CSM – CUSTOMER SERVICE MANAGEMENT | Employees Can Cost You Customer Loyalty!
October 30, 2009
As I’ve mentioned before, I have the opportunity to travel a lot. I define a lot as being on the road 100+ days a year. First of all, I will dispell the idea that travel is romantic and exciting (in a good way.) Travel is hard work and exhausting. I’m often more tired after a day of travel then when I’m on stage speaking to a group of 4,000 business leaders for an all day session.
One of the most frustrating issues I have to deal with is poorly trained employees. A close second is dealing with employees who just don’t care. I can forgive the first, but not the second.
You may have heard the story about the two railroad workers who started their jobs on the same day, Bob and Ray, doing the same task. Twenty years later, as they rode the rails to work, with Bob greeting every other employee he met by name, and his companion sitting quietly in the seat. Bob was now the CEO, and Ray had the same job as when he started. Finally Ray said to Bob, “We both started here on the same day, doing the same job. And here we are, 20 years later, and you’re the CEO and I’m still doing the same thing as when I started. I just don’t understand it!” Bob replied, “The difference is simple. You went to work for an hourly wage. I went to work for the railroad.”
Take a look around at your employees. Are they working for a wage or are they working for your organization? On a recent flight to Hawai’i, there were a total of six flight attendants on this particular flight. Of the four I interacted with, only one was working for Hawai’ian Airlines. The rest were clearly there for the paycheck. The difference was stunning. The one flight attendant was smiling and interacting with every customer she saw. The others simply barked orders at passengers. Occasionally they may smile, but those were few and far between. For every “loyalty point” that the one flight attendant won with her smile and friendly manner, the rest of the crew tore down three. I also noted that the “Customer Comment” forms were rubber banded together, facing you as you went on board the plane. Clearly, they weren’t looking to receive a lot of feedback.
Now, I don’t want to pick on one airline or one flight. I know things are a lot tougher since 9/11. As a passenger, and someone who lost $150 on the “quick check” scheme promoted by the government for frequent fliers when the company providing the service went belly up, I can personally attest to this.
The fact is, a lot of things are tougher for a lot of people these days. Unless you’re a big bank or automobile manufacturer, money is not being thrown your way. There’s a lot more stress in everyday living for all of us! As my mother used to say when I was very young and would complain about something, “Put on your big boy pants and deal with it!”
Take a look around at your employees, what’s their motivation? Are they building your customer’s loyalty or tearing it down? How much are the people who are coming to work for a wage really costing you?
CSM – CUSTOMER SERVICE MANAGEMENT | How’s Your Slogan?
October 30, 2009
My father, a wise and kind man, would never stop at a roadside restaurant that touted “Home Cooking” on their sign. Why? His philosophy was that, “If I wanted home cooking, I would have stayed at home!” Now, all of you who own restaurants with this phrase, please don’t send me your hate mail! I’m just making a point that a slogan can do you in sometimes.
A good friend of mine runs a hotel. Their newest slogan is, “YES! What’s the question?” He is committed to turning his employees, at all levels, into problem solvers. This is a great idea. My only suggestions is that I wouldn’t make it as “public” as he has with buttons, stickers, and signage in the public areas of the hotel. Why? There’s a inherent risk that the customers now know the “secret” he wants all his employees to act out. To me, it’s a lot like putting a sign up at the front of Disneyland saying, “Micky Mouse is NOT real. It’s just a person in a costume.”
By displaying the slogan out front, you are raising your customers’ expectations. As they are, most customers will actually underestimate the performance bar. If you want to WOW! your customers, and you have your “Yes!” button on, you’ve just raised the bar, artificially I might add, and possibly shot yourself in the foot.
I’m not saying that a “catch phrase” is all that bad. Usually, it doesn’t add that much to the customer’s experience. However, it can clarify or focus the customer’s expectations for your business. For instance, my father who ran a dry cleaning business for many years used the slogan, “There’s no substitute for quality workmanship.” Of course, this is true. It’s actually obvious. What it did infer to his customers, was that he provided quality work and not necessarily the cheapest price. Most people know what a Dry Cleaner is, so it effectively conveyed his message to both employees and customers.
Another example is for our companies. (ServiceQuality.US, The Service Quality Department) Service quality means different things to different people. We use the tag line, “Creating Customer Loyalty” In a nutshell, it tells what our focus is. We don’t manufacture anything, we don’t provide investigative services, and we’re not a consumer protection agency.
So, when you want to manage your customer’s expectations, you can do it very effectively with a slogan or catch phrase. Just be careful that you’re not setting yourself up for failure in a few words!
CSM - CUSTOMER SERVICE MANAGEMENT | Promise the Dream - Make the Dream Real!
October 29, 2009
The news is plastered with accounts of the financial woes of big banks and airlines. You would think that an organization that is going through tough times, could at least show some empathy towards people who are going through similar circumstances. Instead, they start grabbing at any little fees or charges that they can get, like a wounded bobcat!
Both the industries I noted earlier have been going through consolidation and change. I think they need to start looking back at the “good old days” — for their customers, not them — if they want to survive!
I recently went to Hawai’i on a business trip. I was amazed at how many extra fees can be added to the cost of your trip before you even get within 1,000 miles of your destination!
In addition to the fuel surcharges, security fees, baggage fees and taxes — there’s the entertainment charge, DigiPlayer (Hawaiian Airline’s Digital Media Player) charge, upgraded meal charge, snack charge, and adult beverage charges. I got fleeced at 38,000 feet!
Let’s just hope an airline doesn’t buy a bank, or we’ll never be able to afford to get to our money!
Now, understand that I fly a lot. Because of this, I rarely fly coach because I choose to upgrade with mileage I’ve earned. However, both airlines and banks have an advantage over most any other business in the universe — THEY KNOW WHO I AM! Not once have I ever been called by name on an airline. Doesn’t make a difference where you are on the bus, I’ve never had anyone use the information they have at their fingertips! I was sitting next to a world famous celebrity on time on a flight, and the flight attendant didn’t even use his name! They promised me the dream of aloha and paradise. I won’t speak for you, but in my paradise, they at least try to say my name once in awhile!
My advice to anyone who is struggling right now — make sure you use your customer’s name as much as possible. If you’re not lucky like banks or airlines, then ask! People don’t mind if you mispronounce their name, as long as you make an honest effort.
Do this, and you can immediately differentiate yourself from your competition! You’ll build loyalty and strengthen the bond between you and your customers in a heartbeat!
CSM – CUSTOMER SERVICE MANAGEMENT | Lessons Can Be Costly
October 28, 2009
I recently took a business trip to Hawai’i. I had the opportunity to fly coach for the first time in quite a while. Boy, I learned a few lessons! I’ll be touching on a few of these issues in our upcoming series on customer service management:
Lesson #1 – Promise the dream, deliver – albeit barely – on the basic tenants of that promise. Life is full of disappointments – this can be another one…
Lesson #2 – Embrace a slogan, and forget about it as soon as the customer is signed on. Customers won’t really remember the slogan – it’s just a slogan!
Lesson #3 – Have one flight nice flight attendant, and staff the rest of the crew with your employees who don’t care. Times are tough, times are hard, here’s your darn boarding card!
Lesson #4 – Charge more fees than a credit card company, and make them a surprise! Customers like surprises!
Lesson #5 – Thank you, why aren’t you coming back? We treated customers with little or no respect, didn’t deliver on what we promised. Why aren’t people flocking to us?
MYSTERY SHOPPING MISCONCEPTIONS | I can’t afford a customer survey or mystery shopping.
October 25, 2009
How much is one customer worth to your business? It’s more than the single transaction that many business owners and managers place on it. If you serve 500 customers a month, or 125 people a week, could you afford to loose 5% of them?
The scenario gets worse when you consider the cost of attracting new customers. Not to grow, but just to replace the lost opportunity.
On average, our mystery shops cost about $60-$75 per observation, plus any reimbursed expenses. I saw a study 10 years ago that placed the value of a single service station customer at about $52,000 in revenue over their lifetime. This, on a product that nets the average dealer 5¢!!! That’s a lot of nickles.
If you shop your place of business four times each month, you should see immediate and sustainable benefits. If you don’t, your having the wrong things observed. Give us a call and we’ll be happy to discuss how we can get you going right away!
BUILDING CUSTOMER LOYALTY | It’s the small things that can make a difference!
October 23, 2009
This is a story about a simple cab ride. A ride that thousands of of take daily. This particular ride happened to be from the airport to my hotel in Waikiki on the island of Ouahu in Hawai’i. This is a pretty straight shot, down Nimitz to Waikiki. Usually takes 20 minutes tops and, frankly, is one of the easiest trips you can take to the airport. It’s also a trip I’ve taken at least 50 times in the last 10 years.
Of those 50 trips, it’s also the only one I can remember. When we arrived at the cab stand, the driver, Ken, jumped out of the car and immediately started to load our luggage into the trunk. He took out a mover’s blanket and wrapped our luggage to protect it from any damage. It didn’t cost him anything, but it demonstrated to me, his customer, that he cared about me as an individual, not just a fare.
When we got into the cab, he immediately offered us a few pieces of hard candy. Again, nothing special, but a nice treat. Throughout the departure from the airport, he was chatting about how much he appreciated us coming to Honolulu. He pointed out various sites along the way. At every stop light, there was another treat, more candy, cookies, water, post cards. When we arrived at the Moana Surfrider, he was greeted enthusiastically by the bell staff like an old friend. As he opened the door for my wife, I overheard him tell the bell staff that we should be treated well, as we were one of his best customers! (The Moana Surfrider is the oldest hotel on Waikiki Beach, and is world renown for their impeccable service)
What’s even more amazing, is that I believed it! The Hawai’ian word for family is ohana, and I really felt like ohana with Ken! In the short span of 20 minutes, this stranger had not only done the job he was paid to do, he made a mundane experience an exceptional one. He made me feel better than when I got into his cab.
Let’s see how he profited from taking a little extra time and effort:
Cost of candy : 25¢
Postcard: 14¢
Bottled Water:$1.00
INVESTMENT: $1.39
Cab fare: $35
Tip: $20
Addl Trips: $125
Addl Tips: $ 40
So, at the very least, his $1.39 investment paid off in $60 in profit and $125 in gross revenue. What kind of return could you get if you invested a little more to make each customer feel special?
The next time you take a cab in Honolulu, I hope you’re lucky enough to meet Ken!
SERVICE BRANDING | DON’T LET IT BACK FIRE ON YOU!
October 22, 2009
Do you have a “service brand“? Have you taken the time to clearly define what your service experience is like for all your customers? If so, good for you, you’ve created your very own brand of service! But, you’re only a quarter of the way there.
The second key point of service branding is to communicate it to all your employees. Not just handing out a sheet of paper with a few “pie in the sky” catch phrases on it. The real test is to ask your employees what it means to them. Make each person in your organization articulate how they will deliver this promise. If you’ve gotten this far, you’re ahead of your competition, as only a select few get this far. You’re half-way there, keep reading!
Next, you need to measure how effectively this promise is being delivered to every customer. I do mean every customer. Most businesses who take the time to get this far find that their total brand promise is only being delivered about 15%-20% of the time. Sound shocking, it is. However, we are dealing with human beings, not machines. Stuff gets in the way of plans. If you can get the implementation of your brand promise up to 75%-85% you will see incredible leaps in sales and profitability. Keep reading, you’re only 75% done.
The final step is to check with your customers to see if the brand experience is being delivered. You’ll note the key difference between measuring the “mechanics” of your brand promise, versus the perception of the customer, which is really your reality. Only by having the 360 degree approach to branding your service can you be successful.
Too many organizations drop a few marketing phrases in their ads that sabotage their brand. Nobody ever discussed these “promises in a tag line” with anyone other than the marketing director and the copy writer. I fly a lot. I mean 1,000,000 miles a year. That’s a lot. I’ve heard every promise from the “friendly skies” to we paint a smile on our planes… Most of it’s bull. I’ve heard a flight attendant yell at a passenger because they didn’t speak English — on a flight from Latin America! I’ve personally been graced with a liberal covering of juice, when a flight attendant wasn’t looking where they were going, pushing their cart at 60 miles an hour down the isle.
I single out airlines, because they really have it easy. Most people who travel are excited, one way or the other, about getting to their destination. Just a smile or friendly gesture, of the smallest kind, can make a huge difference. But most, put on airs about bringing a fantastic experience, fall flatly on their face. (More about this in an upcoming article)
Southwest Airlines knocks the socks off their competition. I’ll fly Southwest even if it was more time or cost more money. Why? They have a lot of fun getting you there. I don’t know if it’s all an act, if it is they should win an award. Besides, Disneyland is probably one of the biggest “acts” and nobody I know complains. Southwest says they will get me where I want to go, on time for the most part, and treat me with respect. Then, they add a little fun too. They get it!
What are you doing to knock the socks of your customers? Are you under-promising and over-delivering? Or, are you letting some fancy marketing get in the way of building your customer’s loyalty?
MYSTERY SHOPPING MISCONCEPTIONS | I don’t have time to train my employees!
October 19, 2009
One of the hardest things for any organization to remember is that training is one of the best investments you can make in your business. It doesn’t matter how large or small your business is, if you don’t train you will never grow. Even worse, you will pay triple or more for every interaction. Finally, you will be stuck in a rut yourself, because you will be answering and doing the same things over and over. It’s a lot like I envision hell on earth.
Training can take many forms. The least painful is to have a 5-minute service huddle each and every shift. Talk about one topic, or sub topic, pick a customer win or loss and share it. Talk about it every day and you will soon get the dreaded questions from your employees! This is where you can jump off the cliff and really start to see the payoff of your time. As long as you pay attention to customer service and customer loyalty, so will your employees.
MYSTERY SHOPPING MISCONCEPTIONS | I don’t know where to begin!
October 15, 2009
In its most basic form, a mystery shopping program should cover the basics of how you want your customers treated. (I say customers, but what I mean is anyone interacting with your business) Write these specific and quantifiable steps down.
If you want to know how someone found you, write that down. If you want to make sure everyone has a name tag, write that down. Keep going until you can’t think of anything.
Make sure you train your employees in these “non-negotiable” items and sit down. Listen. Observe. Don’t say anything. How many of your employees are doing the basics.
Your next step should be to engage a professional mystery shopping company. They can take the outline you’ve developed and create a detailed observation form. They’ll be able to hone your observation points and make sure you have a sharp point. Require that they include meaningful comments, and that the results are delivered to you online as quickly as possible. They should be able to give you access 24/7 to your results, too. Don’t get pulled into a bunch of nifty graphing options or fancy reports. The fact is, 90% of the “flash” offered in reporting is just that, flash. And, while we love to sell you more sizzle — it costs more — most clients don’t need it, most certainly when they are starting out!
SERVICE LEADERS CONFERENCE | CEO Appears at Harveys Lake Tahoe
October 12, 2009
ServiceQuality.US President & Chief Innovation Officer Jeff Kasper spoke at a meeting of 400+ business leaders from throughout California recently. The meeting, which was held at Harveys Resort in Lake Tahoe, Nevada included discussions focused on service. Flying in to join the summit from Mexico City was Frank Devlyn, Chairman of
Jeff Kasper and Frank Devlyn chat at the recent conference
Mexico and Latin America’s largest retail optical company, Devlyn Optical.
Frank and Jeff have been amigos since the mid-1990’s, when Frank served as the president of Rotary International.
When asked about the meeting, Jeff said that it was, “One of the most intense, exhausting, and memorable experiences of my life. To see over 400 leaders, focused on service, all truly committed to service, all in one place, was simply remarkable.” “Attendees represented over 20 countries, from Sweden to Slovakia, from France to China, all of the key players were well represented.” Kasper observed.
