Top 5 Customer Service Articles For the Week of November 12, 2012

Customer Service Tips and Strategies

Each week I read a number of customer service articles from various online 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.

(The Customer Service Manager) Every time we receive great customer service or a positive customer experience, that individual or company should get a gold star.

My Comment: When we receive an accolade letter or email about an employee, we usually share it with the employee as well as others on the “team.” Always a nice thing to do, but this article suggests taking it a step further, and I agree. Take advantage of the accolade and use it, not just to praise, but to help build and/or sustain the customer-focused culture.  The six suggestions in this article will help you achieve exactly that.

Five Customer Retention Tips for Entrepreneurs by Alex Lawrence

(Forbes) All gung-ho and fresh out of the gate, startup entrepreneurs often find it more exciting to focus on customer addition, but ignoring customer attrition could eventually spell their downfall. In the spirit of Ben Franklin’s age-old idiom that “a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush”, here’s a look at five customer retention tips for entrepreneurs.

My Comment: It can be an entrepreneur or a large corporation, the information in this article is applicable to any company and anyone in business. The statistics sited may not be the same for every company or industry, but the concepts behind the numbers are. Great article!

How small businesses can deliver good customer service by Alastair Kight

(Theguardian) Satisfied customers remain loyal to you and recommend you to others. Alastair Kight, managing director of GRITIT, offers five simple steps for delivering good customer service.

My Comment: Another great list on how to deliver great customer service. I especially appreciate the “flexibility” strategy. It’s important to provide guidelines that give employees the ability to be flexible with their customers. A great strategy that some of my clients have is that it takes one to say yes and two to say no. That means if they have to say no to the customer, they need a manager’s approval. This is a great way to empower employees to think “flexibility.”

Be Customer-Focused: 4 Basic Tactics by Geoffrey James

(Inc) Follow these four great ideas to keep your sales growing and your customers happy.

My Comment: Another great list of four customer service strategies. I especially appreciate number two, which emphasizes the importance of learning their strategies and initiatives. Take the approach that your problems become our problems and you elevate the relationship from vendor to partner.

Boosting Holiday Profits With The Gift Of Customer Service by Dayna Steele

(Fast Company) With Black Friday and Cyber Monday quickly approaching, millions will be shopping online and in person–and each and every one of those customers will be expecting excellent customer service throughout the entire process.

My Comment: While this article seems to focus on retail businesses, it really has great advice for any business in any industry. Here are six questions with great answers. To really get benefit from this article, read the questions to your team and let them answer them. Great conversation starters for your next team meeting.

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.
(Copyright ©MMXII, Shep Hyken)