Customer Service Excellence - Part 1

by Bill Collier

Customer service is going to the dogs!

It’s common knowledge that dogs take emotional queues from their owners. Is the owner happy? In danger? Mood up or down? Whatever emotions and behaviors the owner shows, the dog notices and responds accordingly.

Similarly, the vibe given off by a customer service representative sets the tone for the ensuing interaction.

OK, that might be a bit of a stretch. But it’s easy to predict that encountering a customer service person who is outwardly surly or disinterested or rude will not pave the way for a pleasant, win-win transaction.

It seems to me that customer service is a learnable skill. It doesn’t come naturally to everyone, but with some effort, just about anyone can learn to deliver excellent service.

There are countless formulas for customer service excellence in books, blog posts and videos, and organizations that struggle in this area would be well-advised to find and use them.

For now, though, here are four common-sense activities to adopt:

1) Engage with the customer. This is easy for some but takes effort for others. Smile. Shake hands. Give ’em your name and your undivided attention. Get the customer’s name and use it. Look ’em in the eye. Act like you care. Better yet, really care and show it!

2) Anticipate needs. Listen carefully to everything the customer says. Ask lots of questions to clarify and dig deeper. Does it appear the customer left out an important piece of information? Example: He ordered a bicycle but not a helmet. Does he need one? Ask! Or the customer mentions that an item he’s ordering from you is for a birthday gift. Ask about the date so you can use an appropriate shipping method to get it there on time.

3) Go above and beyond. Roger Staubach said, “There’s no traffic jam on the extra mile.” For face-to-face customers, carry the order out for them or hold the door open as they leave. How about a bottle of water while they wait? Regardless of how the customer ordered, call or email afterward to thank her or to ensure the purchase met her expectations. Brainstorm with your co-workers to come up with ways to deliver “extra-mile” service.

4) Make it easy to do business with you. This is a challenge for the organization itself … to institutionalize the ease of doing business. But certainly individual service reps can help customers traverse an overly complicated voice mail system or fill out a form or navigate the company’s website. Bonus points if those same representatives document the complaints they receive from customers and submit them to their organization so systemic improvements can be implemented.

Don’t bite the hand that feeds you. Start providing the excellent service your customers expect and deserve. I double-dog-dare you!
Next month: Some real-life examples of bad service. We’ll play “How could they have done that better?” n

Bill Collier owns Collier Business Advisors LLC and is the St. Louis-area head coach for The Great Game of Business. He works with organizations that want to improve financial results, engage their employees and create a winning culture. Bill can be reached at 314-221-8558, GGOBSTL.com or bill@collierbiz.com.