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...
Many companies provide traditional customer service. They wait until customers have questions or find out about problems before they take action. This is reactive service and can irritate customers, erode trust and destroy brands. Some examples include not informing customers about a delay in shipping or a delayed service call. An extreme example is GM’s delayed recall of 2.6 million vehicles for a defect that they knew existed and had already led to 13 deaths. While, companies often have to be reactive, there are opportunities to provide proactive customer service. Proactive customer service is staying ahead of customer questions or...
A few weeks ago, a friend of mine leased a new GMC vehicle. As part of the lease, he received a complimentary 3-month subscription to OnStar, the service that keeps a driver safe, connected and ready for the road. As part of this service, he receives a diagnostic report on many aspects of the vehicle including transmission, emissions, brakes, airbags, tire pressure, and oil life remaining. The report also reminds the driver of mileage and maintenance needed. It really is an amazing report full of feedback on the condition of various systems of the vehicle. The diagnostic report is great...
Consistently providing great service was the foundation that made my businesses successful. Continuous communication and training ensured all employees deeply understood our customer service culture. I believe that all customer feedback is good, including feedback about problems. That is valuable information we can use to improve. In fact, a problem handled quickly and effectively often results in a more loyal customer. So, it amazes me when I interact with businesses that don’t seem to care and in fact, ignore customers. I had a bad experience with an upscale restaurant and sent in a web form about the situation. A month later,...
The 2016 presidential election was significant for many reasons. Many feel it may be the most important election of our lifetime. The incredible inaccuracy of the polls stands out as one noteworthy aspect of the election. The political news reporters were shocked and embarrassed by how they blew the prediction of the election outcome. This is a clear demonstration of how decisions can be based on erroneous information. Some of the inherent flaws in polls are similar to problems with surveys. Poll predictions use several factors that are supposed to be representative of the population. Like polls, surveys are the...
On a recent visit to my workout center, I noticed an issue I wanted to comment on. When I asked how I could get in touch with management, I was surprised to be directed to a far corner where comment cards and the dusty comment box were located. Why was my upscale workout center still using an antiquated method for obtaining customer feedback? After asking for a pen, I completed the comment card, including my contact information. It took about 15 minutes of my time to find and complete the card. Then I waited to be contacted… I’m still waiting....
