Customer Service

For many businesses, summers tend to move slowly. The days are longer, the weather is nicer, and most businesses report experiencing a lull during the hotter months. While that’s not necessarily bad, it can still affect how a business runs. Since the end of September marks the end of the fiscal year, having a slower…

Problems can and will happen in any business. Resolving the problem—and resolving it in the right way—can help to get customers to come back. Don’t compound the frustrations of a mistake by failing to apologize and communicate effectively throughout the process. A recent experience I had with lost luggage is a great illustration!

We’re quickly approaching a pretty important date for customer service: the quarterly “Get to Know Your Customer” Day! This time around it’s on April 15. So what should you be doing to get the most out of this business “holiday”? I have three suggestions I want to share right now: focus on feedback, conduct a…

The ER strategy is a great way to improve your business’s processes and customer experience. No, I’m not talking about the Emergency Room, so don’t worry! It’s like this. Do you return customers’ calls quickly? Try to return them quickER! Are you worried about making your communication clear? Go the next step to make it…

What causes the most problems in your business? Is it that your employees are not living up to your expectations? Or (hint hint…) is it more likely that there’s something wrong with your process, your system, that is causing the problems? While people can fail (and you can help and coach them when they do),…

As you think about your relationship with a customer, when does the customer experience start? A common mistake some people make is to think of customer service as really only beginning once the sale is made. But in actuality, that’s just the encore. What do I mean by that? It’s something I’ve learned from my…

I think that anyone whose job includes dealing with other peoples’ problems or questions needs three specific traits: empathy, communication skills, and resilience. This can include not just customer service, but also those tasked with handling the “inside customer,” people inside the organization. In this week’s video, we’re especially focused on resilience, and how it…

When you hear stories about spectacular customer service, it’s easy to fall into the trap of thinking that you have to come up with something BIG to deliver a great experience. But really, you just need to focus on small changes, at each step in the customer journey. Each one may not seem like much…

Have you empowered your team to create a great experience for your customers? One thing I’ve pointed out frequently is that your customers aren’t just comparing you to your direct competitors; they’re also comparing your customer experience with every other company they do business with. And there are some companies that have set an incredibly…

The way to create an excellent customer experience isn’t just to compare yourself to your direct competitors, but to the companies that provide the best service to your customers, no matter what industry they’re in. Customers don’t just compare you to the alternative down the street; they compare you to every company they do business…