quality.

Your service representatives do not “hard-sell” or “push” their products. Instead, they work closely with customers to ensure that appropriate products are “pulled” from your organization to improve customer service quality.

Customers also influence the development of your organization’s future competencies, capabilities, and commitments to improve customer service quality.

Staff and management share the same mindset toward the third-kind customer: “We make your concerns our concerns.” And in such an atmosphere of growing trust, your customer can make similar long-term and loyal commitments back to you. The customer comes to count on you, rely on you and evolve with you. All of this because you took the steps to improve customer service quality.

In the fast-food industry, for example, McDonalds is now test-marketing an all-soy “veggie burger.” This is in direct response to customers who said, “We are becoming more health conscious and we want to eat healthier foods.”

Third-kind insurance companies now reap an ever greater slice of the savings and investment pie. Agents no longer ask the simple question, “Do you want whole life, term or endowment?” Instead leading companies provide their representatives with entirely new categories of investment and insurance products addressing individual concerns and responding to changing needs to improve customer service quality.
While these are some of the success stories, other companies have missed the importance of third-kind service and teeter dangerously close to the edge of obsolescence.

General Motors, for example, suffered a serious erosion of market share and loyalty before they heard what their customers were saying: “We want to become more efficient, more cost conscious, and more environmentally friendly.” Other companies listened, took steps to improve customer service quality and delivered appropriately designed new cars. Customers responded, giving back profits and gains in market share.

Intricate slide rules were famous for aiding calculation in my father’s day. Manufacturers diligently asked the engineers, “How do you want it?” and built an impressive range of slide rules in response: wooden, plastic, steel, large, pocket-sized, flat, round and double-sided.

But they never asked what customers were “becoming,” so didn’t hear their customers’ growing urge for things instantaneous and electronic. The firms that built a wide range of precision slide rules are now gone. Not one slide rule maker is among the calculator and computer manufacturers of today because they did nothing to improve customer service quality.

From carbon paper to photocopies, buggy whips to stick shifts, typewriters to computers, copper wire to fiber optics, smoke signals to wireless, each evolution begs the question, “What happened to those companies?” Did they make the switch? Did they survive? Did they move from “What do you want?” to “What do you want to become?”

In an environment of continually accelerating change, the only certainty we have is that the future will be different from today. The opportunities for evolution and collaboration with your customers will be endless.

What about your company? Will you gradually go out of business with a standardized service system that provides efficient answers to questions your customers no longer ask?

Or will you change the tone and tenor of your service encounters from the order taker asking, “What do you want?” and the order maker’s, “How do you want it?” to the loyal business partner who patiently and intelligently asks, “What do you want to become?”

This change requires a new mindset and new methods for engaging with your customers and suppliers. It’s called Service Encounters of the Third Kind. Learn it and you will improve customer service quality for the better.