Leading vs Listening – What the Customer Wants

When are people in charge of their lives and experiences?  Chances are, not very often.  So they seek to feel in control of their experiences and certainty in their knowledge of things in small areas, like their transactions with companies.  For as many times as those in customer service have heard "the customer is always Keep Reading...

3 Happy Customer Themes

In tales of happy customer service experiences, there are common themes.  Let's take a look at a sample of stories shared to Reddit by customers about noteworthy experiences they've had. Michael-Bell shared a story about an experience with tech support.  Rather than proving to be a frustrating, drawn out experience, he was delighted by the Keep Reading...

Who Has Time for That?

Customers don't have time to waste. Efficiency is key. News article after news article talks about the diminished amount of time the average American has these days.  It's a pervasive problem that squeezes every single corner of their lives, so the last thing a customer wants to do is invest time they already don't have Keep Reading...

A Service Comparison

Customers patronize many different companies, some small, some large.  But customers do not differentiate between them when comparing their experiences as customers: every company is measured against the performance of all the rest.  This means it is especially important for us to not only compete against our marketplace competitors, because every industry is our competitor Keep Reading...

What to do When the Point of Service Fails

Another name for a customer service representative is simply: Fixer.  Our job centers around fixing customer problems.  Sometimes they are problems with the product, or the website, or a return.  But other times, they are problems customers have experienced at the point of sale or service.  It is our duty to handle these situations with Keep Reading...

Service Simplicity Doesn’t Beat Accuracy

When we asked about easily avoidable customer service frustrations, responses ran the gamut of experiences.  But one theme stood out overall: it is more valuable to be 100% accurate than it is to be 100% accommodating to our customers.  Consider Greatta's story for an illustration as to why. Gretta had ordered a large rug online.  Keep Reading...

Why Customers Expect Communication

"I just made a big purchase: a car.  The caveat was that they had to find one with my selected options, so it was a drawn out experience.  And while I was very excited about the final product, the process was really stressful because I never knew what was going on or when things should Keep Reading...

Setting the Standard: A Lowe’s Employee Sits Down

A woman in Wilkesboro, North Carolina is the proud owner of Baxter, a special needs rescue dog.  Baxter requires the assistance of a doggy wheelchair and, when his owner, Amy Jo Martin, decided to upgrade his chair with an anti-tip wheel, she headed to Lowe's for ideas as well as parts. Ms. Martin asked at Keep Reading...

How Heidi Does Service

In customer service stories, we often hear about exceptional circumstances that compel a representative to provide service far out of the norm.  But, like we've frequently discussed, quality service has to be consistently pursued day in and day out.  Heidi, who works for the grocer Trader Joe's, shared her approach to ensuring a constant delivery Keep Reading...