by Earl Moore on May 7, 2006
I was thinking more about customer service and satisfaction. A quick search of the Internet will turn up tons of information on what makes good customer service and what doesn’t. I don’t believe good customer service is terribly complicated. Providing good customer service is basically the act of treating the customer the way you want to be treated. Yes, the “Golden Rule” is really the keystone of good customer service.
So what would this look like?
1. Communications will be prompt and as complete as possible. It also should be in first person if possible. Don’t hide behind the modern technology of electronic communications.
2. Promises are always kept. Don’t make ones you cannot keep.
3. Information your customer wants is provided quickly and completely. Ask to make sure they have everything they need or want.
4. Simplicity is foremost. Make it easy and make it enjoyable, or at least as painless as possible for the customer.
5. Customers importance is recognized and treated accordingly. Give them the individual time and attention they deserve and always treat them fairly.
6. Personal responsible for the customer’s satisfaction is practiced in everything. Understand their needs and take personal responsibility to make things happen for them.
7. Going beyond the normal efforts to help a customer is routine. Make that effort and you will have made a friend of that customer and a friend will come back and tell other friends.
8. Thanking the customer is automatic. Needs no explanation.
Couldn’t these rules be applied to relationships with family, friends, or yes that business customer?
Technorati Tags: Customers, Meandering Passage, Service
by Earl Moore on May 5, 2006
My wife and I are in the process of buying a home and therefore are also in the process of getting a mortgage. Most people would agree that this process is normally not the most positive experience. Sharing personal financial details of your life and history with strangers and having them pass judgement is not my idea of fun. But to my surprise this has been a good experience. What made the difference?
We have been lucky to find someone that still understands and lives the art of customer service and satisfaction. He has went well beyond our service expectations and continues to be engaged and proactive in every step of the process. He also does all of that while clearly exhibiting that this is a normal level of performance for him. I’ve been very impressed.
So this has made me ask myself, do I provide this same level of service to those that are my customers? I regret that the honest answer is probably no. Yet when I reflect on what a difference this persons actions have made for me, in what could have been a difficult situation, I sincerely want to make that same difference for my customers. Who are my customers? Everyone I meet and deal with each day; family, coworkers, friends, and strangers.
What do your customers think or your level of service?
Technorati Tags: Customers, Meandering Passage, Satisfaction, Skillsteps
by Earl Moore on May 1, 2006
Eighteen months ago my wife and I moved. The move was to a neighboring town that was closer to her work but further from mine. Where I’d been commuting only five minutes at a slow drive I’m now 50 minutes at a hard clip. Good situation gone bad for me, right? I wouldn’t agree with that statement.
I look forward to that hour and a half each day. That mindset came a few months after the move, when I purchased an IPod, FM Tuner, and power adapter for my car. Not for music, although I have on occasion used it for that, but for listening to audiobooks. Now when I see a book I want to read, I first search for as an unabridged audiobook. I can listen to two or three books each month during my commute and retain about as much as if I’d read them.
As Kathy Sierra stated in her The myth of “keeping up” post on “Creating Passionate Users” that many of us “have a stack of books, journals, manuals, articles, API docs, and blog printouts that you think you’ll get to.”
I’ll admit that I still can’t keep up, but by using this bit of time wisely I’ve gained a sense of accomplishment and have lessened my “to read” stack considerably. I’ve also lessened the pressure and guilt from being behind and have made a necessary hour and a half commute into production time I look forward to.
Technorati Tags: Meandering Passage, New Skills, Skillsteps
