Guest Service

As we draw towards the end of a turbulent year in the UK, I thought I’d reflect on my messages over those 5 years and look ahead to what we might expect to see in 2023.

Just do what is expected. When you consistently do what the customer expects, they will say, “They are amazing!” and “I’ll be back!”

Quiet quitting, a term that gained momentum in August, refers to a worker’s refusal to go above and beyond for an employer, or doing the bare minimum. Nearly half of all U.S. workers are quiet quitting, according to a September Gallup Poll, and in the retail industry the figures are likely higher.

here are five ways to make your customers feel special:  

The only way your customers will say what you want them to say is if the experience you deliver aligns with the brand promise.

Create the experience that gets customers to not only buy today, but will also say, “I’ll be back” tomorrow. 

Yes, you read that headline correctly. Spending on customer experience systems is increasing but, for the last few years, customer satisfaction has been falling.

Since the Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company does an extraordinary job of collecting service errors and uses that information to improve customer experience, I’ll excerpt from my book about the company titled, The New Gold Standard to provide four lessons for turning breakdowns into breakthroughs.

It’s not like companies purposely provide poor customer service. But they can’t seem to execute at a level that makes customers happy.

This Labor Day, employers are reminded of their responsibility to protect employees from violations of their dignity and to better support workers when they’re harassed or abused.

Whenever you make a change of any kind, consider the impact on the customer. Will they be happy, unhappy, or will they even notice?

It doesn’t matter the type of business you are in, regardless of processes and systems, sometimes common sense must prevail. If we hire qualified people and properly train them to do their jobs, we should let them do what they were hired to do. Give them permission to say “Yes,” teach them when they must say “No,” and coach them on finding alternatives to avoid saying “No.” Empower them to make good common-sense decisions, because in many situations, common sense prevails! 

Whenever there is a chance to learn from an iconic brand like Amazon, I jump at the chance. Here are three powerful ideas we should consider.

Each employee has a huge amount of power. They can confirm your reputation – or not. They can deliver on your brand promise – or not.

After James Corden was accused of being ‘nasty’, psychologists explain why rudeness doesn’t pay

If you haven’t already noticed, you will start to see more customers commenting, asking questions, and complaining on social channels.

These are turbulent times. Customers have less money to spend, budgets are tight, and marketing departments – like many others – are under a lot of pressure. (It’s why we are organizing a CX Under Pressure Tour in LA in March, by the way). I see companies around me making some really hard decisions, not always to the advantage of the customers. And I do understand that. But I also believe that now, more than ever, is the time to invest in customer experience. Because it’s important to realize that upgrading your CX is not only about hugely expensive AI projects or costly product investments.

In uncertain economic times, smart business leaders know that the path to loyalty and retention is paved with CX. Closing the loop with customers is critical to drive loyalty and retention, and there are multiple approaches that have specific benefits.

When I do Customer Service Workshops or Sales Training I often ask if any of the participants have been lied to by a customer. The response is often nearly unanimous. It’s a big yes! So why do customers lie? Or a better question is, do they lie?  In the technical sense of the word yes, customers…

I firmly believe that the way to be successful in CX, is to make sure that you are fast, easy, and fun. And I think that this Top Gun effect falls in that last category.

In our customer service workshops, we do an exercise in which we ask participants what their favorite companies are to do business with and why. We almost always get Amazon as an answer.