Some years ago I heard Tom and Ray Magliozzi–the humorous polymaths who host Car Talk on NPR–clue in an exasperated caller to their theory of customer service: Half the companies out there are like Honda – so rarely do they encounter a problem that when they do, the startled dealer is woefully unprepared to handle […]
The Car Talk theorem of customer service Read More »
Consciously striving to create a positive corporate culture may sound like a fluffy, expensive frill. But it brings hard-nosed, impossible-to-knock-off results. Ask Southwest Airlines: A host of low-cost, short-haul competitors (Remember United’s “Ted” brand? What, you don’t?) Those copycats are gone now: Southwest’s culture–a culture that’s impossible for
Consciously creating your corporate culture: Just a frill? Read More »
Labor Day is a good time to remember: you’ll never achieve great customer service without great employees – treated in the manner they deserve. There’s no shortcut here, no way to “game” this. The overlap between the “greatest companies to work for” and the companies with the highest-rated customer service is enormous. Container Store, Costco,
Labor Day, customer service, and serving your employees Read More »
DYPII : Did You Plug It In? Photo and article © Micah Solomon The language of service recovery When a customer contacts you to complain about your service, or needs your help in addressing a service-related breakdown – what I call “service recovery” – there is almost nothing that matters more to your ultimate success
The 5 words you can NEVER say in customer service: "Did you plug it in?" Read More »
By Micah Solomon, keynote speaker, customer service speaker, customer service consultant, and #1 bestselling author of “Exceptional Service, Exceptional Profit: The Secrets of Building a Five-Star Customer Service Organization.” Visit with Micah at https://customerserviceguru.com Before an organization can even think about delighting customers, it needs to be able to consistently deliver what it takes in
The Four Elements of Delivering Customer Satisfaction Read More »
By Micah Solomon – keynote speaker, customer service speaker, customer service consultant, and #1 bestselling author of “Exceptional Service, Exceptional Profit: The Secrets of Building a Five-Star Customer Service Organization.” Visit with Micah at https://customerserviceguru.com The range of how much (or how little) a single employee can give to an organization and its customers is
Improve your customer service by channeling a big wet dog at PETCO Read More »
By Micah Solomon – keynote speaker, customer service speaker, customer service consultant, and #1 bestselling author of “Exceptional Service, Exceptional Profit: The Secrets of Building a Five-Star Customer Service Organization.” Visit with Micah at https://customerserviceguru.com If you were here with me right now, the first thing I’d need to do [if you really want to
Learning customer service (and serial positions) by being blindfolded Read More »
It’s important to be aware that service begins when a customer comes in contact with you–it doesn’t always wait for you to make intentional contact with the customer. For example: suppose you’re the manager for the suburban superstore below – Suburban superstore – broad view from sidewalk approach ———— and a customer has just pulled
Customer service begins BEFORE you think it does Read More »
By Micah Solomon – keynote speaker, customer service speaker, customer service consultant, and #1 bestselling author of “Exceptional Service, Exceptional Profit: The Secrets of Building a Five-Star Customer Service Organization.” Visit with Micah at https://customerserviceguru.com Funerary art: Hermes guiding the departed Myrrhine Not that it comes down to this often, in most lines of work.
The ultimate reason to be nice to a customer Read More »
By Micah Solomon – keynote speaker, customer service speaker, customer service consultant, and #1 bestselling author of “Exceptional Service, Exceptional Profit: The Secrets of Building a Five-Star Customer Service Organization.” Visit with Micah at https://customerserviceguru.com Quick, think: Who is the first and last person your customers talk to when they’re on your premises, or on
Department of First and Last Impressions Read More »