Posts by Shep Hyken
Is Customer Service the New Marketing?
The line between customer service and marketing is becoming blurred, and some companies are even counting customer service as a marketing expense. Although in the past there were definitive marketing and customer service “departments,” it makes sense to acknowledge their relationship and interaction for the overall good of the company. An investment in customer service,…
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Firing the Customer
Is it ever appropriate for a business to “fire” a customer? Though it sounds counterproductive, there are instances in which ending a business relationship with a client or customer is the right decision. I read a great article in Inc. Magazine by Steve Cody titled Five Customers You Should Fire. In 18 years of doing…
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Meet the Newest Member of the C-Suite: The Chief Customer Officer
To be effective, customer service must go all the way to the top. It’s something I’ve been saying for a long time, and it’s catching on. In many companies, there is now a seat at the boardroom table for the Chief Customer Officer. The CCO has an important job: ensuring that everything the company does…
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You Can Be a Customer Service Hero (Don’t Miss the Opportunity!)
My 20-year-old daughter recently dropped her phone and shattered the screen. It happened as we were leaving a restaurant where we had lunch before taking her to the airport. She was catching a flight to the UK to spend a semester studying abroad. We still had a little time, so we went to the phone…
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Do You Know the Lifetime Value of Your Customer?
I read a surprising statistic recently. It said that four in 10 senior executives in large companies don’t know the lifetime value of their customers. According to MarketingCharts, Forbes and Sitecore conducted a study of 312 senior executives in North American companies and learned that not only did they not know the financial value of…
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Customer Service: What to Do When You Don’t Know
I was recently preparing for an overseas trip and needed information about international calling plans for my mobile phone. I asked my assistant to call my carrier and inquire about the best plan for my needs. Sounds simple, right? Just call and get the information then sign up for the best plan. But it wasn’t…
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Do You Offer Customer Friendly Prices?
Do you offer customer-friendly pricing? Or, are your customers surprised to find that fees, surcharges or other costs have been added to their bill and that their total cost is more than they expected? When this happens, customers can end up feeling like they are being taken advantage of. I was once that customer when…
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Customer Service Strategy: To Serve and Protect
I have been writing customer service articles for more than 25 years, and in that time I have received plenty of feedback. I always appreciate readers’ comments and stories, and a memorable response from Jacques De Villiers brought up the concept of shifting your vocabulary. The idea is that if we call our customers by…
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5 Ways to Lose Your Customer
A sure way to lose customers is to deliver a bad customer service experience. And the customer service doesn’t even have to be flat-out terrible—although that would surely do the trick. But even a lack of concern or an attitude of indifference can make customers question whether they want to continue doing business with you.…
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Customer Service May Rule, But Rules in Customer Service Don’t
Even while on vacation with my family, I can’t help but take note of the customer service—or lack thereof. One resort employee denied a simple request using one of my least favorite phrases: I’m sorry, it’s our rule. Six of us had gathered for an early morning breakfast and wanted to sit together on the…
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