CUSTOMER SERVICE
Cutting Service Costs Without Cutting Service
How do you add value when there are no more resources to fund
the addition? Imaginative service!
“DELIGHT YOUR CUSTOMER!” “Exceed your clients’ expectations!”
“Provide value-added service!” These phrases have been the mantras
of customer service gurus for a long time. Such a focus on
“delivering more” has no doubt raised the quality of service for
many organizations. But, what’s an organization to do when tight
profit margins get even tighter? How do you add value when there are
no more resources to fund the addition? In a phrase: imaginative
service! The notion that exceptional customer service must cost more
is pure myth.
Imaginative service is different than exceeding customer
expectations. Ask customers what actions would be value added and
they will focus on taking the expected experience to a higher level
— meaning “they gave me more than I anticipated.” It’s the
upgrade, the complimentary dessert or the baker’s dozen. But,
imaginative service is not about addition, it’s about creation. When
employees are asked to give more, they think to themselves, “I am
already doing the best I can.” But, if they are asked to pleasantly
surprise more customers, they feel less like worker bees and more
like fireflies — they feel they are part of an adventure.
Imaginative service is sourced in joy and fun. It comes from the
same part of the soul that plans a prank, organizes a party or does
a favor for a friend. When that part is used regularly, it raises
self-esteem, increases resilience and improves morale. Take a look
at Fortune magazine’s annual “Best Companies in America to
Work For” and you will find they serve their customers a large
plateful of imaginative service. They also boast the lowest
turnover, the best recruits, the highest productivity and the
greatest profits.
“Take their breath away” service is about a quest for being
remarkable. “Remarkable takes originality, passion, guts and
daring,” wrote Seth Godin in his best-selling book Purple Cow.
“Not just because going through life with passion and guts beats the
alternative (which it does), but because it’s the only way to be
successful. Today, the one sure way to fail is to be boring. Your
one chance for success is to be remarkable.”
Below are six ways to deliver “take their breath away” service.
1. Ramp up the use of the five senses. The effective use of
sense cries not just for congruence but for creativity. Take it from
Billy Rivera of Karaoke Cab in Charlotte, N.C., who has a novel
approach to a mundane service. With a laptop in the front seat next
to him and a screen scrolling the words on the back of the seat that
the passengers can view, he offers customers a choice of over 39,000
songs. Some passengers so enjoy the wild sing-a-long, they ask Billy
to keep driving around the block until the song ends, not minding
while the meter continues to run.
2. Look at your service through new eyes. Make a list of
great service providers. Now pick a service offering or service
process of yours. Then, brainstorm ways that those service greats
might reinvent your service offering or process. What if a great
Lexus dealership service department could be in charge of your
service department for a week? If the Geek Squad at Best Buy ran
your IT department, what would customers likely notice changed?
3. Know your customers well. When now retired “Coach” Jim
Miller was the CEO of Miller Business Systems in Arlington, Texas,
he held a monthly customer appreciation day. Miller Business (now
Corporate Express) provides office supplies to businesses. On
customer appreciation day, Miller employees constructed posters of
the spotlighted customer company complete with displays of what the
company did or made. All employees wore special “We love --_____”
buttons. A special luncheon gave employees a chance to meet and talk
with customer contact people they formerly only knew as a voice on
the phone. The best part of the day was the opportunity for the
customer’s employees to observe Miller warehouse workers “picking”
the customer’s actual pending order!
4. Go the extra mile. Chanaka Demel was working the front
desk at the Holiday Inn Select hotel at the Toronto Airport when two
men came in to register late one evening. The guests communicated
their anger over the fact that the airline had lost their luggage.
Both men were scheduled for important interviews beginning early the
next morning and did not have the proper clothes. Realizing both
guests were about his size, Chanaka went home to secure two business
suits, complete with shirts and all the appropriate accessories for
the guests. They returned to the hotel late the next afternoon after
completing a successful day of interviews in Chanaka’s clothes.
“He’s a miracle worker,” the men told the general manager. “We plan
to tell everyone to stay at this hotel in the future.”
5. Always be generous. Bouquets is an award-winning flower
shop located in downtown Denver near many parking meters as well as
a bus stop. Many businesses refuse to give change for meters and
buses, except to customers, because it depletes their cash till and
takes employee time to go to the bank for more change. Bouquets
replenishes a bag of quarters daily, specifically designed to make
change for anyone who asks, says co-owner B.J. Dyer. “Coins are
offered with a smile and a business card. Many people later become
our customers when they need flowers.” Dyer adds, “But, even if they
didn’t, we get a kick out of treating people different from the way
others treat them.”
6. Be worthy of customer trust. Trusting actions can be as
small as the cup of pennies next to the cash register with a sign
that reads, “Got a penny, give a penny; need a penny, take a penny.”
Or the dry cleaner’s poster on the wall that says, “We do
take personal checks.” Examine the signs around your organization
that say “don’t,” “no” or other negatives. Can the same message be
communicated in a more trusting way? And in the back room, out of
sight from the customer, put reminders for employees to think
through the customer’s eyes. Would you like your company for a
service provider if you were the customer? What signals do your
actions send to your customers?
Imaginative service can ramp up customer devotion. Devoted customers
spend more, forgive more and become strong advocates — an extension
of your sales and marketing units. Devoted customers cost less to
serve because they know your operation and they defend you, even if
they know you sometimes come up short. As the crown jewels of the
organization, they can be the source of savings and the foundation
of profits. Help your employees stop making your customers say “wow”
and start saying “whoa!” Value-added delight can often be an
expense, but imaginative service is always an investment with a high
return.
Chip R. Bell is the founder of The Chip Bell Group, headquartered
near Dallas. John Patterson is president of Progressive Insights,
Inc., a CBG alliance company. Their newest book is Take Their
Breath Away: How Imaginative Service Creates Devoted Customers.
They can be reached through www.taketheirbreathaway.com.
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T R E N D S
Not advertising in a recession can harm image
In today’s soft economy, many small businesses are reducing their
advertising budgets as a means to save money. However, over 48% of
U.S. adults believe that a lack of advertising by a retail store,
bank or auto dealership during a recession indicates the business
must be struggling, according to a study by Ad-ology Research.
Advertising appears to play a key role in consumers’ view of how a
business is doing, and by not advertising, businesses may be sending
a warning signal to current and potential customers.
“Advertising not only assures consumers of a business’ reliability
in a soft economy, but it can influence where and what they buy,
especially when the ads address concerns about value,” said C. Lee
Smith, president and CEO of Ad-ology.
Other findings from the study include: 40% of consumers use coupons
more now than a year ago; a “deeply discounted price” was the
number-one factor that would make consumers more likely to purchase
a big-ticket item; TV, newspaper, direct mail and Internet top local
media from which consumers saw/heard an ad within the last 30 days
that led them to take action; and store websites ranked second only
to search engines as the way buyers research products and shop
online.
Source: SmallBusinessNewz.com, May 13, 2009
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N E W S
Rethinking the first-mover advantage
Conventional wisdom says being first to market creates a competitive
advantage. Reality is more complicated. Market opportunities are
constantly opening and closing, and a hit idea at one point could be
a dud a year earlier or a yawning “me too” business a year later.
New academic research suggests the decision to enter a market first
or wait on the sidelines depends on how hostile the learning
environment is; that is, how much entrepreneurs can learn by
observing other players before they launch compared to what they
learn from participating after they enter, according to Moren
Levesque, an entrepreneurship researcher at the University of
Waterloo.
According to the research findings, in a hostile learning
environment, entrepreneurs gain relatively little benefit by
watching others. For example, if the relevant knowledge is protected
intellectual property, studying the market before entering wouldn’t
yield much advantage. In these situations, the trade-off favors
entering early. But in less hostile learning environments, where
entrepreneurs gain valuable information likely to increase their
success just by watching other companies, companies benefit from
waiting and learning lessons from earlier players.
“If you enter early, you are more of a pioneer. You can have a
competitive advantage,” by locking in key customers, suppliers or
intellectual property, says Levesque. “If you cannot do any of this,
then it may not be a good strategy, because there is always a cost
to being a pioneer.” But deciding when to enter a market solely on
the advantages of learning is not enough. Entrepreneurs also need to
launch before an opportunity closes.
Source: BusinessWeek, May 19, 2009
Display ad clicks don’t provide whole picture
It appears that online display ads are more effective than we think.
Search engine marketing firm iProspect released a study that
highlights how almost as many Web surfers note the information on
display ads, and plug it into search engines to do further research,
as those who immediately click directly on the advertisements.
Hence, display ads provide more conversions than some believe. And,
more than that, the study shows that display ads can directly lead
to search.
The study finds that, of those who visit ad-supported websites, 31%
respond to display advertisements by directly clicking on them.
Another 27% launch search engines and investigate the product, brand
or company; and 21% directly navigate to the advertiser’s site.
Overall, 52% of respondents say they actively respond to online
display advertising.
To take advantage of this phenomenon, iProspect recommends that your
search strategy include important keywords from the display
advertisements. Also, figure out a method to properly credit each
channel that leads to the eventual sale.
Source: targetmarketingmag.com, May 13, 2009
New COBRA rule hits small businesses
One lesser-known provision in the federal stimulus bill has lots of
small business owners griping: the COBRA extension.
Under the terms of the stimulus bill, recently laid-off workers get
a discount on their continuing employer-sponsored health-care
coverage, known as COBRA (Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation
Act). Instead of paying the whole premium — which can easily exceed
$1,000 per month — workers pay only 35%. The sticking point for
their former employers is that they have to pay the remaining 65%,
for up to nine months. The law applies to companies with 20 or more
employees.
The companies aren’t expected to bear the cost forever. Businesses
can withhold the amount of the payments from their next federal tax
bill. Even so, the temporary payment is a tough pill to swallow for
small companies that are experiencing cash crunches.
Source: The Wall Street Journal’s Independent Street blog,
April 23, 2009
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T I P S
- Get people talking about your business by offering something
outrageous. For example, rather than offering the common “lifetime
warranty,” a Swedish furniture company guarantees its products for 300
years. In another example, Trader Joe’s sells a 10-pound chocolate bar.
How many do they sell? It doesn’t matter. People talk about it, take
pictures and tell their friends.
Source: www.damniwish.com
- Save marketing dollars by profiling your top customers.
What do they have in common? Is it an industry or a role? A similar
problem or challenge? A quality of temperament, habit or attitude?
The answers form a profile of the kind of prospects you should
pursue. Then think about how you attracted your top customers. Did
they come to your website first? Or respond to a direct mail
campaign? Or meet you at a conference? Again, whatever worked, do
more of that, and consider trimming back the rest.
Source: www.marketingprofs.com
- When looking for publicity, look local first. Local
television stations, radio stations, newspapers, etc., are all
excellent options to ensure good PR as well as free publicity. One
way to attract their interest is to check national news for items of
interest and compile your own story but as it applies to the local
community. Also, do not neglect the local radio stations in your
area, but keep in mind that most are geared more toward
entertainment than news. Finally, the most read section of most
newspapers and magazines is the letters-to-the-editor pages, where
readers comment on various issues of interest. And you shouldn’t
miss out on sharing your opinion as a local expert there, too.
Source: www.cherrycommunications.com
-
If you are behind on your taxes, you may be tempted to
ignore the problem, hoping to deal with it when things get better.
However, now may be the best time to take care of the problem. If
you are underemployed or your income tax is low, the tax authorities
are more likely to issue forgiveness or take a much-reduced amount
on what you owe. They are showing a bit more flexibility because of
the economic times. While it’s possible to negotiate on your own
behalf, it may be better to have a certified accountant or tax
attorney negotiate for you. Be leery of companies that advertise on
TV to reduce your taxes. Many are overpriced for what they offer.
Source: www.businessweek.com
- Build a steady stream of referred leads with this simple
tactic: During your lead conversion process, mention that “we know
you’ll be so thrilled with our business that in 60 days we’ll check
to make sure you’re thrilled, then ask you to suggest three others
who you know would love this result. Is that a deal?” Don’t overlook
the ease of how this works. It’s powerful!
Source: www.entrepreneur.com
- Changing a few words can dramatically improve your sales
closing ratio. This idea originally came from a restaurant owner who
was frustrated by his large number of reservation no-shows. He told
his receptionists to stop saying, “Please call us if you change your
plans,” and start saying, “Will you call us if you change your
plans?” His no-show rate dropped from 30% to 10%. By asking a
question and eliciting a response, he created a sense of obligation.
How can this help you in sales? Asking, “May I send you some
information?” is only asking the prospect to give you permission.
However, saying “If I send you some information, will you look it
over and we can talk again in a few weeks?” is asking the prospect
to commit to the next step. People like to honor their commitments.
If they have only given you permission, why would they care what
happens next? But, if they’ve committed to doing something, odds are
good they’ll do it. Make it your goal on every call to ask “Will
you...?” as opposed to “May I...?”
Source: www.telesalessuccess.com
- Give employees a “time-out” to combat burnout. Your best
employees may step up and work extra hard during tough times.
However, over time, their performance may wane. Encourage a
burned-out employee to take a “mini-sabbatical” when you notice a
downturn. Taking even an extra day — without sacrificing vacation
time — may rejuvenate them. Make sure they understand that this is
not a disciplinary action for slipping performance — it is simply a
break so they can return to their regular level of high performance.
Make sure that the time off doesn’t stress the rest of the team,
potentially causing resentments. Pitch in yourself as necessary to
take care of the workload.
Source: Manager’s Edge, 2807 N. Parham Rd., Richmond, VA 23294
- Increase your email marketing response by using
navigation bars in your messages. According to a recent survey of
email marketers by eROI, 62% of respondents said that menu bars were
more effective than, or as effective as, the main email content when
it comes to driving clicks. You can use the same navigation bar that
is in your website or just pick your top five or six site
destinations.
Source: www.bizreport.com
- Write engaging sales copy for today’s short attention
spans. No matter how gripping your writing is, the majority of
people will only read the first few lines before skipping to the end
for the cost. Consider breaking up larger thoughts into small,
mentally-digestible “chunks” for easy, quick scanning. Less really
is more. Whittle down your copy to the raw benefits that directly
engage readers by continually asking yourself “so what?” For
example: “XYZ company can save you up to $500 on your car insurance
be helping your get a free quote online” So what? “Put an extra $500
in your pocket today.” Now I’m listening! If it doesn’t pass the “so
what?” test, leave it out.
Source: www.copyblogger.com
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