Posts by Shep Hyken

When customers ask for something, they’re hoping you’ll say, “Yes!” When you can, that’s great. But what about when you’re not able to say yes? While there are certain requests that require a hard, “No” (illegal or immoral activities, or things that are completely unrelated to what you do, for example), in many cases it’s…

Wouldn’t it be nice if every customer were easy to deal with? Of course, that’s not the case. Difficult customers are just a face of life in business. But the way you react and respond to those customers can make a big difference in improving their experience. Believe it or not, they can even become…

The past year has been filled with incredible challenges for small business owners—but it has also been very revealing. What I mean is that we have gotten to see first-hand how different organizations respond to a crisis. The companies that have had the best chance of success are those that are the most resilient. What…

In the world of business, there are a lot of people talking about customer service. There are also a lot of people talking about customer experience. Are these folks all talking about the same thing, just with two different terms? I say no – these things are related, but they are not the same. Customer…

Speed matters. It’s definitely true in customer service! When people reach out to you with a question, they expect a response within a reasonable amount of time. If you take too long without getting back to them, they are likely to become frustrated, and move on from doing anything with you. In this week’s video…

For a business to establish a culture of excellent customer service, it must be concerned with two different group: customers and employees. Getting to know your customers and delivering a personalized experience is valuable, and so is focusing on your employees and what they’re passionate about. When they’re able to bring their passions and connect…

Have you ever had to deal with an angry customer? Stay in business for any length of time, and it’s going to happen eventually. So how do you deal with that scenario? It can be tempting to turn it into an argument that you can “win.” But that’s not the right approach. Instead, your goal…

If your business is focused on selling products, there’s a good chance that your competitors are not just other stores in your area, but also (you guessed it!) Amazon. And even if Amazon is not a direct competitor, your customers are developing expectations for customer service based on their experiences with Amazon, and that’s impacting…

When you’re thinking about how to create a positive customer experience, you can’t forget about the sales process. It’s easy to silo sales and customer service, but in the customer’s mind, it’s all part of their experience with your company. I recently went through a sales call that reinforced that message in my mind…for all…

Team meetings are an opportunity to make sure everyone is on the same page. Creating alignment with the entire team is so important for delivering a consistent experience, and moving forward with steady progress toward your goals. A powerful way to make your meetings more effective is to add some sort of ritual, to either…