Going Postal: Customers First
Posted by Deborah Chaddock Brown on February 9, 2009 under Customer Moments | 
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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:
