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Article - Get your head out of the sand!

Excellent customer service is a crucial differentiator between businesses today, particularly when a number of companies are offering the same product or service.

A lot of organisations give a great talk on how they focus on customer service but my recent experience has found that talk is all it is and the reality is different matter.

For example, I recently sent out a mailshot offering a free customer service consultancy audit and, in true marketing mode, I telephoned the contacts to follow-up on the offer. A number advised me that they did not require any help in the area of customer service. Fair enough, but why then did it take me sometimes up to three goes to get through to the person (unaware at this stage that I am not a customer or potential customer), in some instances the phone was answered after about 30secs of me hanging on and in some instances not answered at all.

With some companies – particularly in the leisure and hotel industry I could not understand the person on the other end of the phone and was continually told to ‘hang on’, ‘I don’t know if he/she is in’, ‘hay Sharon is so and so in today’ being shouted to another person in the background.

These companies are sticking their heads in the sand

So what? You may ask.

On average it costs 5 times more to engage a new customer than to retain existing customers. Some industries are well known for focusing on new customers rather than existing ones…..

• Banks – think about the new customer only Nationwide advertising campaign

• Insurance companies – I recently cancelled a policy by simply stopping the debit. I received a letter advising me that my request had been carried out – not why had I moved? Was there anything they could do?

• Mortgage companies – after being with the same mortgage provider for 20 years, I moved to another company with no follow-up from the original supplier – just simply moved on

No organisation can really afford to let customers go so readily and this is critical in the SME market, we cannot afford to keep our heads in the sand and need to wake-up before the tide comes in!

So what do our customers want? Well customer expectations are wondrous creatures

They grow
They change shape and direction
They shift constantly and easily

How satisfied your customers are is determined by those expectations and your performance in meeting them. These needs and expectations apply as much to a B2B as a B2C organisation

So what can you do to get your head out of the sand?

1. Put service on the agenda – for everyone associated with your company

• You, your full-time and temporary staff, casual staff, consultants, contractors and suppliers
• Service needs to be consistent across the organisation not just the person on reception or the customer service department
• Your external providers need to be fully aware of your commitment to service and how you anticipate achieving excellent service

2.  Your people – they are your greatest asset

• Ensure everyone knows their role and how it affects the customer experience
• Give your people the skills to enable them to carry out their role. This may be technical or product knowledge but should also include customer service and communication skills
• Recognise and reward your people – this does not have to be expensive – a public well done goes a long way

A Gallup poll in 2003 showed 80% of British workers lacked any real commitment to their jobs. Of this 80% approximately ¼ were actively disengaged. The research found that this was because they did not know what was expected of them, their managers didn’t care and their views counted for little.

3.  Communicate with your people and customers in a language everyone understands

• Be clear and concise
• Make sure they know what’s in it for them
• Ensure understanding and buy-in
• Take out the jargon

I once worked for an organisation for 4 years and I did not fully understand the jargon, let alone the poor customers!

4.  Develop your processes and systems with the customer in mind

• Ask yourself and your customers how easy is it to do business with you?
• Are your processes and procedures developed on what you can do to your customer or what you can do for your customer?

Think for a moment about organisations that consistently seem to have an inward looking focus. At a recent networking meeting most utility suppliers came into this bracket, and my current favourite is the Royal Mail, whose new process for ascertaining the price of postage, is purely to make more profit and their own lives easier with little regard for the customer.

5.  Put yourself into the shoes of your customer

• Ask your customers for feedback
• More importantly - act on it. Not actioning it is more damaging than not asking for it at all

Imagine how your customers and indeed suppliers will feel if they have taken the time to give you feedback, only to find out that nothing has changed and no action plan is in place as a result of the findings.

I once did some research for a company who spent a considerable amount of budget to ascertain their customers feelings about them – good and bad. After presenting back the findings nothing happened. It turned out the Director had a customer survey as an objective for that year and considered the fact that he had done it as purely a tick in the box

6.  Walk the talk – as business leaders

• Know your customer base
• Speak to your customers
• Speak to your staff – they are your greatest asset
• Praise your staff – don’t only be seen when things are going wrong

I have a friend who once worked for a company where she only saw MD twice in 5 years and wasn’t sure if she would recognise him again!

Once our heads are up and these areas are in place we can then reap the rewards….

• Profitability – music to our ears but by improving your customer experience you increase retention and therefore profitability

• Brand value – think of the quality brands we know and love. Wouldn’t you want to be considered by your customers as being in the same category as the brands you respect?

• Customer confidence – achieved by ensuring that everyone who has an impact on the customers has confidence and is developed through their product, technical, communication and service skill training.

• Productivity – by engaging your employees through communication, development and recognition you increase productivity and reduce staff turnover and by constantly ensuring your processes are based on your customer needs stops blockages and unnecessary procedures

• Loyal advocates – through regular dialogue with your customers and service excellence, your customers will become your most effective marketing department through the strongest form of advertising – personal recommendation

In essence – involve and support your people and your customers and your head will definitely not be stuck in the sand!

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