CUSTOMER SERVICE / CUSTOMER LOYALTY | “Why Your Competition is GLAD You Don’t Have A Mystery Shopper Program” Free Webinar Added!
April 21, 2010
ServiceQuality.US and The Service Quality Department announced a new May 2010 date for an additional session of their wildly popular “Why Your Competition is GLAD You Don’t Have A Mystery Shopper Program” webinar. The web event will be held on May 19, 2010 at 10:30 AM (Pacific) / 1:30 PM (Eastern) and is open to a limited number of business owners and managers who are interested in finding out why a secret shop / mystery shop program is worth its weight in gold. More details are available by clicking here or at http://www.service-quality.com/webinars.html
Be sure to stop by our other web sites for additional information and ideas about building customer loyalty:
The Service Quality Department
ServiceQuality.US
ServiceQuality.CA
ServiceQuality.co.UK
ServiceQuality.CN
High Definition Mystery Shopping
CUSTOMER LOYALTY / CUSTOMER SERVICE | May 2010 FREE Webinar “12 Things You Can Do to Bring In More Sales TODAY!” Announced
April 21, 2010
ServiceQuality.US and The Service Quality Department announced a new May 2010 date for an additional session of their wildly popular “12 Things You Can Do to Bring In More Sales TODAY!” webinar. The web event will be held on May 19, 2010 at 9:30 AM (Pacific) / 12:30 PM (Eastern) and is open to a limited number of business owners and managers who are interested in bringing in more sales leveraging their customer’s loyalty. More details are available by clicking here or at http://www.service-quality.com/webinars.html
Be sure to stop by our other web sites for additional information and ideas about building customer loyalty:
The Service Quality Department
ServiceQuality.US
ServiceQuality.CA
ServiceQuality.co.UK
ServiceQuality.CN
High Definition Mystery Shopping
CUSTOMER LOYALTY / CUSTOMER SERVICE | FREE May Customer Loyalty Clinic Announced
April 20, 2010
ServiceQuality.US and The Service Quality Department announced a new May 2010 date for an additional Customer Loyalty Clinic. The web event will be held on May 19, 2010 at 9:30 AM (Pacific) / 12:30 PM (Eastern) and is open to a limited number of business owners and managers who are interested in building customer loyalty and facing issues head on. More details are available by clicking here or at http://www.service-quality.com/webinars.html
Be sure to stop by our other web sites for additional information and ideas about building customer loyalty:
The Service Quality Department
ServiceQuality.US
ServiceQuality.CA
ServiceQuality.co.UK
ServiceQuality.CN
High Definition Mystery Shopping
CUSTOMER SERVICE / CUSTOMER LOYALTY | Volcano in Iceland a Customer Loyalty Opportunity
April 18, 2010
Turn on any news cast and one of the top stories will concern the volcanic eruption in Iceland, and more specifically, how it has decimated air travel. A business associate of mine was on his way to the airport when he received a call from the airline telling him that the flight was cancelled due to the massive ash cloud. For the first time in modern history, Europe is effectively cut-off from the rest of the world, at least by air travel.
This is an excellent study in how an event, completely out of the airlines’ control, can make or break a customer relationship. For most business travelers, it’s an inconvenience. For those planning a vacation across the pond, it is catastrophic. (If you could get there, could you get home?)
Organizations that have invested in technology such as texting and email alerts have an easy time to appear that they are concerned about their customers, as well as reduce congestion at their airport counter. For others, they will hide behind regulations and “policy” (a word a frustrated customer never wants to hear)
For those in the latter category, you deserve whatever befalls you. If it was “Jeff Airways” I would make sure we notified all possible passengers via text, email, automated call, and personal calls. I would keep updating customers who were still interested in the situation. For those customers who were stranded, I would take a “Concierge” approach. At the very least, I would have prepared a listing of nearby hotels, transportation options, restaurants, pharmacies, doctors, etc. If you’re stuck in an airport, especially in a city that you’re not familiar with, a list like this would go a long way.
This is a very sticky situation for all. Customers and employees are frustrated — there is nothing they can do short of inventing a plane that can trudge through ash — to solve the immediate issue. What the employees can do (and I’m sure most are) is deal with empathy and offer solutions.
We’ll be attacking this very issue as part of our Customer Loyalty Clinic. This webinar is free, and you can sign up at either www.Service-Quality.com or www.ServiceQuality.US this coming week.
Be sure to stop by our other web sites for additional information and ideas about building customer loyalty:
The Service Quality Department
ServiceQuality.US
ServiceQuality.CA
ServiceQuality.co.UK
ServiceQuality.CN
High Definition Mystery Shopping
CUSTOMER SERVICE / CUSTOMER LOYALTY | Last few spots available for free Customer Loyalty Clinic Webinar
April 15, 2010
There’s just a few spots available for the Customer Loyalty Clinic on April 21, 2010. Click Here for more details.
MYSTERY SHOP / SECRET SHOP | HAS YOUR MEASUREMENT BUDGET GONE THE WAY OF THE NASA MOON ORBITER?
April 15, 2010
If I’ve heard it once, I’ve heard it 100 times from prospective clients, “We don’t see a value in mystery shopping.” You’ll note that I didn’t say that I heard that from any of our current clients, because we don’t.
If your mystery shopping program isn’t paying off in spades, then you’ve got the wrong observations being done. If your provider isn’t responsive and offering suggestions when, or before, you ask, then you need to consider The Service Quality Department, or one of our affiliated companies.
Be sure to stop by our other web sites for additional information and ideas about building customer loyalty:
The Service Quality Department
ServiceQuality.US
ServiceQuality.CA
ServiceQuality.co.UK
ServiceQuality.CN
High Definition Mystery Shopping
CUSTOMER SERVICE / CUSTOMER LOYALTY | Spirit Air Video – A Hoot!
April 15, 2010
Recently, I posted my commentary on Spirit Airlines‘ choice to start to charge for carry-on bags that don’t fit under the seat. I was pretty harsh in my criticism, but the world of blogging is all about the shock value of your posts, and how high they rank on the search engines.
That being said, I neglected to mention that they have a cute little video on their website, with their CEO stuffed in an overhead bin.
I’ve talked in tons of articles about how positively I feel about social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, You Tube and the like. However, this is an excellent example of how your use of social media can bite you in the butt.
Someone posted a “reedit” of the CEO’s message. Someone, probably with an iMac — don’t think you can do that on an iPad yet — did a clever job of inserting a little text in between the CEO’s points.
View Funny Response to Spirit Airlines Baggage Message!
Very funny! So, remember that when you send something out into the wild blue yonder, someone will most likely have a response!
If you’ve got a couple of minutes to spare, I would also recommend that you take a look at this music parody inspired by the Spirit blunder:
Spirit Airlines Music Video
Once again Southwest Airlines is a winner in my book. They could have some international routes available is Spirit keeps this stuff up!
Be sure to stop by our other web sites for additional information and ideas about building customer loyalty:
The Service Quality Department
ServiceQuality.US
ServiceQuality.CA
ServiceQuality.co.UK
ServiceQuality.CN
High Definition Mystery Shopping
CUSTOMER SERICE / CUSTOMER LOYALTY | Spirit Airlines Lost Customer Spirit?
April 15, 2010
You can fool some of your customers some of the time, but can you fool them all the time? Spirit Airlines, a self-defined “ULC” or ultra low cost carrier, announced earlier this week that they would continue to offer ultra low fares, but charge you an arm and a leg is you wanted to store something in the overhead bin!
Now, I may be blond, I may be stupid, but I’m not dumb! If a ticket is $100 to fly somewhere, then it should cost me not much more than that to get there. If you sneak in a 45% fee to store my bag above my head, I’ll notice! How stupid is their management? (God, I hope none of them went to Cal!) What’s next, a fee to use the jetway? (Perhaps a reduced fee is you can hop in the plane as it heads down the runway?) One airline is planning on installing pay toilets!
Southwest, a carrier I spend A LOT of time on, has the right idea. The ticket price is the ticket price. It’s bad enough that you get hit with all those taxes and other fees when you get a ticket these days. Southwest has, so far, resisted the urge to nickle and dime their customers to death!
Anyone who flies a great deal can attest to the sheer frustration that has been created in the nation’s airports since 9/11. I’m all for safety. As a matter of fact I really don’t mind waiting on the tarmac for a couple of hours, as long as I get to my destination safely. However, the last time I checked, most bad guys don’t bring luggage on the plane! Note to Spirit Airlines: WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU THINKING!!!??? I like to see people carrying on their luggage – It makes me feel like they have something to do after the flight. Not to mention, the easiest way to get flagged in security is to have no luggage at all!
So, I recommend a couple of things those good guys at Spirit should do:
#1 – Call me! We can work with you to change the culture at your company. It won’t be easy, but you’ll stay in business, if it’s not too late.
#2 – If you choose not to take my advice, I would start calling around to see if anyone wants to buy some slightly used planes. You’ll be ahead of the curve this time, but it will be time well spent!
Be sure to stop by our other web sites for additional information and ideas about building customer loyalty:
The Service Quality Department
ServiceQuality.US
ServiceQuality.CA
ServiceQuality.co.UK
ServiceQuality.CN
High Definition Mystery Shopping
CUSTOMER SERVICE / CUSTOMER LOYALTY | Tax Day Freebees Anyone?
April 15, 2010
A number of businesses, Starbucks, P.F. Changs, Cinnabon, Maggie Moo’s, Dairy Queen, Taco Del Mar, Jack in the Box, and McCormick & Schmidt, just to name a few, are offering “freebies” to entice consumers into their stores. A quick check of a number of these companies websites, and only about half promoted these specials!
What will they do when the “tax day freebies” hype goes away? How will they capture this uptick in customers? Have they just shot themselves in the proverbial foot?
It’s one thing to drive in business. It’s a whole other thing to keep ‘em coming back for more. Especially when they have to pay the 2nd time around.
When I hear of these types of promotions, I think of Cinco de Mayo – the Mexican Independence Day – crazy that provides a boost to restaurants and bars across the US on May 5th each year. Hundreds, if not thousands of bars and restaurants would do themselves a favor if they closed up rather than stay open and piss of hundreds of new customers. They roll out the red carpet, then their service goes out the door with long lines and wait times, and quality suffers with shoddy preparation.
In fairness, Starbucks is actually promoting Earth Day, and Jack in the Box is actually giving away fries on Friday, but the idea’s the same. The want more people to come into the stores.
We talked about this in a recent Customer Loyalty Clinic webinar, the idea of giving things away for free to obtain new business.
Be sure to stop by our other web sites for additional information and ideas about building customer loyalty:
The Service Quality Department
ServiceQuality.US
ServiceQuality.CA
ServiceQuality.co.UK
ServiceQuality.CN
High Definition Mystery Shopping
MYSTERY SHOP / SECRET SHOP | Do You Need Worker’s Compensation Coverage?
April 14, 2010
A client asked me an interesting question the other day, “Do I need to have worker’s compensation coverage if I have a mystery shopping program?” I had never thought about it, so I checked with my agent and one of our attorneys. In a word, “no.” In our case, all of our mystery shoppers are independently contracted through ServiceQuality.US. They are not employees of either our company or yours.
Be sure to stop by our other web sites for additional information and ideas about building customer loyalty:
The Service Quality Department
ServiceQuality.US
ServiceQuality.CA
ServiceQuality.co.UK
ServiceQuality.CN
High Definition Mystery Shopping
