Customer-Service

Complaints in Your Business

2005-10-31T09:22:00.000-08:00

By Lance Winslow

Generally when a business gets a complaint, only one, they can look the other way unless it is a very large client. Yet when they get two about the same perceived problem, then the businessperson ought to stop and consider the source of both complaints. Why is that you say; two complaints is not a lot really? True enough indeed, let me tell you why two complaints might actually be 40-60 complaints instead of the two that you actually heard about.

You see regarding the "only 2nd person to ever complain theory” that is somewhat irrelevant as I am sure you as a businessperson have thought of this issue yourself at one time. After all it is your business and you probably know most everything going on in it, right? Well you see then that makes three.

I am sure you have heard from business books and have listen to on Cassette Tapes of Motivational Business Speakers and Leaders that if one person complains then 20 people are upset but only one person said something. So if you think that when two people complain it means nothing then you are telling me that 40 people are worried about this, but you do not care about 40 people or customers in your business.

Indeed if you observed this issue too, whatever it is that drew these complaints from otherwise happy customers then you had thought of it too yourself, so this makes another 20. So in reality there are 60 people who are concerned, worried or thinking about it. You see my point? Now how long have you been in business; oh, it doesn’t matter anyway, you see; If you fail to adequately address such issues then you will soon not have to worry about your business, for you will have none to worry about. Think on that.

"Lance Winslow" - If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; http://www.WorldThinkTank.net/wttbbs

What Is Real Customer Service?

2005-10-31T09:21:00.000-08:00

By Anthony Bloch

On Tuesday I walked into a store and was browsing around for a particular product. The store didn't have it. I approached a customer service representative and asked them where I could find the item.
After receiving some blank stares, I was told that they didn't know where I could find the product.

I went home and spent a couple of hours trying to track down the product. I eventually did and placed my order.
This incident led me to ask, what is real customer service?
Is real customer service providing value and service to paying customers only? Do you have an obligation to help the customer even when you don't carry an item?

I would say that good customer service is always looking out for the interests of your customer, even when a sale will not occur. If your customer is looking for a particular item or service and you can help them get it, even from a different vendor, I believe you have a duty to the customer to inform them of that information.

This recently happened with one of my customers. I didn't carry the item but I knew where that person could find it and directed her to that vendor.

Why would I do that?
The reason is goodwill. Putting your customer first will create goodwill for you and your business. Many customers will remember the dedication and quality customer service that you provided and may be inclined to visit you in the future.
so future sales may be materialized.

The vendor that you referred the customer to may also be inclined to forward their customers to you. Many vendors will appreciate the business that you sent them and will send customers to you when their inventory of a certain product doesn't exist.

Finally, you should do it for your customer. Putting the customer first will foster an environment where you will be more likely to provide a special experience for your customers.

Anthony B. is the founder and owner of http://ItsTheRightWay.com a news, political and sports commentary website.

Anthony has over 7 years of experience as a business professional

How To Lose A Customer In Ten Easy Steps

2005-10-31T09:20:00.000-08:00

By Terry Wisner

Certainly, we’ve all observed the scene unfold: A salesperson behaving in a fashion that indicates he or she desperately wants to lose their customer. You know, that behavior that reminds you of a hungry bear stalking spawning salmon. Unfortunately, every one of us has experienced this wonderful feeling of disrespect. Having performed at many levels in the sales process, I have no idea why sales people act this way, but the fact is they do.

Throughout the years, I have had the opportunity to deliver my “Selling Skills” workshops to thousands of sales people. Often, I ask half of the participants to brainstorm the attributes of “Good” sales people, and the other half to brainstorm the same for “Bad” salespeople. As you might guess, the majority of the descriptions on one list are the exact opposite of those items on the other list. Participants can always create more examples of negative traits for sales folks. When asked why the list of negative characteristics is longer, participants always say they better remember their negative experiences (they can't forget it.)
Therefore, I feel a sense of obligation to share the following traits of ineffective sales practices to make everyone aware of them. This way (and I have no idea why you would want to) you can easily lose customer after customer. Study these traits carefully, and you too can be recognized as… well let’s just say, a not so good salesman or saleswoman.

1-Focus only on your quota not their needs. This is a really good one and one that is easy to do. Simply tell them what they need to buy without asking any questions. After all, you need to get your numbers up, and that’s all that’s important. You can see how this could upset a customer or client.

2-Dump all the data (aka features and benefits) you have on the customer. Tell them all the reasons you can possibly think of as to why they need your product or service. This step is especially successful when you use technical data and industry or company acronyms. Try to impress them with how much you know…that will turn them off for sure.

3-Talk down to them, particularly women. This technique is effective with everybody, but it’s very effective for men to use on women. If you are trying to sell to a person, just talk to them like they are as “dumb as a box of rocks.” Not only can this show how much you know, it will put them in their place and quite likely will force them out of the showroom, store, or for sure away from your “service” desk.

4-Show them you don’t care. If, by chance, you do slip up and ask an open or closed question, it is easy to recover. When the customer begins to describe their needs and wants, simply do one or more of the following;
•Don’t make eye contact

•Cross your arms and look at the floor

•Act distracted, look outside, or better yet talk to somebody else

•Never write down a thing- that always makes them think you’re listening

•And of course answer a phone or one that always works- make a phone call
Remember, non-verbal communication tells more then the spoken word.

5-Maintain preconceived notions and assumptions. After all, you can usually tell a “dead-beat” as soon as they drive in the lot or walk in the door. You can almost always know who’s going to buy and who’s not going to buy. This ability may take a new salesperson several months to learn, but it is very effective in turning away potential customers. Incidentally, this ability is best learned from experienced sales people that have work many different sales jobs over the years.

6-Minimize customer concerns. Of course they have concerns, but the sure way to turn them off is to act like their concerns are petty and they should be embarrassed to even bring them up. This one also works best if you roll your eyes in disbelief when they express a concern. If that doesn’t get them to leave, try going back to dumping all the data you have, that should do it. Brushing off customers concerns and proceeding with your “sales pitch” can leave your customer believing you don’t care about them.

7-Criticize the competition. Shooting down the competition not only shows how much you know about your product and the passion you have for losing customers, but it also gives you the opportunity to embarrass them again. You can be sure that they or one of their friends or family have purchased the product or service you are condemning. You can really hit a nerve with this one.

8-Evoke the 20/80 rule. Many sales experts maintain that the sales person should talk only 20% of the time in the sales interaction. That kind of behavior will never chase a customer away to procure elsewhere. Although it may be difficult for some of you, try to talk at least 80%, and listen only 20% of the time. However, I will just bet, you have seen some professional “customer losers” that talk nearly 100% of the time. That reminds me of the old saying, “I have never heard of a salesperson that listened their way out of a sale.”

9-Poor hygiene can also turn away those annoying customers. Of course overall sloppiness and that disheveled, “I just rolled out of bed” look can give them the impression that you not only don’t care about them, but you don’t even care about yourself. Now let’s get a little more personal about a couple of things. First, bad breath, it nearly always turns people off. So be sure to only brush at the end of your work day. Note: it is also very effective to have alcohol on your breath, but don’t drink it, just swish it around a bit then spit it out. Secondly, body odor. This one can really be helpful in forcing customers to say no thanks and RUN out the door. Note: This is very successful when combined with not honoring a person’s “space.” Get as close to them as possible.

10-Never stop closing the sale. Go to close as quickly as possible then keep closing as you walk them out the door. This is best if used even before they try to express any concerns. Once they are out the door, forget about them and never follow-up with a customer. That may give them the thought that you really do care. All good sales people recognize that customers want their salesperson to really care about them and their business.

Using one or more of these behaviors will help you lose your customer. As I said before, I don’t know why anyone would want to lose a customer, but we have all seen and experienced sales people acting in the manner outlined above. Getting people in the door is tough these days, why turn them off and send them away? Why exhibit any of these behaviors? If you have reason to believe you may occasionally be guilty of conducting yourself in one or more of the manners described above, then you need to learn more about selling skills. Next, you should plan to change and commit to changing your existing behaviors. Only then can you begin to see a true change in both your actions and in the number of customers you “lose”.

Terry Wisner founded Partnering To Success to help others be more successful in all their business and/or personal goals. Business owners, sales and leadership teams have found the Partnering To Success process can help them become what they want. Terry has traveled worldwide to train sales teams and business owners about what needs to be done (goals, aims, objectives, targets, ambitions, aspirations, et cetera) and how to properly plan to accomplish it. He knows how to communicate effective customer retention. Contact him to see if he can help you or your organization through one of his keynote speeches or an in-house seminar. Learn more about Partnering To Success at http://www.p2s.us or http://www.partneringtosuccess.com see how the process can help you be more successful.

Increase Sales and Improve Customer Service: Tips for Organizational Stress Management

2005-10-31T09:16:00.000-08:00

By L. John Mason

Your best and your brightest can be even better if your organization can support them. The best practices of organzational stress management have been listed for you to choose from. Find the ones that will work best for your organization.

You may also find that by using these tools you will improve your retention of your key people and may be more attractive to the best talent in your search and hiring program.

The top 19 tips:

1. Focus groups…discuss

2. Survey employees regarding issues and possible solutions

3. Divide issues into ones where there is control and ones where is NO control

a. Acceptance of no control

b. Possible solutions or enhanced practices (Tackle the difficult situations and with action and solid follow-through…with accountability)

4. Invite input and participation from every sector and all personnel

5. Educate or at least update all personnel regularly and have supervisors explain the roles and expectations that will accompany any changes/transitions (help create “buy-in” for each of your “key” personnel.)

6. Get support networks developed and working

7. Create recognition for positive organization stress management suggestions (reward positive participation, celebrate the best suggestions…follow through)

8. Get leadership to role model stress management- positive re-enforcement for individuals or groups that demonstrate improvement.

9. Educate all personnel on how and when to use EAPs (Employee Assistance Programs)

10. Reduce stigma of admitting effects of stress by training/educating personnel on why we are more stressed now than ever before in history (reduces sense of weakness)

11. Gather statistics on retention (costs) and sick time (or even stress related workers compensation claims) so you can determine if the stress management program is working (to improve negative stats.)

12. Teach managers to really listen!

13. Reduce availability of stressors: noise, crowding, caffeine, noxious odors (or people.)

14. Create time and space for stress management practices (for individuals or possibly groups/teams)

15. Create organizational play/fun

16. Teach meeting management, for less wasted time… and less stressful meetings

17. Get people physically active as a stress management tool (Exercise and empowerment)

18. Allow for balance of work/family…. (Family leave time, honored)

19. Celebrate diversity/differences of style-behavior, values, attitudes (know that variations create balance and solid organizations.) Enhanced communication workshops…

L. John Mason, Ph.D. is the author of the best selling "Guide to Stress Reduction." Since 1977, he has offered Executive Coaching and Organizational Training.

Please visit the Stress Education Center's website at http://www.dstress.com for articles, free ezine signup, and learn about the new telecourses that are available.

Trainings or Coaching is available for your organization in:
Stress Management, Communication, Manager Development, Team Building, Effective Meeting Management, Productivity, Quality of Life, Leadership, Increasing Sales and Service, and Diversity.

CRM Vendors Plows Rapidly Adding Analytical Capabilities

2005-10-31T09:13:00.000-08:00

By S. Maurer

One of the keys of CRM success is acting on the understanding that customers plows the intended end-users of CRM systems, not the staff of the organization that is deploying the system.

CRM vendors plows rapidly adding analytical capabilities to their applications, which will better enable their customers to leverage customer it dates that is scattered throughout their networks.

A lot of clients think they can go to a vendor and get CRM. Instead, they get a few components. They buy a suite of front-office applications. But do they have all the channels and the technology, all the functionality and the services to really enable CRM?. It takes multiple technologies and multiple vendors to pull this off.

You need a managerially useful, end-to-end view of the CRM process from a marketing perspective. The basic perspective taken is that of the customer, not the company. In other words, what do managers need to know about their customers and how is that information used to develop a complete CRM perspective?

Many companies invested in CRM solutions based partly on promises of ROI. However, too many plows left wondering what happened to the return that was promised. Fortunately, dates analytics holds promise it goes addressing the problem.

It is difficult to state precisely what CRM Customer Relationship Management means to everyone. Ironically, the term is also applied in those aspects of business that even remotely interacts with a customer. Understanding the concept of CRM will help in decisions relating Customer relationship management product, CRM software and CRM solutions.

Publishing Guidelines: You may publish my article in your newsletter, on your website or in your print publication provided you include the resource box at the end. Notification would be appreciated but is not required.

By S. Maurer

S. Maurer is a 53-years old college graduated IT professional, with 30 years of experience in the computer & technology business. Now is the Correspondence Courses Director of http://mba-open-university.net and http://distance-learning-mba-online-mba-program-executive-jobs.net.

Five Secrets to Showing Your Customers You Really Care

2005-10-18T11:35:00.000-07:00

By Ed Sykes

During our recent online poll, we asked the following
question:

What upsets you the most when receiving poor customer
service?

Eighty percent of the poll participants said the “I don’t care
attitude” of the person serving them upsets them the most.

Businesses lose billions of dollars of revenue each year because customers feel the organizations don’t care about their business enough to make an effort to keep them. It
takes five times more effort to win over a new customer than to keep an existing customer.

Then why does this happen? No training or poor training has a lot to do with it.

Here are five secrets to showing your customers you really do care about their situations when interacting with them:

1. Listen!

Take the time to listen to the “pain” the customer is trying to share with you. There is a reason why we have two ears and one mouth. Listen for the content and not the method of communication the customer is using. Use active listen skills
such as

* Nodding your head

* Leaning forward to show interest

* Saying “I hear what you saying,” “I see what you mean,” or “tell me more”

* Stop doing something else and devoted all your attention to listening.

* Look at the customer

* Be patience and not interrupt the customer before adding
your thoughts

You might be the first person that day that took time to listen
to that person. Make the most of it.

2. Respond

Respond to the customer in the following ways:

* Use inflection in your voice (avoid sounding monotone)

* Don’t use “whatever,” “yeah, right,” “if you say so”

3. Check your body language

Make sure your body language is saying to the customer, “I
want to help you.” Make sure you are doing the following:

* Smile

* Stand erect

* Hands at your side, but never on your hips

* Avoid leaning against the counter or slouching in the chair(especially while speaking on the telephone as the customer can hear your disinterest)

* Look and act alive

4. Show Empathy (Understand the Pain)

Show the customers that you understand their “pain.” Make comments such as

“I can understand why you would feel that way.”

“If I were in your shoes I would feel the same way”

“I would be disappointed, too, if that happened to me.”

Most customers just want to be listened to and understood.
Show them that you understand their “pain” and solution come much earlier.

5. Commit to Action

Let the customer know that action will be taken; and then
act. One without the other is just a broken promise. Share
with the customer your clear plan of action such as the following:

“I am personally going to take care of this for you. What we are going to do is…”

“I need to get additional information before I take care of this for you. I am going to talk with my manager. Would you mind waiting?”

These are just some of the tools you can use to keep your customers happy and increase revenues. Apply them today to show that you care about your customers.

Ed Sykes is a professional speaker, author, and success coach in the areas of leadership, motivation, stress management, customer service, and team building. You can e-mail him at mailto:esykes@thesykesgrp.com, or call him at (757) 427-7032. Go to his web site,http://www.thesykesgrp.com, and signup for the newsletter,OnPoint, and receive the free ebook, "Secrets, Stories, and Tips for Marvelous Customer Service."

Ten Customer Service Secrets to Win Back Customers

2005-10-18T11:31:00.000-07:00

By Ed Sykes

Recently I was facilitating an Outstanding Customer Service
program and broke for lunch. Knowing that the restaurants
in the area had much to desire as far as service I gave the
students an extra fifteen minutes for lunch.

Sure enough a group of four students came rushing into the classroom with their lunches in hand. They sincerely
apologized and quickly explained that they receive poor
service at a restaurant (This restaurant is part of a national
chain. Hint: its name references a day in the week. I can’t
give you the complete answer.). They went on to explain
that after the waiter initially took their order, they waited 45
minutes before their food finally arrived. During the wait, no
one came to check on them.

They went on to explain the food finally came and it was time
to leave for class. They were not happy. They asked to see
the restaurant manager. The manager sheepishly came to
see them and asked, "What was the problem?" One of my
students explained the situation to which the restaurant
manager replied, "The food ticket only shows you were
waiting for eleven minutes." My students were not happy
and expressed it to which the manager asked them, "Would
you like dessert?" My students again expressed they were
not happy. Each time my students expressed their
unhappiness, the manager would say she was sorry. My
students weren’t buying it. The manager then left without
explaining where and what she was doing. The manager
returned and told my students that their meals were free.
Even though the manager gave them free meals my students
said they will never go back to that restaurant or any other
restaurant in that chain.

So why weren’t these customers happy? The restaurant had
an opportunity to turn a difficult customer service experience
into a winning situation for all and squandered it. Not only
will these patrons, my students, never go back to any
restaurant in that chain but how many other people will they
tell about their unhappy experience? The unhappy
customer, on average, will tell 27 other people about their
experience. With the use of the Internet, whether web pages
or e-mail, that number can increase in the thousands, if not
millions with the click of a button. However, according to
the Department of Consumer Affairs, 82-95% of unhappy
customers will come back if impressed and actually refer five
new customers.

Let’s take a look at the ten secrets that will not only win back
your customer in any situation, but have them referring new
customers, but will add more money to your bottom line
revenue.

1. Smile

Nothing can turn a hostile situation into position moment
faster than a sincere smile. A smile that says, "I want to help
you in a positive way." It communicates you are positive
about the interaction with the customer. A sincere smile
enhances the communication process so that you can find
the solution faster.

2. Introduce Yourself as the Solution Creator

Make sure you introduce yourself, find out the customer’s
name, and let your customer know your position and why
you are there. This lets the customer know you are taking
responsibility to creating a solution for them. You might say
something like:
"Hello, my name is Mike. I am the manager at this location. I
am here to assist you in this situation, please tell me about
it."

Notice I didn't say, "What’s the problem?" By using
"What’s the problem?" you start the customer service
situation in a negative note. The customer is thinking
"You’re the problem," "This establishment is the problem,"
"The whole world is the problem," etc. By starting your
conversation with "I am here to assist you in this situation,
please tell me about it" you are setting up a "verbal
agreement" in the customer’s mind to move to a solution.
Note: If possible, please use the customer’s name
throughout the conversation.

3. Listen

Customers want tell their side of the story and feel like they
are only heard but you listened to them. Mentally take a
step back and dedicate yourself to actively listening to the
customer’s story with an open mind so that you can find a
solution. In the above situation, the manager stood silently
while my students were explaining their story. Be active in
your listening and create empathy ("put yourself in the
customer’s shoes") with statements such as:

* "I can appreciate what you’re saying."

* "I can understand how you’d feel that way."

* "I can see how you’d be upset."

* "It sounds as if we’ve caused you inconvenience."

* "What I understand the situation to be..."

Please stay away communication that alienates the customer such as:

* "I don’t know why you are so upset."

* "That’s the first complaint we ever got on that."

* "I know how you feel." (Because you don’t)

* "Boy, you’re sure mad."

In the above story, the students told the manager that they weren’t happy with the service because they didn’t have time to eat their meals. The manager, not listening, said, "Would you like dessert?" The solution was not more food. Listen for the solution!

4. Be Sorry for the Right Reasons

Be sincere in your concern for the customer and say sorry the correct way. Many time in the heat of the customer service situation we what to show some sign of concern so
we do the following:

* The first words of the interaction with the words, "I’m sorry." First, you didn’t find out any information from the customer to be sorry.

* Say sorry throughout the conversation with saying what you are sorry for. When saying you are sorry, say exactly what you are sorry for.

The students, even though the manager kept repeating she
was sorry, didn’t think the manager was sincere in her
apology. The correct say to say you are sorry is:

* "I’m sorry you had to wait so long for your food."

* "I’m sorry that you were treated that way."

* "I’m sorry that our employee said that to you."

* "I’m sorry this situation happened to you."

Let the customer know exactly why you are sorry. The
students thought the manager’s "sorrys" were insincere because she never mentioned why she was sorry.

5. Give Your Personal Assurance.

Let the customer know you will personally create a solution
for them. It could be as simple as saying, "I’m taking
personal responsibility for this."

6. Ask Them What They Want

One of the fears that we have when trying to satisfy the
customer is that we think they want something out of our
reach. Ask the customer, "What would you like you to do?"
or "What would make this situation right for you?" You will
be surprised that in most cases the customer will ask for less
you were willing to give.

7. Use Statements of Conviction

Sure the following to gain the confidence of the customer:

* "We’re going to do something about that!"

* "We will make a change right now!"

8. Present a Clear Plan of Action

Make sure the customer knows what you are going to do to
correct the situation for them. 95% of making things right for
the customer is making them aware that you are taking action
to make a difference for them. Explain to them the actions
and timelines you need to take to make things right for them.
If you need to leave or make a telephone call to obtain
additional information, say:

* "Please excuse me while I make a telephone call obtain the best solution for you. This will take five minutes, can you please wait?"

* "Excuse me, I need to ask the person with the missing piece of information so that we can quick resolve this for you. Do you mind waiting five minutes?"

Note: Make sure you get back to the time customer before
the time you specified. If you promised ten minutes, get
back to the customer before ten minutes. Rule of thumb,
double the time it would normally that to get the information.
If you know it will take ten minutes to get the answer for the
customer then tell the customer you will get back to them
within twenty minutes.

9. Move Quickly to the Solution

If you applied steps 1-8 you are ready to give the customer
the solution they wanted for a win-win situation. You can
confirm this by saying the following:

* "Would this be agreeable for you?"

* "Is this the solution you were looking for?"

* "Will this make things right for you?"

10. Ask for the Business

If you did everything right this is the perfect time to ask the
customer to come back and do business with your
organization. You showed that you were professional,
caring, sincerely, positive, and proactive. Why wouldn’t
they do business with you again?

Some of the way you can say this is:

* "We would appreciate the opportunity to serve you in the future."

* "Please come back and I will personally guarantee you receive outstanding service."

* "Here is a 20% coupon. Please use it on your next visit to our establishment."

It’s important that you let the customer know that you
appreciate their business and want them to come back.
Remember, if you did everything right, not only will them
come back but they will other people to do business with
you. Use challenging customer service situations to build
your business.

Ed Sykes is a professional speaker, author, and success
coach in the areas of leadership, motivation, stress
management, customer service, and team building. You can
e-mail him at mailto:esykes@thesykesgrp.com, or call him at
(757) 427-7032. Go to his web site,
http://www.thesykesgrp.com, and signup for the newsletter,
OnPoint, and receive the free ebook, "Secrets, Stories, and
Tips for Marvelous Customer Service."

Customer Service Best Practices - Referring Customers Properly and Professionally

2005-10-18T11:26:00.000-07:00

By Robert Bacal

When customers are referred to other members within an organization, they can feel frustrated and perhaps even become hostile if they feel they are getting the "run around". Read on for some great tips on handling the referral process so that your customer keeps on coming back.

If you deal at all with the public, it is probably a rare day when you don't have to refer a customer elsewhere for service. It may be that the person is in the wrong place, or the person is required to see several people in sequence and you are the first. Sometimes, the customer's issue needs to be dealt with by someone with a different authority level, such as a supervisor or manager.

It is a reality of business that some referring is necessary. Unfortunately, a common complaint on the part of members of the public is that they tend to be shuffled from person to person within the same company. On occasion one hears of situations where a person is moved from one person to another until he or she ends up back at the first person that was contacted.

Customers have come to expect this "shuffle of referral", but many times they prepare for it by behaving in a hostile manner towards you, even though, you may have never met. One common complaint that employees have is that when customers are referred to them, they are not given the information to appear informed and helpful to the customer. It can be embarrassing.

We are going to look at some ideas you can apply to help reduce customer frustration, and make the jobs of others a bit easier. Hopefully, others can do the same for you.

Tips

2. When transferring a phone call to another staff member, make every effort to "fill in" that member about the particulars of the problem. Some phone systems allow conferencing, so you can have a brief 3-way conversation, to introduce the customer to the staff member.

3. Keep a list of names and phone numbers of other government employees to whom you might refer clients. You probably have a pretty good idea of the kinds of services your clients might need, so it is a good idea to learn a bit about who supplies those services. If possible, make personal contact with those people, and find out how they can help your customers.

4. Keep in mind that hostile customers may be best calmed down by referring to a supervisor. We know that people tend to behave less aggressively when they speak to a supervisor, regardless of level in the organization. However, you and your supervisor need to be clear when customers should be referred, and how they should be referred (e.g. number given, escorted to supervisor's office, supervisor calls customer, etc.)

5. Again, when referring to a supervisor, make sure the supervisor is aware of the problem, and the emotional state of the customer (hostile, angry, threatening, etc).

6. When referring to another member of your immediate organization, try to give some choices to the customer. For example, suggest that the person can take a seat for a moment, or offer to take the customer's phone number for a call back. Let the customer choose. It reduces hostility.

7. Before referring, make sure you understand the customer's situation and what he or she wants. A major error that employees make is to not listen well, or, not ask the right questions, and assume that a referral is in order. Good listening skills are important. If they are not applied, what can happen is that the customer is referred to the wrong place or person, resulting in frustration for everybody.

8. When referring, try to tell the person how long the wait will be, or what to expect. If there is a procedure to be followed, explain it if necessary. If the wait is longer than expected, make the effort to tell the customer (and apologize).

In conclusion

It is the little things that make the difference. Keep in mind that when referring you are trying to:

* show the customer that you are making an effort to reduce his or her frustration,

* reduce waiting,

* appear knowledgeable by referring to the correct place the first time.

(c) 2005, Robert Bacal, Bacal & Associates. You are welcome to "reprint" this article online as long as it remains complete and unaltered (including the "about the author" info at the end) all links are made live, and this copyright notice and indication of authorship are included.

Robert Bacal has trained over 10,000 employees how to deal with difficult, hostile, angry, and just plain mean customers via his seminar "Defusing Hostile Customers". In addition, he is the author of "Perfect Phrases For Customer Service", published by McGraw-Hill, and "The Defusing Hostile Customers Workbook", which is designed to be a seminar in a book. Information about both of these books, including free excerpts is available at The Customer Service Zone at http://customerservicezone.com/products/index.htm

For free articles, hints, tips and help on all aspects of providing excellent customer service, visit The Customer Service Zone at http://customerservicezone.com

For s comprehensive directory of free help with a number of workplace issues, from conflict to team-work, go to http://work911.com/sitemaps/index.html .

Hosted CRM: What is it?

2005-10-18T11:17:00.000-07:00

By David Cowgill

When hosted CRM was first introduced, concerns were voiced about its drawbacks: the lack of customization, integration with other applications, support, third party storage, control over data control and the performance of service reps - not to mention the all-important security issue. Hosting’s biggest drawback is that your most important data is in a third-party’s hands.

Although CRM, as hosted solutions are also known, are not as difficult or as costly to install as packaged solutions, they still require an infrastructure, significant IT resources, and time to deploy.

Application integration has been another challenge for ASPs. Since ASPs unilaterally update their code bases, this opens the possibility that an integrated business process could be broken by a change that you don’t control.

Privacy and privacy laws are another concern: you must investigate what safeguards an ASP offers to protect your data. As you can see, hosted CRM isn’t perfect. Aberdeen researchers found that when considering these problems, support for hosting dampens. One way around this might be a hybrid approach: rent now, buy later.

It Does Not Have To Be Either-Or

Another emerging trend is that companies adopt hosted solutions as a low-risk way of evaluating a CRM solution’s capabilities before they buy into an in-house set up. This approach allows companies to mitigate risk and experience the benefits of rapid time-to-value. Once companies see a ROI, then they can choose to bring the solution in-house.

The decision between an in-house implementation and a hosted solution is based on many factors. It is important to evaluate your business plan, technology strategy, risk profile, IT budgets, IT resources, opportunity costs, customization requirements and industry-sector requirements.

Visit http://www.sales-force-software.com for more information.

Contact:
David Cowgill

http://www.sales-force-software.com
e-mail protected from spam bots

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Do You Need An Answering Service?

2005-10-18T11:16:00.000-07:00

By Leon Chaddock

It is nothing short of annoying when a person does not have an answering service. Let’s face it. In this day and age, everyone should be able to manage at least an answering machine, right? When it comes to business transactions, it is even more important to have some sort of answering service available to your customers. Whether they are calling in with orders or calling in to answer questions, you need to have the proper tools for the job and that includes a well qualified answering service.

But, how do you find something that will work for your specific needs? For example, if you need an answering service that is able to make and take appointments for you, then you need someone live on the other end to do this work for you as well as software to help them fit the appointments into your schedule, right? No, you may be able to find and hire an answering service that simply conveys this information back to your secretary or to you and tells the individuals that are calling that you will call to confirm the information.

There are many set ups for these answering services. You have software programs that can virtually do all the work for you. You have a wealth of live people to call on in various situations as well in organizations and companies that do the work, live, around the clock. Depending on the quality that you need and the specifics that you are looking for, you’ll have the ability to find just the right type of answering service for your needs in no time. Even better is the simple fact that you can find these options ready and waiting for you right here on the web. It is great to know that answering services are able to take care of your business when you are not.

for more information please see http://www.answering-service-help.co.uk

Is Your CRM System Destined To Fail?

2005-10-18T11:14:00.000-07:00

By David Cowgill

It’s time to put your trusty CRM software to work; to let it earn its keep. You're about to blast an email out to several thousand potential customers. First you run a search of people and companies you want to target. You soon realize something’s wrong when your list is far smaller than anticipated. A quick check reveals many profiles have not been filled in or are missing email addresses. Further inspection shows numerous records are incorrect; others are riddled with typos. And that’s just for starters. With a sinking feeling, you realize this email blast isn’t going to happen anytime soon.

Time for some damage control or preventative maintenance

Fortunately one of the most common reasons cited for the high failure rate of CRM systems - poor data quality - is also one of the easiest to avoid. Your CRM software is only as good as the information it contains. As the old programmers motto goes ‘garbage in, garbage out’. So how can you avoid incomplete, incorrect, irrelevant or out-of-date and generally unfit-for-use data from permeating your CRM software?

You need to gather your key CRM users together and write a standard guideline document, defining the CRM system rules of use.

10 questions that should be addressed:

1. Identify who has what rights to the system; who can Create, Insert,Modify or Delete records? Forward this information to your system
administrator to record.

2. Decide on a procedure to check for any duplicates before creating a
record. Depending on what ‘de-duping’ or ‘data scrubbing’ features your
system has, this might require some simple searches before starting a new
record.

3. Do you allow abbreviations or acronyms? For example: IBM, or I.B.M,
or International Business Machines Inc. A policy on ensuring consistency
of input will help to avoid duplications in future.

4. Are records going to be created in Upper and Lower case and when are
CAPS acceptable?

5. By when do you expect records, notes and so on to be created or
updated? Same day, on return to the office?

6. Is the primary address of clients to be created as a postal or a
physical address?

7. Make sure everyone checks spellings if they are unsure. When in
doubt, ask the client or Google it.

8. Make rules for creating new tabs or Custom Objects (as
salesforce.com CRM calls them.) Every time a new Custom Object is needed,
it should first be approved.

9. Ensure that email addresses are put in correctly. Basic but common
mistake!

10. Set up procedures, if not supported by your crm software, of how to
create records from inbound emails.

Once your document is finished, get everyone to sign off on it. As standard practice, ensure that document is handed to all new employees at your company.

How do I reinforce this as time goes on?

Try this: select a couple of records - both good and bad - every week, to
put on the overhead at staff meetings. Make sure you don’t unduly
embarrass anybody but watch this become the light-relief highlight of your
meetings! People learn best when having fun!

What if your database is in one unholy mess?

Has the rot set in so deeply that your database needs a complete overhaul?
Turn this seemingly insurmountable task into an opportunity to you. This
is an excellent excuse to re-establish contact with your clients and let
them know you care.

Importantly, help your staff understand what you need from the data to facilitate more accurate marketing and reporting and hence the success of
your business and their careers.

By creating a sense of pride and ownership in the company database, you are nurturing the essential process of buy-in, necessary for the success of your CRM initiative. Don’t compromise this critical tool by allowing your CRM software to be infected by inferior data.

David Cowgill is a Senior Marketing Manager in San Francisco. His coverage area focuses on the technologies that facilitate managing CRM analytics and lead generation.

For further information contact:

David Cowgill

CRM Blog Founder

http://crm.blogs.com

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Heroic Customer Service Ensures Lifelong Loyalty

2005-10-18T11:12:00.000-07:00

By Steve Singleton

The key to good customer service is meeting your clients' expectations the first time, every time. But if you want to move beyond good customer service, you have to exceed those expectations, maybe not always, but often enough for them to be impressed that you are committed to their needs as much or more than they are themselves. That kind of customer service is what makes them loyal.

You can’t be at our company very long without hearing some of the heroics our employees have done to ensure customer satisfaction; such things happen frequently. This kind of "extra-mile" service is characteristic of what superior companies do.

Carl Sewell's book, Customers for Life: How to Turn That One-Time Buyer into a Lifetime Customer (New York: Doubleday, 1990), lays out ten principles he has hammered out to ensure his automobile dealerships maintain the outstanding customer service for which they are famous. Let's focus on rule #4: "When the customer asks, the answer is always yes." Sewell explains that his company encourages its employees to do anything possible for their customers:

We're probably not going to paint your house or wash your windows. We sell automobiles. However, if the request relates to our business, we're going to try to do it. Whenever possible we want to help our customers.

My company does the same thing, except we go a step farther as illustrated by the following story I received last week from a coworker in a big, midwestern city:

One of our clients was working later at our office. He mentioned to our salesperson it was the day of his wedding anniversary, and he had not had time to pick up a gift for his wife. He said he was sure to be in hot water because he was going home empty-handed and was also going to be late.
Without the client knowing about it, the sales rep asked the receptionist to order long-stemmed, peach roses in a box. (He knew peach was her favorite color.) Since it was already late, between 8 and 8:30 P.M., finding a florist at that hour seemed like it might be a monumental task.
She called several mall florists, but didn't have enough of a window to get a courier there before closing at 9 p.m. Then she remembered that there was a florist near downtown that closed at 9. Sure enough, the florist was near enough to our office that the receptionist was able to order the flowers and have our driver pick them up by closing time.
The client was ecstatic! He couldn't believe that just by mentioning his predicament, it was instantly solved. He also was doubly pleased that she was able to find peach-colored roses, since it is an unusual color to have in stock.

What do you think will happen the next time this customer's company is considering who to do business with? Such experiences make customers extremely loyal. Of course, this will only work if our "ordinary" customer service delivered with courtesy and professionalism, meets or exceeds their expectations.

Sewell says, "Our job is to take care of the customer so well that he keeps coming back to us for the rest of his life." His company's policy is: "If it's something that a friend would do for another friend, don't charge. Don't worry, you'll more than make up the money in future business."

* * *

You may freely reprint this article, provided you

do not change it and that you reproduce this

copyright notice and the information below unaltered.

Steve Singleton has written and edited several books and numerous articles on subjects of interest to Bible students. He has also been a book editor, newspaper reporter, news editor, and public relations consultant. He has taught Greek, Bible, and religious studies courses Bible college, university, and adult education programs. He has taught seminars and workshops in 11 states and the Caribbean.

Go to his DeeperStudy.com for Bible study resources, no matter what your level of expertise. Explore "The Shallows," plumb "The Depths," or use the well-organized "Study Links" for original sources in English translation. Sign up for Steve's free "DeeperStudy Newsletter."

Customer Service Warning—What to Watch for That Indicate We Have a Customer Service Problem

2005-10-18T01:23:00.000-07:00

By Alan Boyer

Do you frequently hear that customers are unhappy about something, and sometimes they are downright frustrated.

Yet, what you hear from your employees is, “Stupid customers! They just don’t understand how to use the product”?

As the owner, or manager, what has been your response? Has it been to back up your employees, or do you go find out what the customer is really saying?

WARNING: you’ve been given an indicator of what is going on in the organization. The customers aren’t getting what they thought they paid for, and the employees are actually blocking access to what the customer wants.

Let’s look at it from the customer’s view:
You’ve just bought a new XYZ that is critical to your business operation. You get it back to the office, and can’t make it work as advertised. You call customer support, with hope that it is just something that can be quickly fixed. After waiting on the phone for 30-40 minutes you finally get a live person who immediately says, “Oh sure. Everyone makes that mistake. All you have to do is ……[stand on your left foot while pushing the button with the right index finger]. No problem. Thanks for calling…click.”

You didn’t even have the chance to tell him that you aren’t one of those everyday customers. You are actually quite knowledgeable and already tried that, but it didn’t work. So, since he didn’t listen, you’ve got to make that call again. Another 30-40 minutes waiting and finally get someone else whose immediate response is….[exactly the same as the last time] but you are trying to get him to listen before he cuts you off list the last one. You finally get him to stop and listen, but his response is, “You’re using it wrong. It wasn’t meant to do that, at least that way. When you are using it THAT way you have to stand on the right foot while pushing the button with the left index finger. Geeeeee!!! …..click.”

And after you try it on the left foot it starts working. In the meantime you and your business were off line for how long at how much cost?

What did it cost you to buy that product that was supposed to save you money?

And chances are that there will be another 20-30 calls for other issues. In the meantime it’s costing you tons of time and money while you are trying to fix THEIR product, and, in some cases, because your business is dependent upon having the product working, the entire business is down.

So, what’s the answer to this?

Although many customer service reps, managers, and business owners think this is a technical problem that can be fixed by fixing the technical issue, please listen carefully IT IS NOT. It is a management problem. It is up to management to fix the fact that the person directly in contact with the customer is more concerned in proving that the product really does work and the customer is too stupid to know it instead of helping the customer get what he really wants. The employees must be informed, maybe trained, to understand their real job is to help the customer and that requires listening to him thoroughly. Otherwise they are probably answering the WRONG question.

Sometimes there really is a good technical reason to stand on the left foot instead of the right when pushing the button. And if a customer doesn’t know how or when to do that, isn’t the problem with the instructions, not the customer.

Keep good records on what customers are calling about. Even if an employee has what he thinks is a justifiable answer, if that question just keeps coming up over and over it is time to find out what the real base cause is.

I also believe that most customer service people actually are trying to do a good job for their boss, but they don’t understand what the goals of their job really are. So they are doing a good job delivering the wrong service. Most feel that their job is to protect the boss, the company, and maybe their own job, from that “stupid customer.” That makes it a losing situation for the customer.

If they change their perspective to, “My job is to help the customer get what he wants. I’m the expert on company policy, the technical issues, and I’ll use those tools to help the customer get what he really wants, which usually is a product that works.”

I was traveling to the Middle East last year and saw a perfect example of how the perception of an employee might affect his customers. When arriving at the counter where they check passports there were two people that were there to facilitate faster movement through the different lines.

One considered themselves as someone to help the people get what they wanted. They walked up to the arriving passengers, asking them if they were citizens or not and guiding citizens quickly to the right line. If they were not citizens, then they asked if they had each of the several papers filled out, checked those papers and then suggested that they correct line XYZ before getting up to the counter that they were now being pointed toward.

The other considered himself a policeman. He was preventing people from getting in line, preventing them from getting in the wrong lines, and sending them over to a work table to fill out the papers themselves. When they came back the “policeman” would check the papers again and send them back to do them over. No offer to help other than to say, this isn’t filled out right, do it again.

The difference between these people: mainly in their vision of their job, what they perceive as their job. They both have the same job description, making sure that the agent at the counter doesn’t have to deal with improperly filled out forms and to make the lines move through faster.

However, one sees his job as catching mistakes and taking them out of line. That might actually make things easier on the guy checking papers at the counter, but certainly not on the customer, the guy trying to get in to the country. The other sees his job as helping the customer get through this tough process and guiding him to get the answers on the paper, and into the right line.

So, ultimately how can this be used in your company? Make sure that the employees in direct contact with a customer have a vision of their job that is clearly defined as:
Your job, if you decide to take it, is to make sure that customer gets what he wants. You are the expert in company policy, and possibly even technical issues of the product so use those tools to facilitate, smooth out, getting the customer what he wants.

Many times the responsibility of the employee is not to find a technical reason (standing on the left foot while…..). The employees should be trained to think beyond the fact that some technical aspect of a product is or is not broken. He should be asking the customer why he is struggling, it could be in the instructions, it could be customers are buying it to do something that it wasn’t intended to do (marketing, advertising, are saying the wrong thing, or not saying it clearly enough).

Frequently the employees need to be trained to think out of the box, and help the customer in ways that are not quite as obvious. The employees can better help a customer if they have the skills to probe find what is the real cause that is well beyond a technical “it’s broken” response from a customer.

Alan Boyer, CEO of The Leader’s Perspective, LLC is considered one of the world’s leading breakthrough specialists.

With over 35 years of business experience, he has catapulted businesses lightyears ahead in weeks. Some double, some jump 10 times.

He helps companies worldwide reach further than they EVER thought possible….FASTER

http://www.leaders-perspective.com

mailto:AlanBoyer@leaders-perspective.com

Why Communication Skills Don't Work In Customer Service

2005-08-31T02:08:00.000-07:00

By Tim Dawes

Every time my firm conducts communication skills training, we know someone is going to object.

“That doesn't work. Everybody's heard of active listening. You can't use that stuff anymore.”

And we have to admit, there's a lot of truth in that. Everyone has heard of active listening. And it doesn't work for many people much of the time.

But communication skills can work for your staff.

The problem usually isn't the skills. It's the way people are trained to use them. Learn to use communication skills effectively, and they can create happy customers and higher income.

There are two components to good communication skills: (a) the skills themselves, and (b) what you're trying to do (your intention) when you use them. Many employees learn communication skills from manuals. And many manuals emphasize either skills, or intention but not both. And so, much of what we think of as communication skills training fails.

Here are a couple of examples:

Example 1: How active listening gets a black eye: using good skills, but with the intention to fix or change a customer

I was coaching a hospital social worker through a confrontation with a mother who was terribly frightened. The social worker was doing his best to demonstrate active listening.

“OK, I get that you're upset. And you want to get out of here. And I want to help you. But you've got to go through this process before you can take your daughter home.”

The mother didn't react at all the way he'd hoped. “I don't want to hear all this institutional talk,” she said. “You leave me alone. I'll sue if I have to!”

This appears to be a failure of active listening. And it is, but the problem goes deeper than that. When I paused the encounter and asked the social worker how he thought the mother was feeling and what she needed, he said, “I don't really know. I was busy trying to get her to do what I wanted and think it was her idea.”

Active listening skills are useful, but they're only tools. They serve the intentions of the person using them. And if you don't teach trainees useful intentions, most will fall back on trying to fix people or change them. So you'll be training your staff to be very effective at letting your customers know they need to be fixed or changed. And your customers will let you know how unpleasant an experience that is.

Example 2: How “understand before you are understood” fails: having a useful intention but lacking the skills to communicate it

I paused a training scenario just after an angry man blew up at a nurse. I was coaching the nurse through an encounter with a father who felt the staff was trying to hustle him and his son out of the hospital.

He told her that he worked all day and came into the hospital all night. And where did she think he was going to get the time to go through training before he took his son home?

When I asked her how she thought the man was feeling and what he needed, she suggested that he seemed overwhelmed and afraid, and that he might need some support.

When I suggested she might ask the man if that's what he was experiencing, she turned to him and said, "You need an appointment with a social worker. I'll set something up for you."

This is a classic failure that comes from understanding your customer, but lacking the skills to communicate it. The nurse could describe the source of the man's anger clearly to me. She had real empathy for him. But she couldn't put her words together in a way he recognized as compassionate.

We'd taught her the words, of course. But like most people who learn new skills, she lacked the confidence to use them. So she, like the trainee above, fell back on trying to fix the customer. And he let her know how much he disliked being treated that way.

It don't mean a thing if you ain't practicing

Both of the examples above underscore a third important component of communication skills training, namely, the practice.

The trainee in the first example was a compassionate man with a degree in social work. I'm sure he'd had ample exposure to good communication skills. It had never gelled for him before.

Once we put him in a scenario, coached him through the skills, and alerted him to the fact that he was struggling because he was trying to fix his customer instead of connecting with her (that's the intention we teach), he developed skills rapidly. He even returned to training weeks later to report that he'd created a real difference in his life using the skills at home. He quickly became a valued mentor to others in his work group.

Communication skills are deceptively challenging. It takes no great intellect or dexterity to utter the words. What is terribly demanding is all the processing: keeping your focus on the other person despite your own discomfort, listening for the needs beneath complaints and accusations, drumming up the nerve to suggest to an outraged man that he might value some support.

What gets you through tough interactions is your confidence in your own intention and skills. And you learn confidence through practice.

In my experience, those are the keys to effective communication skills:

1. holding a useful intention like understanding the other person or connecting with them,

2. employing skills that communicate your intention, and

3. practicing the skills and intentions so you have them at hand, even when interactions get intense, especially when they do.

Find training that will provide you all three, and you'll have communication skills that will please your customers and increase your income.

Tim Dawes is the founder of Interplay, Inc., a firm that helps healthcare organizations to exceed their strategic goals by demonstrating unexpected empathy to patients. Learn about a step-by-step process that helps your staff make their natural compassion more deliberate and consistent for patients, and sign up for monthly "how to" articles at http://www.interplaygroup.com/pages/free_resources.html

How to Win the Hearts of Your Customers and Friends

2005-08-31T02:05:00.000-07:00

By Debby Sibert

Those of us doing business over the internet have to become especially adept at our listening and speaking skills since we don't have the luxury of talking with our customers face to face. It's especially important to give those on the phone extra attention - listening to their voice, because that is the only thing you have to go on, to sense their emotion. You can't observe their body language or their eyes like you can in person. They have the same limitations in listening to us. A great method to use when talking on the phone to come across as being really interested is to raise your eyebrows and smile as you talk. It will give you voice a lift. Try it on one your friends. It really works. It makes you sound very cheerful, etc. The thing is, they can't see you either, so you have to work a bit harder to let them know that you're really with them. They can't see you smile, so they have to hear the warmth of your heart through your voice. If you practice, it'll start to come naturally to you.

Another very important tip is to realize the value of remembering and using the name of the individual in whom you are engaged in conversation. I can't stress this enough. People love their name and love to hear their name - and the fact that you remember it means more than you know. We sell personalized cards because we know that people like to see their name in print, plus it looks more professional to have it printed. But hearing one's own name is music to one's ears. Always be listening closely to catch the name and somehow make a mental note, or even quickly write it down so you won't forget it. We have a tendency to be so concerned about impressing others with what we are going to say or how we are going to respond to them, that the name escapes us. Big mistake. It's not easy, but is of paramount importance. Also try to find out something you can ask them about that they would enjoy sharing with you.

For a complete report including 8 simple things you can do, any one of which will boost your relationships - personally and professionally, you can download it at: www.designcrafters.com - wait for the popover.

Debby Sibert is the president of Design Crafters, a thriving internet business specializing in Personalized Christmas Cards and invitations. They attribute most of their success to their dynamic customer serivce. Get more tips at http://www.designcrafters.com

What You Need to Know About CRM

2005-06-27T02:09:00.000-07:00

By Frank Dazerton

1. It’s all about the customer. Some companies focus too much on expensive CRM programs and elaborate IT departments and not enough on what is at the core of CRM. CRM programs need to be designed to appeal to the business’ customers. The best Call Centers are the ones which customers find easy to navigate. The best CRM vendors have the customer satisfaction in mind when designing their CRM applications.

2. On-demand is the way to go. Many vendors offer traditional CRM programs and service. I believe, however, that On-demand CRM is the way to go. On-demand CRM is different from traditional methods in that instead of requiring companies to hire new IT people, and use extensive resources to implement elaborate CRM programs, the software comes with support. On-demand CRM is no longer the “bring your own IT department” approach. Many vendors like Salesforce.com, Siebel, and NetSuite offer On-demand solutions that are great for businesses just getting into the CRM market.

3. Customer Relationship Management is not just software. Some businesses would like it to be simply software, but it will never be as simple as that. Customer Relationship Management is an ongoing learning process. The business must learn from the customer and change accordingly. The closer a business gets to its customer, the better. CRM applications and strategies are the methods through which the business can access, analyze, and learn from customer Data. Knowing what CRM applications are actually for is a very important step in understanding how to be successful when implementing CRM practices.

4. It is important to understand that there are hundreds of CRM vendors out there. Many of the vendors claim to be number one, but if you look closely, they may be number one in only one category. Other companies say that they are number one in CRM, but there is no basis for their statement. It is important for companies to choose the right vendor that will attend to all of their CRM needs. This may not always be the most expensive, “number one” company. On the contrary, some simple companies offer CRM solutions that are highly effective. Some of the major CRM providers are Siebel, Salesforce.com, NetSuite, IBM, Microsoft, and SAP.

5. The best CRM technology can be very helpful for any business. Some CRM applications can now be accessed via BlackBerry devices. Major vendors are constantly updating their software and improving their service. It is a good idea to stay as current as possible in terms of CRM technology. However, always remember to balance technology with customer service. There is no substitute for old-fashioned customer service, the most basic of all CRM ideals.

Customer Relationship Management can be very beneficial for a business if it is carried out properly. It is important to keep the customer in mind at all times when you are implementing CRM practices into your business. Remember that there are quite a few CRM vendors out there, and it is important to choose the vendor that is best for your company. Customer Relationship Management seems like a very daunting idea for someone who has never used it before, but if you follow these steps, you will surely see the benefits of successful CRM.

Frank Dazerton is very interested in Customer Relationship Management and writes for CRM Lowdown.

4 Tips Toward Overcoming Bad Customer Service

2005-06-24T23:32:00.000-07:00

By Matthew Keegan

Customer service is the pits, you say. You are not alone. One of the biggest gripes from consumers today is the poor service they receive at the hand of service providers. You need not be victimized by lousy service nor do you have to move heaven and earth to get what you want. Let's take a look at four options you can take to get the results that you want and deserve!

Uncooperative Telephone Personnel: Chances are if you have a complaint or a problem with a product, you will have to contact that company's Customer Service department. When calling, if you find a cooperative and caring individual, consider yourself fortunate. If you do not succeed in finding a cooperative and caring individual or the information that you receive from them is unacceptable, simply hang up and call back. More than likely you will get a person with a different attitude and a better answer. This works particularly well with insurance companies who have large customer service staffs on hand. Unfortunately, because of their sheer size, the training levels vary greatly. Do not let their internal problems set you back.

Write a letter or an email: Yes, companies still read letters, more so email messages if it is directed to the right person. Usually, the contact information is right on the box of the product or with the supporting paperwork [such as a users guide]. Search the internet if you need more information; join Hoovers.com if you want to get the president's contact information!

Tell a friend, no wait: tell 10 friends! If you are not getting satisfaction and you have decided that you are no longer going to use the company's product or services, tell ten friends. There is a maxim in customer service that management dreads: satisfied customers tell 3 of their friends, unsatisfied customers tell 10 of their friends. So, you don't have 10 friends? Get online and write product reviews for several of the comparison shopping sites. Be honest, open, and informative. Count on many more than 10 people reading your review!

Drop them. Sooner or later you may have to make the ultimate choice: to take your business elsewhere. In that case, let the company know that you will be leaving them [either by phone call, letter, or email] and switch to one of their competitors. Make sure you outline in your letter your complaint, the lack of satisfactory response on their end, and name the company whom you have chosen to provide the service that the other company failed to provide. You may get a call begging you to come back, not likely, but if you do only return to them if the company "makes good" on their past mistakes. Sweetening the deal with a special offer to you is even better!

Do not accept poor customer service as the norm today, even though in many cases it is. Effect change on the corporate level by methodically and politely following the steps outlined above. They may not "get it" right away but they will when shares of their stocks begin to decline and shareholders take notice.

Matt is The Article Writer covering topics as diverse as aviation, business, consumer issues, entertainment, health, insurance, news, retail, sales, and Christian issues. Please visit his site today for a sample of his work:
http://www.thearticlewriter.com

Customer No Service - How to Lose a Loyal Customer!

2005-06-22T22:36:00.000-07:00

By Phil Gerbyshak

So today was the day where I almost stopped going to my favorite supermarket here in Milwaukee. If you're in Milwaukee, you know the one I'm talking about: the cool one downtown that has 1000 different types of produce, and a whole aisle dedicated to gourmet coffee and teas. The one with the free samples, the wine tasting and cooking courses. Yeah, that one.

Anyway, today I went to the market to buy a few things for dinner. I knew it was going to go wrong because my usual entrance to the parking lot was gated off by shopping carts lying on the ground to block my path. OK, I'm flexible, I'll drive around.

The second thing was when they were out of my favorite glass bottles of skim milk. It's the best way to drink milk, in my humble opinion. They had every flavor except for mine.

Next, I tried to check out by "paying by touch." Let me tell you, this can be the best system in the world, you just sign up with your driver's license number, your credit card number, your preferred customer number, and your phone number, and away you go. Notice I said CAN be the best. Many times, my preferred card number doesn't work in the system, and it doesn't take the savings off of the bill, and tonight was one of those nights.

Now this would have been okay, had the checker just used the house card and given me the lower price so my debit card would be billed the correct amount, however she did not know how to do this. Instead, she said to go over to the service counter and someone over there would help me out.

Skeptical, I walked over to the service desk to see 3 clerks talking to each other and cutting out something that was much more urgent than me and the 4 other people in line. For some reason, after a few minutes, one girl asked to help me. Not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, I told her my dilemma, and she proceeded to go through my bags, re-scanning things and writing down what she thought was the correct cents off. I'm no cheapskate, but five dollars is 2 gallons of gas! Of course, she was doing all of this in her head, and didn't let me see the slip, and of course didn't do it correct, ripping me off to the tune of about 20 cents, plus I had to re-pack my own groceries.

To add insult to injury, there was no ramp open to go down to the parking structure I was forced to use, so I had to grab my bags and carry them, with my wife, down 3 flights of 10 stairs.

This is maddening to me! It's so easy to do things right. Here's how I would provide customer service.

Plainly mark the entrances that are closed, and advertise it on your stores website, thus alleviating some of your customers' frustrations, and provide the alternative entrances.

If you're out of something, put a sign up that lets me know when it's going to be back so I can return and buy it then, and apologize that you're out. A little sign is all I ask, not a big production.

Make the error in favor of your customers, and scan the house savings card whenever in doubt. And give your checkers the ability to fix this, instead of sending us over to the service desk.

Offer something extra to customers when your computer systems don't work as planned. It doesn't have to be a lot, but give me a coupon for a free loaf of bread, a free deli sandwich, or something nice. It's not my fault your preferred system doesn't work.

Use loyalty cards for EXTRA things, not to get the every day lowest price. Why am I going to scan my preferred customer card if I know I don't have anything that's on sale? I'm not, that's why.

That's all I've got. See, it wasn't so hard, was it? Making customer service great is a lot easier than you though. And oh yeah, you won't lose me as a customer if you at least try. Thanks!

Phil Gerbyshak publishes the Make it Great! blog at
http://MakeItGreat.blogspot.com. It's updated many days with thoughts about how to take control of your life and stop letting it take control of you! He also has a personal website at http://Gerbyshak.com. Feel free to stop in anytime or give me a call at 414.640.7445 so I can help you make it a great day!

Customer Service Tips - Is Your Business A Leaky Bucket?

2005-06-20T01:39:00.000-07:00

By Thomas Murrell

Customer service and customer service training are vital for any business.

But, is your business a leaky bucket?

This is a question I always ask small business owners who attend my marketing seminars.

The reason I ask is because many businesses are so focused on attracting new customers they forget about retaining and providing good customer service to their existing clients.

Many are also unable to quickly identify who their most profitable customers are.

In the leaky bucket example we have two businesses in the same industry. Both businesses attract 10 per cent new customers each year. Not a bad effort considering the increasingly crowded and competitive industry they operate in.

Business number one has a 95 per cent retention rate and 5 per cent slippage, while business number two has a 90 per cent retention rate and 10 per cent loss of customers.

Not bad figures to have, but after 14 years business number one has doubled in size and business number two has stayed the same size.

This business is just treading water because it suffers from a ‘leaky bucket' with too many customers slipping through the holes in the bottom of the bucket.

Much of this is due to poor customer service. And they don't even know it!

For example, the research shows a typical business does not hear from 96 per cent of unhappy customers.

For every complaint there are 26 others with the same problem and the average person with a problem tells 9 or 10 others. Thirteen per cent will tell more than 20 people.

So that is the cold hard reality of poor customer service.

But it is not all bad. If complaints are resolved those people tell 5 people and it is usually a positive message.

For example, complainers are more likely to do business with that company again compared to non-complainers, and this rate goes to 95 per cent customer retention if the complaint is dealt with quickly.

Everyone makes mistakes, the key is to learn from those mistakes and act on them quickly and you will have even more loyal customers.

Keeping your customers happy will help fill the holes in your leaky bucket and lead to a more profitable and successful business.

Thomas Murrell MBA CSP is an international business speaker, consultant and award-winning broadcaster. Media Motivators is his regular electronic magazine read by 7,000 professionals in 15 different countries. You can subscribe by visiting http://www.8mmedia.com Thomas can be contacted directly at +6189388 6888 and is available to speak to your conference, seminar or event. Visit Tom’s blog at http://www.8mmedia.blogspot.com/

The Dissatisfied Customer

2005-06-14T23:32:00.000-07:00

By Segarin Monk

We, as small business people, naturally dislike complaints from our clients and customers. Because we're intimately involved with our home businesses, small businesses, or freelance careers, any complaint takes on a personal commentator. A dissatisfied customer is a direct reflection on our performance and a blow to our egos. The common reaction of small business people to a consumer complaint is defensive posturing and/or avoidance.

But ignoring a disgruntled customer can be much more damaging than small business owners realize.

When consumer complaints are avoided or ignored, the customer still needs to vent. A study done at Western Washington University and Illinois State University, shows that consumers who had a bad experience at a store most often responded in three ways:

They decided not to shop at the store again.

They told their friends and relatives about their bad experience.

They convinced friends and relatives not to shop at the store again.

If the customer decides never to use your services again, you've lost one customer. But the damage may be worse. There may be a real problem that the business is unable to address because they aren't focused on it right now.

If the customer tells friends and relatives about their bad experience, the business now has a negative reputation with several customers and potential customers.

If the customer convinces friends and relatives not to use the business, the business has now lost several customer (probably for good), and the influenced customers will likely spread news of the original bad experience to their peer network in order to bolster the validity of their decision.

Segarin Monk is a social program marketer for government and non-profit agencies. He believes in marketing from an integrity-based, pass-it-on, pay-it-forward stance. See more articles from this author at:
http://marketingyogi.blogspot.com/

How to Provide Instant Customer Service

2005-06-10T23:26:00.000-07:00

By Graham Jones

Customer service is an essential component of any business. Clearly, if you work alone your business thrives on good customer service. But what if you run much of your business online? How do you provide excellent customer service 24 hours a day seven days a week? Here's an idea which is working for me.

One of the challenges of an online business is having constantly available support - especially if you are a small business or a self-employed, lone worker. People want instant answers. They expect replies to emails in the same working day. Many people seem to want even more rapid replies.

However, most technical support and customer support call centre staff will tell you that something like eight out of every ten calls are about the same concerns. If you run your own online business, you'll probably discover too that many of the customer service requests you get are generally about the same difficulties people are having.

I looked at the calls and emails I was getting about my online information products and realised that there were eight common questions which I received from customers who had purchased an ebook from me. Naturally, in trying to provide good customer service I contacted each individual and dealt with their concerns. Each time I was able to ensure that I retained their custom. But the problem was it was taking me time.

So, here's what I did. I set up an email which contains the answers to all eight questions. Then I created a new email address which is included in all my sales receipts. I ask people who have any questions or concerns about their purchase to send their question to that special email address. Of course, the special email address is an autoresponder. What happens is that as soon as someone has sent in their question, they get an immediate reply. Because the reply contains answers to almost all the support questions I get, it is usually instant customer satisfaction. Plus it means I don't have to spend time on the query.

The autoresponder repeats the subject of the customer's email within the text, making it look more personal. Also, because I get a copy of their incoming email I can see whether their question is answered within the autoresponder message. Usually it is. I can then send an email asking if they need more details or if their question has been answered. But I don't have to do this straight away. That's because the autoresponder has provided a good level of customer service.

So, using an autoresponder can provide high levels of customer service, helping you maintain customer loyalty.

If you want to see my autoresponder in action, just send an email to: support@grahamjones.biz

Graham Jones is a psychologist who has specialized in the way we use the Internet. He is an expert on information products and runs Infoselling.com where you can get a FREE report on how to sell your own infoproducts.

http://www.infoselling.com

Dealing with People - Words to Avoid

2005-06-10T23:22:00.000-07:00

By Alan Fairweather

You probably realise how the wrong tone of voice and negative body language can cause problems when dealing with other people, particularly customers and staff. However, using the wrong words can also cause problems.

There are certain "trigger" words that cause people to become more difficult especially in emotionally charged situations and they should be avoided. These include:

* Have to - as in - "You'll have to speak to the sales department yourself"

*I can't or you can't - as in - "I can't do anything about that" or "You can't do that"

*I'll try - as in - "I'll try and speak to finance department today"

*But - as in - "I agree with what you're saying but…….."

*Sorry - as in - "I'm sorry 'bout that"

"What DO I say I hear you cry?"

Instead of the words "Have to" which are very controlling type words, why not try - "Are you willing to…" or just a straight - "Will you…."

Can't, can be replaced with - "I'm unable to because…."

"I'll try," which is pretty wishy-washy, can be replaced with something more honest - "This is what I can do" or "This is what I'm unable to do"

"But" is a word that contradicts what was said before it, replace it with - "And" or "However" (which is a soft 'but')

Instead of saying "but" you could leave it out altogether. For example; instead of - "I agree with what you're saying but I can't help you" use - "I agree with what you're saying. The reason I'm unable to help you is……"

At the end of the day the answer to a customer or one of your staff could be -"no"- however, choosing your words more carefully will have a more positive affect on how he or she reacts and ultimately responds to you.

"Sorry" is one of the words to avoid because it is so overused and it's lost its value. Think of the number of times you've complained or commented about something and you hear - "Sorry 'bout that." If you're going to use the "sorry" word then you need to use it as part of a whole sentence - "I'm sorry you've been receiving so many complaints Mary."

Sometimes it's appropriate to use the word 'apologise' instead of 'sorry.' "I apologise for not getting you that information sooner."

For smoother interactions, take care with the words you use.

Discover how you can generate more business by motivating your team! Alan Fairweather is the author of "How to get More Sales by Motivating Your Team" This book is packed with practical things you can do to get the best out of your people. Visit http://www.howtogetmoresales.com

Five Ways To 'Wow' Your Client

2005-06-10T23:19:00.000-07:00

By Habiba Abubakar

Running a business is about providing goods and services to human beings. Their experience with you can make the difference between a good day, a terrible day, a nothing-special day, and a "WOW" day for them! Wouldn’t you like to be the reason a client’s day changes from boring to "WOW?"

The benefits of this approach are good for everyone involved. Your client will be satisfied with your service and will therefore come back to you for repeat business. By making a great impression and exceeding expectations, you have a better chance of establishing a long-term relationship with this client, and increasing your sales. Also, you’ll be strategizing your unique positioning in the marketplace by making your business stand out from the rest. If you take the time to do something unusual and special, the client will think of you again next time.

There are many ways you can “WOW” your client, but here are five of them:

1. Remember Diary Dates

Use your database to make note of each client’s birthday, wedding anniversary, their children’s birthdays, religious celebrations and any other important dates in their life. Send a reduced-rate offer or gift voucher (to use next time they need your service) and a card to them on that day. This gesture shows your interest in a long-term relationship, not just a quick sale.

2. Offer Unique Free Extras

Think of something uncommon that is not offered in your industry. Give this to your clients for free. It should be something fun and something that makes them talk about you all over town. For example, if you’re a dentist, you may offer a $300 voucher to your clients on the third anniversary of the day they became your client. This should entitle the client to a free dental service or dental product (up to the value of $300) from you. The client should be able to spend the voucher however they wish.

3. Turn Complaints Around

Your clients won't always be happy, but you can save their patronage by resolving their problem quickly and to their benefit. For example, if you own a restaurant and a guest is unhappy with their food, offer a free meal before they even asks. If you take care of the situation quickly and effectively, they'll be back again.

4. Reward Referrals In A Big Way

Most small business owners simply send a thank you card to the client that sends them a referral. That’s okay if you want to be like every other business. To set your business apart from the "thank you card givers," you can include a gift with the card. Concert tickets are fine, but a gift that enhances the client’s way of life will probably be more appreciated. For example, if your client is an attorney, you may get them a free pass to an educational seminar. Rewarding your clients for a referral will ensure that they repeat the gesture in future.

5. Go The Extra Mile

By this, I’m referring to spontaneous acts of kindness. Demonstrate that you’re willing to extend yourself beyond typical boundaries of time and resources to meet the needs of your clients. Does your client have a request you don’t normally accommodate, but that is easily doable and not time-consuming? Say you’d be happy to do that for them, and pool your abilities and resources to get that service for the client. For example, say you own a single-outlet fashion shop, and a customer asks whether you have a certain garment in red. Let’s assume you never stock that particular garment in red. There are two "WOW" things you can do here. Your customer will certainly appreciate it if you either put in a special order to get the red color in for her, or you direct her to another fashion shop to buy it there. This is a small gesture but you’ll be surprised how many fashion shop reps would say: "Sorry we don’t stock it, is there anything else I can help you with?"

When you pay attention to your clients and demonstrate that you care about their experience with you as much as the bottom line, they will remember you and return. If you treat your clients as faceless numbers and don’t convey your appreciation for their patronage, nothing stops them from trying somewhere else! Countless businesses are waiting to step in your shoes, so make sure you do your best to exceed client expectations. If you add the "WOW Factor" to what you offer your clients, they’ll do business with you repeatedly. They’ll become your raving fans, and will talk about you to their family and friends.

Making a strong impression that you care about your client’s satisfaction will encourage referrals and make your profits soar.

Copyright © 2005 by Habiba Abubakar and Emprez. All rights reserved.

Note: You are welcome to republish this article as long as you do so in its entirety and the "about the author" bit at the end is included fully and unaltered.

Habiba Abubakar, a.k.a. The Profit Diva, specializes in helping small business owners who are struggling to increase their client base and are tired of earning mediocre profits. Her FREE business-building newsletter covers proven, low-cost, and immediately usable marketing strategies. Sign up for your FREE copy at http://www.profitdiva.com

How To Build Stellar Client Relationships

2005-06-10T23:16:00.000-07:00

By James Burchill

Your opportunity to build a stellar client relationship starts with managing the gap between your perception of how things are going and your client's.

Begin the process here . . .

--Know who your ideal client is.

Minimize problems from the get-go by targeting clients you want to work with and clients you would enjoy and have fun working with.

--Ask the right questions.

Craft questions that will help you manage client expectations early. If you offer a service, ask how the client will measure results, what criteria he will use.

--Trust and act on your intuition.

When you feel something is "off" with a client, confirm that feeling by engaging the client in conversation. If your intuition says this is not the client for you, be bold and refer him on to someone who would be a better fit.

--Get your needs met so you don't need your clients.

Accept clients because you want to work with them, not because you need them to make your next mortgage payment. Build cash reserves so you can always make a choice.

--Challenge your assumptions.

Confirm your assumptions before acting on them. It will save you from making costly and potentially irreversible mistakes with your client.

--Survey your clients early into the relationship.

Check in after the first meeting to verify/clarify that you are on target then follow up often.

--Increase your knowledge base.

Learn as much as you can about your client, his business, his industry, his customers, his problems and concerns. Learn new ways of doing things, new techniques and technologies. Learn how to use new tools to serve your client better.

--Build trust.

Be reliable, honest and dependable. Keep your client's interests in mind. Avoid political situations that could undermine your relationship with your client.

--Learn to negotiate.

Possibly the second most important skill in managing your business, mastering negotiation skills will give you a sense of power in constructing a client relationship that wins for both of you.

--Anticipate and initiate.

Look for opportunities to help your client achieve his goals. Include your client's goals in presenting new ideas. Step back and see how your client might see a situation and respond accordingly.

The more you know about what your clients really want, the more effective you will be in managing the relationship.

Author: http://www.JamesBurchill.com

CRM For Beginners – Customer Relationship Management Basics

2005-06-09T04:53:00.000-07:00

By Matt Hogansworth

In order to maintain a successful business, the business must understand and maintain a positive relationship with its customers. Customer Relationship Management (CRM) is the process of bringing the customer and the company closer together. There are many different areas in which Customer Relationship Management can be implemented. The goal of CRM is to help a company maintain current customers, as well as gain new customers.

Targeted Marketing

Targeted marketing is accomplished through collecting information about the customer. This information can be buying habits or simply demographics. The idea behind this is that a business analyzes what a customer buys and then markets specific products to that customer based on his or her buying habits. Businesses track buying habits using discount cards, and special store credit cards. Targeted marketing can also be implemented on the Internet. Amazon.com has product recommendations based on buying habits, and product ratings. Customers can also be sent e-mails that market targeted products. Marketing the right products to the right customers can significantly increase a business' sales with minimal associated costs.

Call Centers and Customer Service

Have you ever called a business to complain or ordered a product and encountered an automated call response (I.E. “please press 1 for questions, 2 for comments” etc.)? That’s CRM. Call centers that take calls and monitor customer/business interactions are often running on hosted CRM programs. CRM managers want to make call centers as efficient and customer-friendly as possible. A customer who can easily navigate through an automated system is more likely to do business with the same company in the future. In the case of a complaint, a customer whose problems are responded to immediately is more likely to forgive and forget a company’s transgressions. Customer service is the backbone of all CRM processes and strategies.

CRM Vendors

Not surprisingly, in order to successfully collect data, manage call centers, analyze data, and make changes, businesses need CRM software. There are many CRM vendors in the world. The most widely-recognized vendors are Siebel, Salesforce.com, and Microsoft. Each of these vendors has contributed to CRM in its own way.

CRM Applications

There are many different types of CRM applications. Some CRM applications are Web-based so they can be accessed via a browser. Other CRM applications have programs built in for integrating data entries and data management across several applications. CRM vendors also have specific strategies that are unique to every client. The goal of a CRM vendor is to not only upgrade a company with the latest CRM technology, but also to design the companies infrastructure in such a way that the customer/company relationship can flourish.

Conclusion

Knowing the customer is the key to a successful business. Customer Relationship Management is the process through which a business analyzes their customers and makes changes accordingly. CRM vendors provide applications and advice on the best CRM methods. Most observers believe that CRM practices will continue to flourish as new CRM strategies and technologies are developed. For any business, a successful CRM approach is a must-have.

Matt Hogansworth writes about CRM software and other CRM topics.