Posted by Deborah Chaddock Brown on February 13, 2009 under Trust, empathy | 
I heard a story the other day that makes me wonder how you would react.
A friend of mine is a writer and met with a prospect to discuss the possibility of setting up a blog. She listened to him tell about his business and describe what he hoped to accomplish with the blog.
Great guy.
Great product.
As she listened she didn’t really feel like a blog was the right answer, but she couldn’t immediately think of another alternative. Because although he wanted to connect with others on the net – he really wanted to tell his story rather than start a dialogue. He was interested in search engine results and wondered at the length of time it would take to create a community.
He was right. The story he has to tell is one of innovation and safety and economics but isn’t really one that will illicit back-and-forth dialogue.
He wanted a multi-month agreement which would have brought my friend steady income and the opportunity to build a relationship with someone she was quickly growing to like and respect.
She put the proposal together and sent it to him, still not sure blogging was the right answer.
Later in the week she learned of a new tool that was more search engine oriented. Ron McDaniel of Employee Ambassador has created a search engine tool that looks like a blog in that it has regularly updated posts, but it works more like a search engine tool – very heavily focused on key words and target audience. The tool has a clean, focused look which centers the readers attention on a call to action offer. He provides key word research and monthly reporting. A tool more in line with what my friend’s prospect described.
She talked to her prospect and assured him that she’d love to work together but she’d found another tool more in line with his needs. By sharing this information – she instantly said goodbye to a regular contract and steady income.
What would you have done? What HAVE you done? Have you run across a situation where a competitor offers something more in line with your customer’s needs? Do you hand the customer over or try to replicate what they offer, knowing you aren’t as skilled and don’t have the same tools?
I told my friend that hopefully her prospect understands the sacrifice she’s made in the interest of what is best for him. Ultimately, she has planted the seed of a relationship based on trust and true understanding with this prospect. As a businessman, hopefully he has gained a new respect for my friend and will remember her in the future for other projects.
What would have you done?
Posted by Deborah Chaddock Brown on February 12, 2009 under Customer Moments, Missed Moments |
There are two kinds of hair cut people:
Those who meticulously schedule their salon visits every 4-6 weeks, always with the same stylist and usually at the same time and day of the week.
And then there’s me: I wake up one morning, look in the mirror and scream “I need a hair cut RIGHT NOW!’
That day was today. I was out and about running errands and drove by a salon. I noticed the sign in the window “We Welcome Walk-Ins.” It is a local salon, not a chain and I’ve been there on occasion. They are reasonably priced and have skilled stylists.
I walked in at 10:42 this morning. They opened at 10am. I could see that the salon seats were empty and the only customer was paying after having received his cut. (Before he left, he pre-scheduled his appointment for next month – clearly the first type of hair cut person.)
I was greeted pleasantly and I asked if I could have my hair cut. She smiled and said “All of our stylist are going into a meeting. We’ll be happy to take you this afternoon.”
I said no thank-you and as I turned I heard her snigger “WELL!”
When I was a store manager with Pearle Vision we also had meetings with our entire staff – Saturday morning BEFORE the store opened. Team meetings are a great opportunity for:
- Communicating current goals
- Motivating employees
- Sharing recent successes
- Asking for feedback and suggestions for how to make the customer experience better
- Training on new products and services
- Discussing challenging customer situations and how they might have been handled differently
I would bring doughnuts and coffee and by the end of the meeting we’d be pumped for our busiest day of the week and all be on the same page – a great outcome of staff meetings.
But during the work day? Choosing a meeting over paying customers?
Let me ask you – do you think this is the only salon in town? Of course not. There are six pages of beauty salons in the local phone directory.
Will I wait until they are available to get my hair cut? Not me, remember I woke up screaming at my reflection. I’m going to one of the other myriad of salons in the area.
So what is the learn?
Tell me – do you have staff meetings? When do you have them? Which would you chose: a meeting or a customer?
Here’s an article about conducting effective staff meetings by Susan Heathfield.
Posted by Deborah Chaddock Brown on February 11, 2009 under Connecting Moments |
08
This past Monday began Random Acts of Kindness week. I learned from their website that they began officially in 1995:
The Random Acts of Kindness Foundation is a resource for people committed to spreading kindness. We provide a wide variety of materials on our website, including activity ideas, lesson plans, project plans, teacher’s guide, project planning guide, publicity guide, and workplace resources on our website at www.actsofkindness.org – all free of charge.
It is a great excuse to look for little ways to lend a helping hand. The website offers materials, ideas and projects already in place -no end of ideas.
Here’s a little idea from the book 52 Projects Random Acts of Everyday Creativity from Jeffrey Yamaguchi. He suggests writing a few inspirational notes – no contact information, just anonymous notes of encouragement and then placing them randomly in a few books in your local library. Imagine if somone were to check out the book “Freedom from Depression” and find a little note from you offering a quote or scripture that let’s them know they are not alone.
Neat idea.
My son is a senior in high school and as he prepares for college he’s been reminiscing about his educational years. One teacher – the Language Arts teacher from 8th grade – is mentioned on a number of occasions. For an 18 year old, four years ago was back in the dark ages! It says a lot about a teacher that they’d be remembered fondly for what they taught so many years later. So over the weekend I dropped him a quick email. Didn’t take any time at all. I just gave him an update on my son’s college plans and told him how fondly he was remembered and I ended the note with “thank you so much for all you taught my son.”
Here’s a bit of what I heard back:
Thanks so much for your kind words. An e-mail like this one should be waiting for every person in the world on Monday morning. Nothing could possibly make you feel better. I really appreciate you taking the time to contact me…It’s letters like these that keep me going on the rainy days.
It never occured to me that my little note would have such an impact. His email made me smile. So lift your head up from the task at hand and send a quick email of thanks to a customer, a friend or a teacher. It is just a kind thing to do!
Posted by Deborah Chaddock Brown on February 10, 2009 under General |
Guess what? My customer service message has just been expanded to include Life Classroom! If you aren’t familiar with Life classroom it is an online resource and membership community for continuing education across all walks of life. I have been asked to be the customer service expert providing articles and monthly webinars. In fact, my first webinar is coming up next week: Monday, February 16 at 9pm EST.
My topic? Earning Customer Loyalty. I’m so excited to share my thoughts on earning our customer’s loyalty and hope you’ll drop in to give a listen. The webinar will last one hour and Paul Finck, professional coach and speaker, will be facilitating my first foray in to the webinar world.
Life classroom offers a free membership which provides access to lots of great information, however with a paid membership you’ll have access to future, current and archived articles, podcasts and webinars filled with information on a whole host of topics like business, finance, life and relationships. And of course: CUSTOMER SERVICE.
Check it out. Here’s a little marketing blurb about my Earning Customer Loyalty webinar:
When it comes to customer loyalty, Deborah believes we need to EARN it. It starts with building a relationship; making it easy to do business with, understanding their needs and exceeding their expectations. She’ll share some tips and tools we can use starting this afternoon to improve our customer’s experience and to start earning their loyalty.
Posted by Deborah Chaddock Brown on February 9, 2009 under Customer Moments |
Late night comedians love to use the phrase “going postal” in one of their punchline jokes, but I recently stumbled on another definition.
The United States Postal Service published their Vision 2013 inwhich they outline their vision for the future of the postal service. It is based on a foundation of three main strategies, the first of which is “Focus on What Matters Most to Customers” and they have broken it down into four categories:
1. Start with the customer needs “The Postal Service is more than just a delivery business—we exist to help customers accomplish tasks that are essential to them.” Isn’t that the name of the game for all of us?
2. Provide Excellent Customer Experience: “Customers expect timely, reliable delivery at reasonable prices. However, this is just part of the total customer experience—customers also need innovative solutions to their business or personal needs, clear information about our products, convenient access, and responsive customer service. Being “good enough” is not sufficient to increase customer loyalty and gain new business.” It is all about the experience. What a great definition of customer experience. Do you have a definition of what “excellent customer experience” means to your customer?
3. Build on Trusted Relationships: “We will continue to earn our customers’ trust by our performance and by open dialogue about what we can do together to grow the business.” It’s all about building relationships on a foundation of trust. It can’t be a one-way, take-the-money-and-run moment. It has to be built on a foundation of caring about the customer as a person and finding the right solution for their specific needs. The only way we can uncover that truth is through open dialogue and active listening.
4. Communicate Effectively: “The need for clear, unambiguous communication about the postal business has never been more critical.” Communication is the key to any successful business; any successful relationship. Speaking/writing with the reader in mind in an open manner. President Obama calls it transparent government. The same principal applies to our customer relationships.
Whether you believe your local post office follows through with these ambitious statements or not, I think we can all take a page from their 2013 Vision and embrace for our own business. I think they’ve done a great job identifying what we all need to focus on to make it through the next five years.
Being good enough isn’t going to cut it. That statement is so true.
Have you sat down with your team to readjust your mission and company focus to address the change in customer’s perception and the economic crunch? I would suggest that you start – like the post office – with the customer first. This is one occasion when “going postal” and following their lead is a good thing.
FYI – the other two strategies in the 2013 Vision plan are:
2. Leverage Our Strengths
3. Embrace Change
Posted by Deborah Chaddock Brown on February 8, 2009 under Parent Moments |
I live in Ohio.
My folks live in Arizona.
Google maps indicates that there are 2,065 miles from my door to theirs. In a good year I might see my folks four or five times. I love those visits, but it is hard to stay connected with such a great distance.
When I was growing up in the 60s we lived in Ohio and both sets of Grandparents lived in upstate New York. I can remember my Mother writing long letters every Sunday night. She and I would finish the dinner dishes and then she’d sit down at the card table in the family room and write letters to both parents while we watched television.
Now we write long newsy emails and call each other several times during the week. The conversations are mostly between Mom and I but occasionally my Dad and I talk and on a rare occasion my kids will call and fill my folks in on exciting events in their lives.
Today we took it a step farther. I gave them a webcam for their MAC for Christmas and this afternoon we sat in our respective homes – cell phones on speaker – setting up their SKYPE account and hooking up the Logitech webcam. Before too long we were connected. My kids joined me and we were all live on the screen – seeing each other’s faces – such precious faces – over the computer – for free!
You may have used your webcam to create a vlog or video to upload to YouTube. And maybe you connect with long distance customers and conduct productive meetings via the Internet. But have you used it to melt the miles between loved ones?
My Dad was recently in the hospital. It took five days for the doctors to learn what was ailing him and during that time they insisted that I didn’t need to leave the kids and my business and go to the expense of flying 2,065 miles to see him. He would be just fine.
Today, I got to see for myself just how good he looks. I am thanking God for technology today which provided a precious moment for me; melting the miles and bringing me closer to my family.
Posted by Deborah Chaddock Brown on February 6, 2009 under Connecting Moments |
Are you on LinkedIn? It is a professional social network connecting colleagues, peers and past associates. It’s a free service and enables you to create a profile which includes your work history, current assignment, and referrals from past clients.
Unlike Facebook or MySpace, the platform is focused on the business aspect of your life. Niche groups have formed connecting like-minded professionals to engage in lively question and answer sessions. Job searches can be effectively conducted using the connections and the research capabilities are endless.
LinkedIn is a wonderful resource however to most it is perhaps more about seeing how many connections you can collect. It reminds me of the 60s and baseball cards. For a nickel you could buy a pack with really awful gum and a handful of cards. Kids would gather on the playground to show off their collection and trade away their duplicates for the coveted Johnny Bench rookie card. (I have it!) It was all about the collection. How many did you have and who had the most valuable card?
Are you using LinkedIn as your modern baseball card collection or are you making the most of your LinkedIn connections?
Yesterday I met Colin Taylor via commenting on his blog and he sent me an invitation to connect on LinkedIn. I quickly responded and shortly after I received this email from Colin:
I am happy to assist my connections in any way I reasonably can. Please let me know if there is anything that I can do to assist you.
For our part we operate in the consulting space, are headquartered in Toronto and operate across Canada, the US as well as Asia. We do infrequent gigs in Europe.
We consult on all things call/contact center…strategy, technology, process, people, methodology/metrics, service to sales, site selection, outsourcing etc. If I can be of any assistance to you, I am happy to do so. We often give away our time (for 30 -60 minutes anyway- beyond that is will cost $).
If you come across people who could use our services, please feel free to refer them to us, we are happy to pay a finders fee for engagements we could/would not have sourced otherwise.
For more information on The Taylor Reach Group, Inc. please visit our website www.thetaylorreachgroup.com and/or read our newsletter (which is sent 10 times per year to 10,000+ senior call contact center executives globally).
He started the email with a personal message but the rest is a beautifully crafted note that let’s me know:
- He wants to help me in whatever way I might need; introductions, connections, answering questions or providing advice
- He clearly defined what his company does, who he helps and how he helps them
- He let me know how he could be contacted and where I might find more information
- He shared a freebie: free 30 minute consultation
How many times have you reached out to your LinkedIn connections with such focus and clarity? I can only speak for myself and say that after I’m connected with someone I usually just send them a thank you note and say something folksy like “so how the heck have you been?”
I wonder; which use of LinkedIn drives more business or offers a better networking opportunity? I think it is a no brainer. So I emailed Colin and asked if I could brag on him and he called me. We had a great conversation and he said that he views LinkedIn as a great opportunity that is under utilized. Agreed.
The same can be said for any of the marketing, networking, branding or social media tools that we utilize: it is only as successful as the effort we put forth.
I would encourage you to consider crafting a short email response to your new LinkedIn Connections. Interested in connecting with me? You can visit my LinkedIn profile.
Visit Colin on his blog Call Center Perspectives to hear what he has to say regarding customer service in the call center world. Good stuff!
Check out Guy Kawasaki’s article 10 Ways to Use LinkedIn
Check out this post Is LinkedIn a Waste of Time?
Posted by Deborah Chaddock Brown on February 5, 2009 under Connecting Moments, Customer Moments, making a difference |
Do you like cats? I find people either like them or they don’t. This is my oldest, Maya, big, furry and a little bit mean. She’ll purr while she bites into you.
The baby is Callie…
I love cats because they are independent. Put out food, water and litter box and they are good to go. Until they decide not to go….in the litter box.
That happened to a friend of mine recently. She also has two cats and her littlest (however, big enough to know better) has decided to use the wood floors and living room carpet as her litter box, much to my friend’s dismay. My friend tried several things to solve the problem, none of which worked. So she went to PetSmart.
She was waited on by Bobbi (Canton, Ohio PetSmart). Bobbi listened to my friend’s story. She offered a few basic ideas, all of which my friend had already tried. Then Bobbi took the moment to a new level.
“Tell me about what is going on in your cat’s life. Is she stressed about something? Could there be a stray animal outside that is making her too nervous to use the bathroom appropriately?”
Bobbi didn’t dismiss my friend and say “you’ll find a solution in aisle five” she actually was interested in helping resolve the issue. It turns out there is a stray black cat and a misplaced chicken living outside the house. The chicken is a story for another time, but the black cat had been taunting Mia (my friend’s cat). The litter box is by the window outside of which the stray cat paces and hisses.
Bobbi didn’t stop there, she asked further questions about Mia’s likes and dislikes. You might be saying “it’s a cat for crying out loud” but that’s not how my friend feels and clearly Bobbi understood that. She hooked my friend up with a series of products including two new litter boxes that will help solve the problem.
When all was said and done Bobbi said “Please call me and let me know how it is going. If these don’t work, let me know and we’ll figure something else out.”
My friend left feeling cared for, valued and empowered to solve the problem. She also left $155 poorer, for that is what she spent at Pet Smart.
Would she go back to PetSmart the next time she has a problem? Yes. Will she refer PetSmart to other pet owners – you betcha, that’s how I learned about the story.
Did it take Bobbi a lot of time? Not really. It just took a desire to help, a willingness to listen, the smarts to ask great questions and the knowledge of her product to match the right products with the right need. I asked my friend if she thought she’d spent too much money. “No. I was happy to spend the money because I feel confident that this will fix the problem.” So even in this economy – when a value is shown, it isn’t about finding the cheapest solution.
All good stuff.
Now think of your employees. Do they offer the same level of attention to every customer? What would happen to your business if they did? What’s stopping them?
Posted by Deborah Chaddock Brown on February 2, 2009 under Employee Moments, Telephone Moments |
It is a scary time. Companies are laying off hordes of employees. Businesses are closing. Sales are down.
Now is not the time to scare off those employees you’d like to keep around.
Your boss calls and says “I need you to be available for a conference call with the entire sales force next Monday to talk about the state of the company. Think you can make it?”
What is your first thought? Are you feeling warm and fuzzy? I don’t think so.
So you call your buddies on the sales force and spend countless hours debating what the call could be about.
You spend the weekend looking over your personal finances – what can you cut out? Maybe you even update your resume because who knows what will be said on the call. How productive are you in the days that follow the request leading up to the actual call? Not very.
Are we loosing our job?
Will commissions be cut?
Are they stopping our health plan – eliminating the travel reimbursement? What could it be???
How many companies are calling conferences just like this and putting their employees through stressful anxiety?
Management just wanted to give you a heads up so you didn’t book an appointment, not realizing the pure h-e-double tooth picks they would be putting you through.
So how did this particular call go?
“This call is to talk about the state of the company and the economy. I don’t have any agenda. Any questions?”
After a few brave souls opened the discussion it turned out that the company was doing fine even though sales were down and the boss had no intention of making any cuts. Whew!
I asked one of the members of the call if it had ever occurred to him that the call would go that way?
“No,” he said. “It never occured to me that the purpose of the call was to reassure us. The way the call was scheduled and with the economy and the automotive industry the way it is, I just assumed the call was about cutbacks of some kind.”
So how could that situation have been handled differently?
1. If you need to give your employees significant notice before having a conference call, give them a scoop of the call or at least anticipate what their greatest fear might be and reassure them: “Although we’ll be talking about the state of the company, there won’t be any position eliminations or major cuts announced.”
2. As management, prepare for the call by thinking through what questions your staff may wish to ask but may hesitate because of the venue. Formulate answers and lead the call by saying: “Before I open it up to general questions, I have a few answers to the questions that I’m sure are on your minds. Let me take a minute to answer those first.”
3. Offer to answer additional questions offline. This boss did make that offer and it is a good way to allow people to ask questions they might be embarrassed or hesitant to ask in front of the group.
4. Thank them for their efforts. As a manager, you are only as productive as your sales team. Make sure they know how much they are appreciated for without your sales team you are very likely without sales!
Conference calls and staff meetings about the state of the company are truly MAKE OR BREAK MOMENTS. You have the opportunity to be honest, gain their trust and enlist their assistance with collectively being successful in the future. Make sure you handle these moments with an understanding of how the information may be received by the employee. Put yourself in their shoes.
One last note – even the tiniest details matter. When I worked for Pearle Vision we would frequently receive announcements or sale coupons in our pay envelopes. One time the announcement came on pink paper. People began to panic even before reading the notice (which was a dollar off coupon to a local establishment) believing they had received PINK SLIPS.
THINK about the details before you DO.
