Top 5 Customer Service Articles For the Week of January 29, 2018

Each week I read a number of 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.

Customer Service Report 2018 by Olga Kolodynska, Justyna Polaczyk, Malgorzata Buksinska and Lukasz Labedzki

(LiveChat) The report contains key customer service findings from 2017 and trends for 2018. Its main goal is to bring knowledge to business owners and customer service decision makers. If you want to stay in the game, you should keep up with the latest trends.

My Comment: My friends at LiveChat have put out a 2018 customer service report. Plenty of interesting information here. Of note is that customer satisfaction has dropped by almost three percent and small businesses are struggling to keep up. At the end, there is a good summary of tips to improve a company’s customer service.

Bridging the social media and business enterprise gap: Interview Special by Tim Sandle

(Digital Journal) The company Conversocial is bridging the gap between the rapidly shifting world of social and mobile channels and the world and needs of the large enterprise contact center. The aim is to modernize customer services.

My Comment: Here is a great interview with Joshua March, the CEO and co-founder of Conversocial, and the author of the upcoming book “Message Me.” One quote that stood out in the interview: “Companies need to focus on making service easier, not more delightful, by reducing the amount of work required of customers to get their issues resolved.” Be easier to do business with, and you win.

The Ultimate Customer Experience Primer by Nate Brown

(CX Accelerator) There are more and more business leaders being called upon to guide Customer Experience (CX) initiatives. It’s no longer an optional function of the organization, but has risen over the past decade to become one of the most critical and strategic aspects of the company.

My Comment: Nate Brown of CX Accelerator has written an excellent and detailed report on three “CX Disciplines” that include voice-of-the-customer, experience engineering, and the employee experience. You’ll find many great ideas, strategies, and tips to take your customer experience to a higher level. Great resource!

We accidentally took a yogurt from Amazon’s new grocery store without paying, but Amazon told us to keep it by Deirdre Bosa & Sara Salinas

(CNBC) Amazon’s newly automated grocery store boasts “Just Walk Out” technology that automatically charges shoppers for the items in their bags – CNBC made it out with a freebie on the store’s first official day.

My Comment: Amazon is always pushing the envelope to create better and better customer experiences. One of their big projects is Amazon Go, the store where you shop and just walk out without having to stand in line to check out. That’s right. There is no cashier or check-out line. You just walk out. Here is a fun article that describes the concept and what happens when someone walks out without paying for an item, which apparently is a rarity.

How To Make A Customer by David Beaumont

(CXService 360) Make a customer??? What does that mean? If you take a look around, every product or service that you consume has been made. Someone or something had to assemble the item in order for you to use it, eat it, look at it, etc. So, how does this work with the customer?

My Comment: The title of this article intrigued me: “How to Make a Customer.” A different title that would also work would be: “How to Make a Customer Come Back.” Here are a few simple, yet effective, tips on how you develop your customers to want to do business with you.

Shep Hyken is a customer service/CX expert, award-winning keynote speaker, and New York Times bestselling author. Learn more about Shep’s customer service and customer experience keynote speeches and his customer service training workshops at www.Hyken.com. Connect with Shep on LinkedIn.