The secret sauce behind a strong service culture (Part 3)

This is the third post in a series where I share the three main ingredients that make up the secret sauce behind a strong service culture. The first ingredient was clarity (read that post here). The second ingredient was consistency (read that one here). The third ingredient is commitment.

You need more than a banner
I howled with laughter when I saw the 1999 movie Office Space because I had lived through so many of the scenes. One situation I'll never forget happened when I was a training supervisor for a large catalog company. The Vice President of Customer Service called a meeting with all the managers and supervisors to unveil his new "one call resolution" initiative. He explained we could serve our customers much better if we resolved their complaint or problem on the very first call. Here was the entire initiative:

Step 1: Hang up a "One call resolution" banner.

Step 2: Hold a meeting to point out the new banner.

Yup! That really was it.

This banner didn't fix any of our real problems. For example, if a customer returned an item for a refund or exchange, it would sit in a truck trailer on a back lot for four weeks before the trailer was unloaded. This caused customers to repeatedly call and ask, "Did you receive my return?" Reducing that backlog of returns would have reduced a lot more phone calls than a stupid banner!

True Commitment
One of my current clients provides a great example of true commitment to service. Here are just a few things they do to preserve their culture:

1. Job applicants are screened for their ability to embody the organization's service values
2. New hires receive extensive customer service training
3. Executives and managers consistently discuss service with their employees
4. Customer service is a component of everyone's performance review
5. The company's strategic plan includes a customer service goal

The amazing thing is everyone is really expected to live these service values. I recently attended meeting where a frontline employee challenged a vice president on an operational procedure. The vice president accepted the challenge and engaged in a conversation with the employee and everyone else in the meeting about what would work best for the customer. They ultimately came up with some great ideas that everyone was excited about.

I left that meeting feeling sure this company had a real commitment to their service culture.

The secret sauce behind a strong service culture (Part 2)

This is the second of a three part series where I'll share the three main ingredients that make up the secret sauce behind a strong service culture. The first ingredient was clarity (read that post here). The second ingredient is consistency.

Consistency impacts a service culture in two ways.  First, organizations have to consistently deliver outstanding experiences. Second, organizations have to deliver service that is consistent with what their customers should expect of them.

Consistently Outstanding
I recently had hardwood floors installed in my home.  (Geneva Flooring did the job – they are terrific.)  The project caused me to make quite a few trips to my local hardware store, San Carlos TrueValue, to get various supplies throughout the project.  Every time I went to the store, I was greeted with, “What can I help you find today?”  All of the associates I encountered were friendly, helpful, and didn’t make me feel bad about my lack of home improvement knowledge.  Best of all, their recommendations were spot on and I got in and out quickly with as little damage to my wallet as possible.

Getting it right every time requires individuals to be consistent, but it also requires every employee to step up to the same level. For example, Gallup did a study on a major telecommunications provide and found they enjoyed an 88% overall satisfaction rating among customers who called their call centers. They dug a little deeper and found that the bottom 10% of the company's reps had a customer satisfaction rating of only 43%. The 88% overall score clearly didn't matter too much to the unfortunate customers who happened to get one of the 'bottom 10%' on the phone!

Consistent with Expectations
Let me risk a short, but instructive tangent.  Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler’s toughness and dedication was widely criticized during the 2011 NFC Championship when he came out of the game and was seen standing on the sideline in full uniform.  It turned out that Cutler had suffered a sprained MCL and was truly unable to play, but his behavior was inconsistent with what the fans expected.  If you look like you can play, you should be playing.

Compare that to Green Bay Packers defensive back Charles Woodson who was injured during the 2011 Super Bowl.  He has been widely hailed as an inspiration to his team rather than facing the same criticism as Cutler.  Why?  Because Woodson reappeared on the sideline in street clothes and his arm in a sling.  He looked injured so fans didn't expect him to re-enter the game.

Bringing this back to the business world, employees' behaviors need to align with what companies tell their customers to expect. A company that advertises amazing service better have employees who are able to do just that, or they'll risk alienated customers.

The secret sauce behind a strong service culture (part 1)

Do you ever wonder why some organizations 'get it' when it comes to customer service and others don't? The organizations that consistently deliver outstanding service all have one thing in common - a strong service culture. There are many aspects that make up an organization's culture, but there's a secret sauce that brings it all together. 

This is the first of a three part series where I'll share the three main ingredients that make up the secret sauce. The first ingredient is clarity.

Work with no clarity
Several years ago, I worked with a credit union that was trying to improve its service.  They had just rolled out a set of five core values to their employees and hired me to determine how well the employees understood and lived these values.  My report turned up both good and bad news.  The good news was 97% of employees could name all five core values.  The bad news?  Nobody could agree upon what these values actually meant, including the credit union’s executives.

A lack of clarity makes it hard for employees at all levels to know what to do. If we can't describe what outstanding service looks like to our customers, how can we train our employees to deliver it, bake it into our policies and procedures, or hold people accountable for their performance?

Getting to clarity
An excellent example of providing clarity is the online retailer Zappos. They have become famous not only for their customer service, but their willingness to let the world peak inside their corporate culture. Check out the video below where Zappos describe their culture. (Email subscribers: check it out on their webpage.)

What do you *REALLY* think about your customers?

Late last week, my Mozy online backup software started acting up (again). I went to their website to troubleshoot the problem and was advised that the issue stemmed from a bug in a recent software update. Unfortunately, the solution involved reinstalling the software and then backing up all my files from scratch - a process that took several days to complete.

This morning, I received an email from Mozy notifying me of a price increase. Nice timing.

Any company can say they care about their customers. The truth emerges when there is a problem or some change to navigate. Your actions reveal what how you really think about your customers. Do you care or don't you?

There were two articles in the February 2011 issue of Inc. magazine that illustrate this point. The first was in Jason Fried's Get Real column, where he detailed a recently technical problem that his company, 37signals, experienced with their online collaboration software called Campfire. Their service was intermittently disrupted for several weeks in December, so they decided to give every customer a month of service for free.

Even better, their communication with their customers was very candid, even when they didn't have the answers. Although they initially faced a torrent of criticism on Twitter, their approach gradually bought them a slew of good will. 

The second article described what happened when Chargify, a web-based service that manages billing for small companies, suddenly announced a price increase. Their customers were given 45 days notice that they were moving away from a 'freemium' model where basic services were free to a pricing structure where everyone pays. Like 37signals, Chargify faced a wave of criticism and bad PR. Unlike 37signals, Chargify took an 'us vs. them' approach. Co-founder Simak Taghaddos even had the stones to send this Tweet in response to customer criticism:

Moving away from freemium gets rid of freeloaders & bad customers, so you can provide better products & support to the good ones.

Wow. Thanks for letting us know how you really feel!

Back to Mozy. Every 6 months or so, some sort of problem occurs with their service. Getting slapped with a price increase immediately after the latest time sucking fiasco is like salt on the wound. I think I'm ready to move on to a company that really cares about it's online backup customers. Any suggestions?

10 Ways to Avoid Email Overload

Most people I know share a common complaint - too many emails! However, I observe many people creating extra work for themselves in their haste to plow through it all. The results include miscommunication, slow response times, and even more emails!

I'm generally on top of my emails and my inbox only contains the current day's messages. I doubt I'm any less busy than the average person, but I do follow a few simple tips.

#1 Think before you "Reply All"
A boatload of our extra email comes from people hitting the "Reply All" button, even when "All" of us don't need to see the message. Only use this feature when necessary.

#2 Cc and Bcc cautiously
A close cousin of the "Reply All" problem is the Cc and Bcc. Copy someone who doesn't need to be copied and you risk having them add more unnecessary emails to your inbox.

#3 Read carefully before responding
A lot of unneccessary email traffic comes from people sending partial responses to emails. In their haste to reply, they may miss a key detail. For example, I recently emailed a friend who invited me over for dinner to let her know I was available on Friday, Saturday, or Sunday. I asked her to choose the day that worked best for her and her husband. She replied, "We can't do Friday, but we can do Saturday or Sunday." Ugh - now I have to send a second message and she'll no doubt send a reply. Two additional emails would have been avoided if she had simply selected the day that worked best for her.

#4 Write concise but thorough messages
Think of a question your recipient may have about your email and include the answer in your message. A short, well-written email leads to less back and forth which ultimately reduces your email load.

#5 Describe what you want in the first paragraph
Make it easy for your recipient to understand what you are looking for. Put any request for action or information in the first paragraph of your message so it won't be missed.

#6 Email isn't for conversations
Look at the messages in your inbox and see how many are from the same conversation. Do you need to discuss something with a colleague? Pick up the phone and knock it out.

#7 Write descriptive subject lines
The subject line should give the reader a clear idea of what the message is about so he or she can determine how quickly to read it. A descriptive subject line also reinforces what you are asking the reader to do.

#8 Set rules to automate email management
Outlook and many other popular email programs let you set rules to automatically manage certain types of emails. For example, you can have all your email newsletters automatically routed to a "Reading" folder that you can check once or twice a week. This unclutters your email box and allows you to get to those lower priority items when you have a free moment.

#9 Use one program to manage all your email addresses
Many of us have multiple email addresses, but that doesn't mean we can't get all our messages in one place. This allows you to manage just one email inbox instead of several. I have rules set up in Outlook that route messages sent to my secondary email addresses to special folders so they don't get mixed in with messages sent to my primary account.

#10 Check email only a few times per day
Constantly checking your email every time a message arrives is a huge distraction and productivity drain. Instead, set aside blocks of time to focus on email and power through your messages. Force yourself to make a decision about each message (respond, file, or delete) rather than just leaving it sitting in your inbox for later. You'll find this approach allows you to write better messages, get fewer responses in return, and dramatically reduce the number of emails in your inbox. Tim Ferriss, author of the Four Hour Workweek, has some even more extreme advice that can actually work quite well.

Do these tips work for you? Do you have a tip of your own? Please leave your comments!

Five Ways to Avoid Self-sabotage in Customer Service

Customer service can be difficult enough without any extra 'help', but service providers often unknowingly self-sabotage their efforts. Here are five ways you can avoid hurting your own customer service.

Tip #1: Avoid trigger words
Have you ever wondered why telling an irate person to "Calm down" has the opposite effect? There are certain words that can trigger a customer's anger in emotional situations. For example, the word "No" can trigger an outburst because it makes a customer feel powerless and without options. A saavy customer service rep will find other ways to deliver the message without igniting anger, even if the answer really is "No". See some more examples.

Tip #2: Avoid quoting time in ranges
We often need to give a customer a time frame for something to happen. For instance, we might say, "Your replacement part will arrive in 2 - 4 business days." Unfortunately, it's human nature for your customer to only hear "2 days". Your customer may get upset when the promised part doesn't arrive two days later. It's much better to give one date, such as "Your replacement part will arrive by Friday, January 28." If it arrives early, you are a superstar. If it arrives by the 28th, you simply made good on your promise.

Tip #3: Set conservative expectations
Anytime you get a chance to set expectations, set them low so they are easier to exceed! For example, let's say you need 30 minutes to research a question and get back to your customer with an answer. If you say 30 minutes, you are risking a service problem if something interrupts you and it takes 45 minutes to respond. On the other hand, if the customer agrees to a one hour response time and you get back to them in 45 minutes, your response time seems faster than expected!

Tip #4: Follow-up on problems
A great way to avoid looking like a slug is to follow-up on problems to make sure everything is OK. For example, let's say you agree to help a customer with a billing problem. You contact someone in your accounting department and ask them to make the adjustment and send out a corrected statement. You'll score a few points with your customer if you follow-up to make sure the problem has been resolved. You may also sniff out a problem before it gets worse if you discover they still haven't gotten what they needed.

Tip #5: Listen fully and without judgment
Complete this sentence. "When listening to a customer, it's always wise to avoid jumping to ___________." I bet the word "conclusions" flashed into your brain, right? Most of the time, the ability to fill in the blanks is a terrific skill to have. Unfortunately, it's a habit that can be dangerous when we are listening to a customer's needs, especially if we don't fill in the blank correctly. For example, the word that should complete the sentence above is "solutions", a small but subtle difference!

How else can we avoid self-sabotage in customer service? Leave your tips in the comments section below!

Losing the sale to sloppy service

It's always amazing to me when salespeople sell themselves right out of a sale. Over the past few months, I've been shopping for some new insurance coverage for Toister Performance Solutions. It's finally over and I now know two things. First, I'm thankful for State Farm insurance Agent Bob Beedle. Second, there are a lot of insurance brokers out there who should swear off coffee, because coffee is for closers.

Brokers 1, 2, & 3
The first broker never bothered to send me the application he said was necessary to get a quote. The second one chewed me out when she realized I was looking at several different brokers, even though I was very up front that I was considering several options. The third broker was initially responsive, but then never follow-up with the requested quote.

A commission not worth the trouble
One broker told me her commission was "only fifty bucks" so she was helping me as a favor. Was it possible the lack of service from these brokers stemmed from a perception that the commission simply wasn't worth the effort?

Enter Bob Beedle
There is a happy ending to this story. Bob Beedle, my State Farm insurance agent for the past ten years, was able to sell me the coverage I needed. Bob is terrific. He is responsive, he always takes the time to fully answer my questions, and he is careful to sell me just the amount of insurance I need. He even hand delivered the new policy to my home so I'd have it quickly.

Why didn't I go to Bob in the first place? Well, it's a long story, but let's just say that I'm glad Bob is persistent with a certain small department at State Farm.

Please consider Bob for all your insurance needs!

Bob Beedle
7185 Navajo Rd, Ste B
San Diego, CA 92119
619-462-1155
Website

5 Ways to Help Employees Empathize More

Empathy is an amazing customer service skill that can solve a lot of problems, lead to enormous goodwill, and create customers for life. A popular story on the internet today details how a Southwest Airlines pilot held his plane so a late passenger was able to travel from Los Angeles to Colorado in time to see his grandson before he died. An understanding of what the grandfather was experiencing prompted the pilot to take extraordinary action. (Read the story here.)

Unfortunately, demonstrating empathy can be difficult for many customer service professionals, especially when the situation isn't quite so extreme.

A housekeeper in an upscale hotel may never have spent $200 to spend the night on a luxury hotel room.

A tech support rep may fix his own computer, so he has a hard time understanding why so many customers can't fix seemling simple issues.

A sales rep at an office supply store might not own a small business, so she can't related to the needs of the business owners she serves.

How can you help employees empathize?

There are simple techniques you can use to ensure your employees are better able to demonstrate empathy with your customers. Here are a few of my favorites.

#1 Hire people who have been there, done that. I love buying outdoor gear at REI because the people who work there are passionate about the gear they sell. When my wife, Sally, and I bought backpacking equipment a year ago, a sales associate who was an avid backpacker gave us all sorts of useful pointers. Compare this to a big box sporting goods store where the only 'pointer' you might get is the sales associate's finger pointing at an intimidating wall of backpacks.

#2 Help employees acquire customer experiences. If your employees aren't already customers, help them temporarily become one. For example, some hotels have associates spend the night as a guest to gain a new perspective. Another great one is a catalog company that gives its reps gift cards to other catalog companies so they can see what it's like to be an a customer. And, there's always the time-honored employee discount!

#3 Coach employees to empathize. Employees can develop a better sense of empathy through coaching. Start by having them identify why a customer might be upset in a particular situation. Next, ask the employee to think of a similar experience and how they felt. Finally, discuss ways they can provide assistance so the customer won't feel like they did.

#4 Conduct after action reviews. Empathy skills can take time and patience to develop. Try conducting an 'after action review' when an employee misses an opportunity to serve with empathy. This will help the employee identify alternative strategies that might yield a better result the next time they encounter a similar situation. An after action review also helps the employee focus on future performance rather than feeling upset at being blamed or scolded by the boss.

#5 Remove anti-empathy pressure. You'll naturally create more empathetic employees when you remove negative pressures that might convince them to act without concern for their customer. The Southwest Airlines pilot who held his plane for the grandparent risked upsetting the other passengers and possibly getting into trouble. However, Southwest Airlines quickly reinforced his actions by releasing a public statement that made it clear they were proud of their pilot's actions.

How else can you help your employees demonstrate empathy? Chime in a share your ideas!

Why the boss asks employees to do their dirty work

My wife, Sally, and I just had hardwood floors installed in our home, finally replacing carpeting that looked old and outdated when we moved in nine years ago. It looks beautiful and the workmanship is outstanding, but the job was not without adventure. Our installer ran out of materials - twice. Worse, our installer had to share the bad news with us personally rather than the owner of the company (who was our salesperson) picking up the phone to apologize and give us the update herself.

This situation raises an interesting question. Why are bosses and business owners so willing to put their employees in the line of fire rather than handling their own mess?

Social scientists at Carnegie Mellon University discovered a possible explanation. They conducted an experiment where participants were given $10 and instructed to share as much as they'd like with another participant. Next, they were asked to repeat the experiment, but this time they used an itermediary (i.e. 'employee') to share the money on their behalf. On average, participants shared $1 less when using an intermediary than when they shared the money directly. The implication is it is easier to do something unfavorable to another person if we do it through an employee.

(Ok, that was a very superficial summary. If you are a nerd like me, you can read the whole study here.)

The CBS show Undercover Boss is another great illustration of this phenomenon. In each episode, a senior executive goes 'undercover' to work frontline positions in his or her company. One episode featured the owner of a fulfillment company taking calls in a call center. He quickly realizes how these employees are put in impossible situations where they don't have the training or authority to provide appropriate solutions to customer problems. (See my previous post about the show.)

Other examples abound. How else could bank executives ask their employees to enforce unpopular fees in the name of profitability while giving themselves outsized bonuses? Why do we spend 10 minutes arguing with a frontline employee who says they are only following policy and then the supervisor overrides the policy to give us what we want immediately?

Sexual harassment cases abound in 2011

Update 10/5/11: Time is running out to schedule your California AB1825 training!
Update 4/7/11: Three things you need to know about California AB1825 training

A lot of (allegedly) bad behavior is catching up to several prominent figures during the first week of 2011. Former New York Jets quarterback Brett Favre has been named in a lawsuit, ESPN announcer Ron Franklin was fired, and Naval Captain Owen Honors was relieved of duty, all for allegedly engaging in harassing behavior at work. These incidents should serve as a reminder to all companies about the importance of taking proactive steps to prevent workplace harassment. Failure to do so could lead to lost productivity, expensive litigation, and bad PR. Really, really bad PR.

When there's smoke, there's fire
The lawsuit filed against Brett Favre and the New York Jets is just one of several sexual harassment issues the New York Jets have faced in the past few months. Favre is fresh off a $50,000 fine from the NFL for not cooperating with an investigation into a separate sexual harassment complaint filed by New York Jets game day reporter Jenn Sterger.  The Jets organization also made headlines in September 2010 after reporter Ines Sainz was reportedly subjected to inappropriate comments and behavior from Jets players and coaches.The lawsuit filed this week alleges that two message therapists were not offered continued work by the Jets organization after they refused sexual advances made by Favre via text message.

 

Organizations should never assume a sexual harassment complaint is an isolated incident.

Cultural Issues
You have to wonder about the company culture when an organization repeatedly deals with sexual harassment issues. ESPN announcer Ron Franklin was fired this week after allegedly making sexist comments to a female colleague. Unfortunately, this wasn't even close to the first time ESPN has dealt with an on camera personality accused of inappropriate behavior. Harold Reynolds, Eric Kuselias, and many others were already on the list. Are all of these folks lewd, sexist pigs? The problem is the general public doesn't have the facts, but they do have the sensational story. We have to form our opinion based on what we have.

Embarrasing Evidence

An inappropriate video filmed in 2007 caught up to Naval Captain Owen Honors when he was relieved of duty as commander of the USS Enterprise this week.  This type of technology is clearly creating problems with workplace behavior. It's too easy to click "Send", "Share", or "Record" when faced with something that is both inappropriate and amusing (at least to some). While private behavior may be lost with time and fading memories, recorded behavior lives on.

Schedule your 2011 harassment prevention training
California employers with 50 or more employees are required to provide two hours of sexual harassment prevention training every two years. For many companies, 2011 is a 'recertification year', meaning that it's time to conduct the training once again. Fortunately, Toister Performance Solutions offers a workshop that is fun, educational, and easy to schedule.

Learn more about our sexual harassment prevention class.