An incredible amount has been written on the subject of customer service over the years, much of it unnecessarily complicating matters, when really it is nothing more than a simple equation. On the one hand we have the customer's expectation; on the other we have the seller's delivery against that expectation. If the delivery exceeds the expectation, we have customer satisfaction: if it falls short, we don't!
That said, all of the great behind-the scenes systems and technology you put in place to drive a better customer service experience really starts with people. After all, it is people that create and support the system.
As I travel throughout the world speaking and consulting with companies about their customer service, I recently had the good fortune to have a meeting at the Four Seasons in Vail, CO. Recognized as an upscale hotel chain, you can only imagine how diligently they focus on details and have many customer service systems in place. You might even consider them to be "secret systems." For example, when I arrived and the bellman took my luggage from the car, he looked at my luggage tag, and greeted me by name. As I was walking to the front desk to check in he used a walkie-talkie to alert the front desk I was on my way. When I walked up to the front desk, the person checking me into my room was able to use my name without asking me for it.
The secret system married common sense (looking at my luggage tag) with technology (the walkie-talkie) and good old fashion front-line customer service (the fine people at the Four Seasons Resort). It took all three to create that amazing customer service experience. And, with that system in place, the main reason it works is communication. The bellman communicated with the front desk personnel.
One of the employees told me a story that is the perfect example of the "system" working at its best.
Yes, I admit I am being more than a little facetious here, and I also have to confess that I'm not quite as nave as I may appear. In reality, this denigration of customer service is no accident. It is a calculated modification of the offer to make these organisations more competitive, and is a key part of their business plans. It's been happening at trade level for quite a while now too... from the other side of the ledger, an emerging worldwide trend in the department store sector, the move towards the branded shop-within-a-shop concession, puts yet a different slant on it. Many department stores have decided that the appeal of their real estate, measured by their all-important foot traffic, can allow them to hand back the ownership of stock to suppliers. However, shedding the financial burden of stock often breeds complacency, at the expense of customer service, not to mention active selling. This has forced many suppliers to take even greater ownership, often having to resort to implanting their own fully-trained sales staff on site to protect their brand, and to generate an appropriate return on their considerable floor-space investment. It will be interesting to monitor how far this trend will permeate beyond the existing (predominantly fashion) sectors.
It is little wonder then that we are growing to accept poor service, and not only at retail level either. It shows up in my training workshops with the younger participants knowing no different, and the older ones begrudgingly accepting it, as they realise that the use of technology is not only saving costs, but reshaping the demand to fit. Sure, it could be just a sign that 'the times they are a-changing', and that what we are seeing is simply a 'merchandising versus selling' dynamic that we need to take on board as it reaches critical mass and becomes the norm. However, good old-fashioned customer service is not dead yet, and without exception, my trainees (yes, even including the GEN Y contingent) walk away from the sessions applauding this lowering of expectation, and armed with an enthusiastic plan to capitalise on the dearth of personalised service offered elsewhere. These trends should get us excited too, because the more expectations get driven down like this all around us, the easier it is for the professionals among us to stand tall, and to exceed them. Even so, it doesn't come automatically.
That said, all of the great behind-the scenes systems and technology you put in place to drive a better customer service experience really starts with people. After all, it is people that create and support the system.
As I travel throughout the world speaking and consulting with companies about their customer service, I recently had the good fortune to have a meeting at the Four Seasons in Vail, CO. Recognized as an upscale hotel chain, you can only imagine how diligently they focus on details and have many customer service systems in place. You might even consider them to be "secret systems." For example, when I arrived and the bellman took my luggage from the car, he looked at my luggage tag, and greeted me by name. As I was walking to the front desk to check in he used a walkie-talkie to alert the front desk I was on my way. When I walked up to the front desk, the person checking me into my room was able to use my name without asking me for it.
The secret system married common sense (looking at my luggage tag) with technology (the walkie-talkie) and good old fashion front-line customer service (the fine people at the Four Seasons Resort). It took all three to create that amazing customer service experience. And, with that system in place, the main reason it works is communication. The bellman communicated with the front desk personnel.
One of the employees told me a story that is the perfect example of the "system" working at its best.
Yes, I admit I am being more than a little facetious here, and I also have to confess that I'm not quite as nave as I may appear. In reality, this denigration of customer service is no accident. It is a calculated modification of the offer to make these organisations more competitive, and is a key part of their business plans. It's been happening at trade level for quite a while now too... from the other side of the ledger, an emerging worldwide trend in the department store sector, the move towards the branded shop-within-a-shop concession, puts yet a different slant on it. Many department stores have decided that the appeal of their real estate, measured by their all-important foot traffic, can allow them to hand back the ownership of stock to suppliers. However, shedding the financial burden of stock often breeds complacency, at the expense of customer service, not to mention active selling. This has forced many suppliers to take even greater ownership, often having to resort to implanting their own fully-trained sales staff on site to protect their brand, and to generate an appropriate return on their considerable floor-space investment. It will be interesting to monitor how far this trend will permeate beyond the existing (predominantly fashion) sectors.
It is little wonder then that we are growing to accept poor service, and not only at retail level either. It shows up in my training workshops with the younger participants knowing no different, and the older ones begrudgingly accepting it, as they realise that the use of technology is not only saving costs, but reshaping the demand to fit. Sure, it could be just a sign that 'the times they are a-changing', and that what we are seeing is simply a 'merchandising versus selling' dynamic that we need to take on board as it reaches critical mass and becomes the norm. However, good old-fashioned customer service is not dead yet, and without exception, my trainees (yes, even including the GEN Y contingent) walk away from the sessions applauding this lowering of expectation, and armed with an enthusiastic plan to capitalise on the dearth of personalised service offered elsewhere. These trends should get us excited too, because the more expectations get driven down like this all around us, the easier it is for the professionals among us to stand tall, and to exceed them. Even so, it doesn't come automatically.
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