We know that it is six to seven times more costly to attract a new customer than to retain an existing one. In addition, 40 percent of consumers stated that they would spend more money with a company that made improvements to the overall customer service experience. The key to retaining customers and your business is to create a culture of exceptional customer service. Think about customer service in two dimensions: procedural and personal. The procedural dimension relates to a company’s established processes used to deliver their products and/or services. The personal dimension relates to how employees interact with customers,...
Hospitality Desks have been a staple of travel management companies since the very beginning. The idea is well intentioned, make it as easy as possible for travelers to get the help that they need. Travel has changed a lot over the years, but the hospitality desk has more or less remained the same. Now that travelers can instantly access information from their smartphone, is a Dry Erase board the best place to put important updates? When seeking improvement, start with the end goal. The #1 goal of a hospitality desk is to provide a high level of service for travelers....
Since the start of the pandemic, it seems like every phone call we make has the same recorded warning. It goes something like, “We are experiencing higher than normal call volumes due to the COVID pandemic. Expect longer wait times…” While that makes sense for some businesses, it feels like an excuse for others. In an attempt to handle the higher volume of calls, some businesses have implemented new service options. After giving the dire warning of longer wait times, callers are offered other service options such as text or chat. These are omni-channel options and can potentially provide a...
The coronavirus pandemic has changed how businesses interact and communicate with customers. Limited or no contact mandates have pushed businesses to find other ways to personally communicate with customers. One strategy some businesses have turned to is a messaging channel. In fact, during the first few months of the pandemic, the use of a messaging channel to interact with customers increased by 26%. At the same time, businesses are still learning to manage a messaging channel. Our company provides a 2-way messaging channel for businesses to interact with their customers. Two-way messaging is different from SMS messaging. SMS messages are...
COVID-19 presented a new kind of crisis that few businesses could anticipate in their crisis communication plan. As businesses suddenly shut down, they scrambled to figure out what to communicate and how. Soon, customers were flooded with emails from all kinds of businesses about how they were handling the pandemic. These heartfelt emails were well-intended but quickly became annoying. As businesses begin to reopen, they are challenged with providing consistent, relevant communications. They need to address customers’ current concerns as well as plan for longer-term impacts that aren’t yet known. Many of the communications sent over the last few months...
As businesses close and life as we know it comes to a halt due to COVID-19, many of us are beginning to realize just how much we depend on various services we use including restaurants, dry cleaners, and gyms. Along with the uncertainty and fears of COVID-19, our inability to access these services can create anxiety. Many businesses that provide services are thinking creatively to offer alternatives for their customers. Gyms are coming out with home workouts and other tips for staying healthy during this time. Dry cleaners are offering free pickup and delivery. Restaurants that have not typically offered...
Would you drive to your next vacation destination looking behind you in your rearview or side-view mirror? Ridiculous question, right? As a business owner, you make decisions that impact your customers’ experience. What information are you using to make those decisions? If you are getting feedback from your customers through surveys or other market research, you are running your business looking in the rearview mirror. Improving the individual and aggregate customer experience has a huge impact on the top and bottom lines. In order to deliver a great customer experience, you need to get timely feedback that enables you to...
We all love getting the VIP treatment from businesses, especially if we are loyal customers. It makes us feel like we’re valued customers. Businesses treat us like VIPs when they are trying to win our business. Unfortunately, that treatment fades pretty quickly once we become a customer. I’ve been a long-time customer of my cable company and recently contacted them three times over the course of a couple of months to talk about ways to reduce my monthly bill. I even told them I had a better offer from a competitor and if we couldn’t get close to that offer,...
I really like avocado. Whenever I am trying to decide between two sandwiches at a restaurant, the one with avocado will almost always win. The other day, I was at the Stacked Pickle. I ordered their Turkey, bacon sandwich because I thought it came with avocado. When the sandwich was delivered, I asked the server about the missing avocado. He politely explained I had read the description incorrectly. The sandwich actually came with avocado-mayo. I didn’t have time to be disappointed, because he immediately asked if I would like a slice of avocado for my sandwich. I was impressed with...
Messaging has become the communication channel of choice. Messaging is instant and makes communication with people half way across the world not only possible, but completely free. These advances haven’t just changed the way people communicate with each other, they’ve changed the way businesses communicate with their customers. Here are four messaging options businesses leverage to communicate with their customers: Text Messaging Today, texting is the most prevalent form of communication worldwide. Text messages have a 99% open rate, one of the highest open rates of all communication forms. One of the most common forms of texting used by businesses...
