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Will You Add? - The Keys to Delivering World-Class Service
I stepped into the restroom of a large office building before a meeting. The paper towel dispenser had come unhinged and fresh towels were scattered on the floor. Many were wet and had been stepped on by those who came before me.Despite being in my suit and tie, I bent down to pick up the remaining dry towels and placed them near the sink. I gathered the wet and dirty towels and put them in the trash. Then I found the receptionist and asked her to inform Maintenance about the broken dispenser inside.As I was cleaning up, several people entered the restroom. I wondered what they thought of me, picking up wet and dirty paper towels in my suit and tie? Did they think I broke the dispenser? Did they think I worked in the building?Then I realized how I felt about myself. I felt good doing more than ‘what’s expected’. My contribution was very small, but it made the restroom a better place for everyone. Key Learning Point -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- We are all beneficiaries of public spaces: parks, roads, buildings, restaurants, sho
6. Trying to win an argument with a customer – Arguing with a customer is bad business. You may win the argument, but you’ll probably lose the customer. Instead, show empathy. Tell the buyer you understand how they feel and that together you’re going to find a solution to their problem.
5. Over relying on voicemail – Customers who take the time to contact your company want to know there’s a face behind your company. Work hard to get customers talking to your company’s humans, not its technology.
4. Spending too much time with chronic complainers – Some people will never be happy with your service. If you’ve received at least three complaints from the same customer, it’s time to get rid of them, and focus on those you can help.
3. Taking criticism personally – Most callers don’t want to attack you personally. Although they may be lashing out at you, they’re really most frustrated by the problem they face. Take their attention off you and place it squarely back on the problem.
2. Not acting like you care –68 percent of buyer defections take place because customers feel they’ve been treated poorly. Most customers don’t expect an immediate resolution to their problem, but they do exp
Instead of getting a second job at your local retail store or pizza place, maybe you should try using freelance work to add to your income while acquiring customers and providing services in your spare time.Twenty years ago, the only way to make a supplemental income was to go find a low-paying second job at night or on the weekends. Then you were always the person with the worst hours and the worst pay. Now there is a much nicer alternative with much better hours and pay. You can even do freelance work from your own home.Things have definitely changed. With freelance work, you are not limited by transportation or geographical location. You can provide great work and services for someone half way around the world without leaving your home.How do you get started doing freelance work part-time? Becoming a part-time freelance professional is as easy as this three step process.First, find a good database like Freelance Work Exchange and search for jobs that interest you. There are thousands of different jobs currently posted. You will just have to find the one that suits your interests.Nex
The Pillars of Service Cool
Without great service, your company is doomed from the start. But what exactly constitutes great service? There are three basic elements; my Pillars of Service Cool. They are: Timeliness Follow through and Integrity.
1. Timeliness In today’s “I want it now” society, timeliness can be your company’s trump card. Yet, too many companies don’t seem to respect their customers’ time. Witness:
In a recent study by Jupiter Research, 33 percent of all Internet companies surveyed took three days or longer to get back to customers that had e-mailed for help.
A study by Portland Research Group found that the average consumer must call a company 2.3 times before having their issue resolved.
2. Follow-through What is a golf swing without follow-through? Accumulated energy without an outlet. A beginning without an end. Effort without results. The same is true of a company’s marketing. “You can have a terrible logo and pathetic signage, but if you are known for your incredible commitment and follow-through, you will be successful” says Jim Logan, marketing consultant and popular blogger at www.jslogan.com. “Reverse the formula and you’ll fail every time.” With diligent follow through, your company will demonstrate its commitment, beyond a shadow of a doubt. From this, you can expect to reap repeat purchases, positive word-of-mouth, and referrals; the trifecta of successful marketing.
3. Integrity Today’s buyers are a distrustful bunch. Is it any wonder? Just look at the ethical lapses seen in today’s market:
In 2005, Sony Pictures Entertainment quoted the praise of a nonexistent film critic to promote several of its films. For A Knight’s Tale, The Patriot, and several other films, plaudits were attributed to David Manning, a supposed film critic at The Ridgeview Press. But at the time of the reviews, The Ridgeview Press, a weekly in Connecticut, did not even have a film critic on staff. Sony was ordered to pay $1.5 million to settle a class-action lawsuit.
In August 2001, McDonald’s and the FBI revealed that an employee of Simon Marketing, one of McDonalds’ marketing agencies, had distributed winning game pieces for the “Monopoly” and “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire” promotions to a network of accomplices. The accomplices then claimed prizes ranging from $100,000 to $1 million.
In 2005, Abercrombie & Fitch, a favorite clothing brand among teenagers, launched a T-shirt line featuring such alcohol-related slogans as “Don’t Bother, I’m Not Drunk Yet,” “Bad Girls Chug, Good Girls Drink Quickly,” and “Candy Is Dandy, But Liquor Is Quicker.” The T-shirt line was quickly withdrawn from the market when complaints from the media and advocacy groups surfaced.
Marketers for these companies all showed an alarming lapse in ethics. To avoid blunders like these, I recommend holding your marketers to a higher ethical standard; that’s why I’ve created the Lipe Code of Marketing Ethics:
The Lipe Code of Marketing Ethics
-We will always be clear and truthful in our marketing communications.
-We will never intentionally deceive or mislead our customers. If we do, we’ll apologize—immediately.
-We will fully disclose, in the large print, all pricing information.
-We will always respect the privacy of our customers.
-We will always give buyers the ability to opt-out; quickly honoring their desire to do so.
-We will stand behind our products if they fail to deliver on their promises.
-We will listen to our customers’ needs and concerns, and make every effort to incorporate their input.
-We will not use strong-arm tactics to get people to buy.
-We will always document claims, testimonials and comparative statements.
-We will always accept responsibility for the consequences of our actions.
Don’t let years of creating your company identity be wiped out in an instant by an ethical lapse. Circulate this Code of Marketing Ethics to all your marketers, and then hold them accountable for sticking to it.
The Top 7 Customer Service Mistakes
Before learning how a company can offer world class service, it might be helpful to point out the most common service problems in business today. Fix these and your company’s reputation may well be the only marketing program you need:
7. Not adequately training your staff – Financial services call centers in the US that enjoy the highest customer satisfaction levels, routinely invest 180 hours of initial training and seven hours of ongoing training every year into each agent. Does your company take its service training this serious?
6. Trying to win an argument with a customer – Arguing with a customer is bad business. You may win the argument, but you’ll probably lose the customer. Instead, show empathy. Tell the buyer you understand how they feel and that together you’re going to find a solution to their problem.
5. Over relying on voicemail – Customers who take the time to contact your company want to know there’s a face behind your company. Work hard to get customers talking to your company’s humans, not its technology.
4. Spending too much time with chronic complainers – Some people will never be happy with your service. If you’ve received at least three complaints from the same customer, it’s time to get rid of them, and focus on those you can help.
3. Taking criticism personally – Most callers don’t want to attack you personally. Although they may be lashing out at you, they’re really most frustrated by the problem they face. Take their attention off you and place it squarely back on the problem.
2. Not acting like you care –68 percent of buyer defections take place because customers feel they’ve been treated poorly. Most customers don’t expect an immediate resolution to their problem, but they do expe
1. Expanding awareness is the master-key. A Business doesn’t generate $1M, $5M, $10M, or whatever it generates because that’s all they want to generate. It’s all they are aware of how to generate. By expanding awareness within the business, revenue can be increased. As long as employees only know A, B, & C, they can only produce C-level results; they can only recognize C-level opportunities. But, the moment employee’s awareness is expanded to understand D, E, & F, now they can produce F-level results; they can recognize F-level opportunities.2. If a business is doing business the same way they were 5 years ago, they’re going out of business. For some, the “going out of business” process may be only a few months while for others it may take years. But it’s happening nevertheless. In simple and plain terms, business owners and executives must either maintain a constant drive to get better or they better figure out how to liquidate and get out before they and the other people in the business get hurt.3. Mental laziness, paradigms, habit patterns, conditioning, the pull to be like others, the ego and arrog
3. Integrity Today’s buyers are a distrustful bunch. Is it any wonder? Just look at the ethical lapses seen in today’s market:
In 2005, Sony Pictures Entertainment quoted the praise of a nonexistent film critic to promote several of its films. For A Knight’s Tale, The Patriot, and several other films, plaudits were attributed to David Manning, a supposed film critic at The Ridgeview Press. But at the time of the reviews, The Ridgeview Press, a weekly in Connecticut, did not even have a film critic on staff. Sony was ordered to pay $1.5 million to settle a class-action lawsuit.
In August 2001, McDonald’s and the FBI revealed that an employee of Simon Marketing, one of McDonalds’ marketing agencies, had distributed winning game pieces for the “Monopoly” and “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire” promotions to a network of accomplices. The accomplices then claimed prizes ranging from $100,000 to $1 million.
In 2005, Abercrombie & Fitch, a favorite clothing brand among teenagers, launched a T-shirt line featuring such alcohol-related slogans as “Don’t Bother, I’m Not Drunk Yet,” “Bad Girls Chug, Good Girls Drink Quickly,” and “Candy Is Dandy, But Liquor Is Quicker.” The T-shirt line was quickly withdrawn from the market when complaints from the media and advocacy groups surfaced.
Marketers for these companies all showed an alarming lapse in ethics. To avoid blunders like these, I recommend holding your marketers to a higher ethical standard; that’s why I’ve created the Lipe Code of Marketing Ethics:
The Lipe Code of Marketing Ethics
-We will always be clear and truthful in our marketing communications.
-We will never intentionally deceive or mislead our customers. If we do, we’ll apologize—immediately.
-We will fully disclose, in the large print, all pricing information.
-We will always respect the privacy of our customers.
-We will always give buyers the ability to opt-out; quickly honoring their desire to do so.
-We will stand behind our products if they fail to deliver on their promises.
-We will listen to our customers’ needs and concerns, and make every effort to incorporate their input.
-We will not use strong-arm tactics to get people to buy.
-We will always document claims, testimonials and comparative statements.
-We will always accept responsibility for the consequences of our actions.
Don’t let years of creating your company identity be wiped out in an instant by an ethical lapse. Circulate this Code of Marketing Ethics to all your marketers, and then hold them accountable for sticking to it.
The Top 7 Customer Service Mistakes
Before learning how a company can offer world class service, it might be helpful to point out the most common service problems in business today. Fix these and your company’s reputation may well be the only marketing program you need:
7. Not adequately training your staff – Financial services call centers in the US that enjoy the highest customer satisfaction levels, routinely invest 180 hours of initial training and seven hours of ongoing training every year into each agent. Does your company take its service training this serious?
6. Trying to win an argument with a customer – Arguing with a customer is bad business. You may win the argument, but you’ll probably lose the customer. Instead, show empathy. Tell the buyer you understand how they feel and that together you’re going to find a solution to their problem.
5. Over relying on voicemail – Customers who take the time to contact your company want to know there’s a face behind your company. Work hard to get customers talking to your company’s humans, not its technology.
4. Spending too much time with chronic complainers – Some people will never be happy with your service. If you’ve received at least three complaints from the same customer, it’s time to get rid of them, and focus on those you can help.
3. Taking criticism personally – Most callers don’t want to attack you personally. Although they may be lashing out at you, they’re really most frustrated by the problem they face. Take their attention off you and place it squarely back on the problem.
2. Not acting like you care –68 percent of buyer defections take place because customers feel they’ve been treated poorly. Most customers don’t expect an immediate resolution to their problem, but they do exp
It might have been your best friend, your partner, your boss, your brother or even your lover. It burns deep inside. You can’t sleep for the anger, the shock and dismay. You may find yourself still not believing it’s happened to you. But it has!When those we have entrusted with our money, our plans, our strategies, our loyalty or even our love betray us, we feel violated deep inside. We feel crushed. We wonder if we can ever recover from this.It is at this moment of realization that you will make some of the most important decisions of your entire life. The three most critical choices you will make – whether you realize it or not are: (1) what to focus on; (2) what to believe; and (3) what to expect from this point forward. These three choices will determine the final impact this betrayal has on your life.A LESSON FROM MICKEYMost people don’t know that Walt Disney suffered a great business defeat early in his career. While living and working out of his uncle’s garage, Walt Disney had created a cartoon character called “Oswald the Lucky Rabbit” and signed a contract with Universal St
In August 2001, McDonald’s and the FBI revealed that an employee of Simon Marketing, one of McDonalds’ marketing agencies, had distributed winning game pieces for the “Monopoly” and “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire” promotions to a network of accomplices. The accomplices then claimed prizes ranging from $100,000 to $1 million.
In 2005, Abercrombie & Fitch, a favorite clothing brand among teenagers, launched a T-shirt line featuring such alcohol-related slogans as “Don’t Bother, I’m Not Drunk Yet,” “Bad Girls Chug, Good Girls Drink Quickly,” and “Candy Is Dandy, But Liquor Is Quicker.” The T-shirt line was quickly withdrawn from the market when complaints from the media and advocacy groups surfaced.
Marketers for these companies all showed an alarming lapse in ethics. To avoid blunders like these, I recommend holding your marketers to a higher ethical standard; that’s why I’ve created the Lipe Code of Marketing Ethics:
The Lipe Code of Marketing Ethics
-We will always be clear and truthful in our marketing communications.
-We will never intentionally deceive or mislead our customers. If we do, we’ll apologize—immediately.
-We will fully disclose, in the large print, all pricing information.
-We will always respect the privacy of our customers.
-We will always give buyers the ability to opt-out; quickly honoring their desire to do so.
-We will stand behind our products if they fail to deliver on their promises.
-We will listen to our customers’ needs and concerns, and make every effort to incorporate their input.
-We will not use strong-arm tactics to get people to buy.
-We will always document claims, testimonials and comparative statements.
-We will always accept responsibility for the consequences of our actions.
Don’t let years of creating your company identity be wiped out in an instant by an ethical lapse. Circulate this Code of Marketing Ethics to all your marketers, and then hold them accountable for sticking to it.
The Top 7 Customer Service Mistakes
Before learning how a company can offer world class service, it might be helpful to point out the most common service problems in business today. Fix these and your company’s reputation may well be the only marketing program you need:
7. Not adequately training your staff – Financial services call centers in the US that enjoy the highest customer satisfaction levels, routinely invest 180 hours of initial training and seven hours of ongoing training every year into each agent. Does your company take its service training this serious?
6. Trying to win an argument with a customer – Arguing with a customer is bad business. You may win the argument, but you’ll probably lose the customer. Instead, show empathy. Tell the buyer you understand how they feel and that together you’re going to find a solution to their problem.
5. Over relying on voicemail – Customers who take the time to contact your company want to know there’s a face behind your company. Work hard to get customers talking to your company’s humans, not its technology.
4. Spending too much time with chronic complainers – Some people will never be happy with your service. If you’ve received at least three complaints from the same customer, it’s time to get rid of them, and focus on those you can help.
3. Taking criticism personally – Most callers don’t want to attack you personally. Although they may be lashing out at you, they’re really most frustrated by the problem they face. Take their attention off you and place it squarely back on the problem.
2. Not acting like you care –68 percent of buyer defections take place because customers feel they’ve been treated poorly. Most customers don’t expect an immediate resolution to their problem, but they do exp
Modern civilizations and societies are bombarded with commercial images. Advertising is everywhere and every business must engage in some form of advertising, publicity and public relations in order to succeed. But with advertising everywhere small businesses and corporations alike must compete for the consumer’s eyeball. Simply having a good ad is not enough and even having great placement alone will not suffice.I have titled this article book; Adventures in Advertising for the Advanced Entrepreneur, because advertising is an adventure and often an entrepreneur must chart unknown waters. Having started a small business, which grew into a rather large multi-state franchise system and later into a multinational franchise company, I soon realized that advertising is an adventure and not just another task. Many advertising tactics in markets where we had started simply did not work in other regions around the nation and they certainly did not work once we took the business model out of the country.In this article I want you to consider and discuss many types of advertising and some of the theories behind each typ
-We will always give buyers the ability to opt-out; quickly honoring their desire to do so.
-We will stand behind our products if they fail to deliver on their promises.
-We will listen to our customers’ needs and concerns, and make every effort to incorporate their input.
-We will not use strong-arm tactics to get people to buy.
-We will always document claims, testimonials and comparative statements.
-We will always accept responsibility for the consequences of our actions.
Don’t let years of creating your company identity be wiped out in an instant by an ethical lapse. Circulate this Code of Marketing Ethics to all your marketers, and then hold them accountable for sticking to it.
The Top 7 Customer Service Mistakes
Before learning how a company can offer world class service, it might be helpful to point out the most common service problems in business today. Fix these and your company’s reputation may well be the only marketing program you need:
7. Not adequately training your staff – Financial services call centers in the US that enjoy the highest customer satisfaction levels, routinely invest 180 hours of initial training and seven hours of ongoing training every year into each agent. Does your company take its service training this serious?
6. Trying to win an argument with a customer – Arguing with a customer is bad business. You may win the argument, but you’ll probably lose the customer. Instead, show empathy. Tell the buyer you understand how they feel and that together you’re going to find a solution to their problem.
5. Over relying on voicemail – Customers who take the time to contact your company want to know there’s a face behind your company. Work hard to get customers talking to your company’s humans, not its technology.
4. Spending too much time with chronic complainers – Some people will never be happy with your service. If you’ve received at least three complaints from the same customer, it’s time to get rid of them, and focus on those you can help.
3. Taking criticism personally – Most callers don’t want to attack you personally. Although they may be lashing out at you, they’re really most frustrated by the problem they face. Take their attention off you and place it squarely back on the problem.
2. Not acting like you care –68 percent of buyer defections take place because customers feel they’ve been treated poorly. Most customers don’t expect an immediate resolution to their problem, but they do exp
I can only speak from experience. I am finding that more and more advertising agencies are utilizing the magic of jingles and music to brand their clients products and businesses.A classic example of a jingle that launched a successful long term campaign worldwide in the public consciousness was created by my teacher at UCLA and Academy Award winning songwriter Al Kasha.In 1972, after reading about one of the worst airline crash disasters in history, Al wrote "Fly the Friendly Skies of United" and approached the beleaguered airline with a positioning statement and catchy melody that would position United Airlines as the leader in security and air safety for nearly thirty years. Even when they dropped the music, they continued with the positioning statement "The Friendly Skies". It was, and remains a clear cut stroke of Branding genius.Another very popular agency tactic in recent years is to secure the rights to popular songs and utilize the familiarity factor to generate correlation and familiarity with the product.The cost to secure broadcast rights can vary. I have heard of rights for single marke
6. Trying to win an argument with a customer – Arguing with a customer is bad business. You may win the argument, but you’ll probably lose the customer. Instead, show empathy. Tell the buyer you understand how they feel and that together you’re going to find a solution to their problem.
5. Over relying on voicemail – Customers who take the time to contact your company want to know there’s a face behind your company. Work hard to get customers talking to your company’s humans, not its technology.
4. Spending too much time with chronic complainers – Some people will never be happy with your service. If you’ve received at least three complaints from the same customer, it’s time to get rid of them, and focus on those you can help.
3. Taking criticism personally – Most callers don’t want to attack you personally. Although they may be lashing out at you, they’re really most frustrated by the problem they face. Take their attention off you and place it squarely back on the problem.
2. Not acting like you care –68 percent of buyer defections take place because customers feel they’ve been treated poorly. Most customers don’t expect an immediate resolution to their problem, but they do expect your concern. Routinely use terms like “sorry to keep you waiting” and “thanks for contacting us today.”
1. Not delivering what you promise – Because some buyers are continually misled by companies, they’re understandably distrustful. For world class service, deliver exactly what you promise. If it’s “I’ll call you by tomorrow with the answer” or “I’ll put that in the mail today,” do it.
Concierge marketing: How to turn information into a marketing tool At the root of it, a concierge marketer—much like the hotel concierge who dispenses invaluable information about restaurants and local happenings—tries to simplify a buyer’s life by providing helpful information. The first step in being a successful concierge marketer is to provide passive marketing tools which are printed or online informational products. Using any of these, buyers can quickly get answers to their nagging questions:
-Tip sheets
-Booklets/pamphlets
-White papers
-Checklists
-Buying guides
As an example, I offer on my website, www.emergemarketing.com, a “Marketing Lingo” section with over 200 common marketing terms and their definitions. Another set of concierge marketing tools are called buyer involvement tools. These are designed to create dialogues with your market and include:
-Post-installation follow-up calls
-Online customer forums
-Interactive dialogue tools
One of my favorite buyer involvement tools is Amazon.com’s “Wish List” program. Using this tool at the Amazon site, I can develop my own “Wish List” of books, and then email it to members of my family. That way, my family knows what to get me for Christmas without having to ask, I get the Christmas presents I want, and Amazon gets the sales. Everybody wins.
Next steps for concierge marketers To become a concierge marketer, first identify the most common information voids your buyers face. Ask yourself these questions:
-At which stage in the buying cycle are our buyers confused?
-What information do they lack?
-What customer questions does our service staff repeatedly field?
Then, design tools to address the highest priority ones. If for example, your buyers are confused about which elements of your service are outsourced and which are performed in-house, you could develop a PowerPoint slide that covers this topic in greater detail.
In closing…. Milton Hershey once said that quality was the best kind of advertising in the world. For your company identity to be successful, the service provided must be of the highest quality possible. Focus on delivering world-class service first, then, and only then consider marketing it.
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