Top 5 Customer Service Articles For the Week of July 19, 2021

Each week I read many customer service and customer experience articles from various resources. Here are my top five picks from last week. I have added my comment about each article and would like to hear what you think too.

Should the Chief Experience Officer Cease to Exist? by Mary Drumond

(Linkedin Pulse) The Wall Street Journal recently released an article called “Some Chief Experience Officers Want To Make Their Jobs Disappear” where they interviewed Chief Experience Officers and Chief Customer Officers from large corporations all over the country. Their conclusion? The role is likely not here to stay. In fact, it may quite possibly be on its way out!

My Comment: The CXO (Chief Experience Officer) has been a recent addition to the C-Suite in the past five or so years. This author questions if the position is really necessary? The article explains the role is “transitionary,” however I believe that there is no destination. It is a continuous journey. Standing still at any point means competition, innovation, and more will eventually surpass you.

Internal Customer Service: What You Must Know by Gabrielle Pickard-Whitehead

(Small Business Trends) There are a lot of tips and customer service best practices that can be implemented within a company to develop excellent internal customer service. Here are 18 of the most reliable ways to make sure your internal customer service is up there with the best.

My Comment: I’m a big fan of the internal customer service concept, and here are 18 internal customer service tips to create the experience that makes them want to work hard, engage with their customers (other internal customers and outside customers), and more.

How Consumers Now Define a Good Customer Experience by Jack M. Germain

(CRM Buyer) Despite U.S. storefronts reopening, e-commerce is still seeing a surge in sales. To maintain retail success in 2021 retailers will need to continue optimizing their digital experience.

My Comment: How do our customers define a good customer experience? You can’t define it for them. You can only hope to provide the experience that they think is good – or even great. Today’s consumers view customer service and experience as a major reason to do business with one company over another. So, here are a few ideas and stats that will help you deliver the experience that will give the customer what they want.

The Secret Behind ‘Wow’ Customer Experiences? Emotion by Liraz Margalit

(CMSWire) Experience is not measured by the fact that “everything was fine.” We won’t remember such an experience. To rise above the competition one must start talking about extraordinary experiences that trigger emotion.

My Comment: Do you want to really WOW your customer? The secret to doing so is to create emotion. Opportunities to WOW the customer don’t happen with every interaction. You must know how to spot them. And when you do, magic happens. This excellent article is written by a Ph.D. who understands customer behavior.

12 Ways To Implement Successful Employee Training Initiatives by Forbes Human Resources Council

(Forbes) Training is an essential, albeit costly, part of the onboarding process for new employees at any company. While proper training can put employees on a path to success within an organization, there are many ways in which training efforts can go wasted.

My Comment: Employee training (especially customer service training) is important and essential. It costs but becomes expensive when it’s not done properly. Here are twelve experts from the Forbes Human Resources Council sharing some common mistakes employers make when embarking on a training initiative.

BONUS

AWS Contact Center Day: Best Practices for Great Customer Experience by Zeus Kerravala

(eWeek) Whether it’s an e-commerce giant like Amazon or a local shoe repair shop, great customer experience (CX) is a key factor that differentiates a business from its competitors.

My Comment: And just about the time I was finished with this week’s Top Five list, I ran across this article from the Amazon AWS Contact Center Day. I was one of the speakers on the session titled “Best Practices for Great Customer Experience.” Jennifer Featherling, director of contact center technology at Priceline, was also part of the program. This article includes a summary of some key points along with some stats from my 2021 Achieving Customer Amazement study.

Shep Hyken is a customer service expert, professional speaker, and New York Times bestselling business author. Go to The Customer Focus™ to learn more about our customer service training programs. Follow on Twitter: @Hyken