Four Success Factors for Customer Service

Copyright (c) 2008 Drew Stevens PhD

How many times have your pondered methods to provide customer satisfaction? How much of your money and time is spent on costly surveys and loyalty programs? Save your time and money and stop ruminating through the customer satisfaction maze. The time has come to set your compass on the true direction of client needs. Based on over 26 years of research and thousands of client issues, we have found four factors clients require. These four factors drive success, control profits and assist to retain clients.

Accuracy

Clients deplore inaccuracy. Case reviews illustrate wrongful charges on cell phones, cable television and automobile service as exemplars. While these represent only a microcosm of industries, they are illustrated here to identify with most readers. What frustrate clients most are not infrequent fees, but the shallowness in resolution.

Maria recently took holiday in Mexico and used a credit card as payment for food and beverage. Through a myriad of unfortunate circumstances she was wrongfully charged incorrect fees. Since December 2007, she has been striving to resolve the fees with both the card issuer and hotel. Thus far, she has spent more time and money on the telephone surpassing the actual fees. A business frequent flier and a frequent guest of the hotel chain, she has terminated the card and any future hotel business.

A major customer service issue for most organizations is 1) capable talent and 2) decision power. For many firms an inordinate time is spent passing blame and discovering those in charge. At some point the cost of doing business, becomes unprofitable. Too much time is spent in the quagmire of bureaucracy. Organizations must allow employees to reach swift conclusions to customer issues. Let employees make decisions, they will learn from this while reducing stress and developing timely solutions.

Second, periodic audits, even in large companies enable leaders to discover trends and frequent anomalies. Constantly review the customer issues and streamline the bottleneck expeditiously.

Availability

Many years ago I learned a wonderful best practice from my mentor ? return all calls within 90 minutes. In my many years of service I am happy to report a 95% return rate. I do obtain challenges periodically but callers frequently lose. Clients devour the spontaneity. Clients want accessibility to their vendors. How often do you enjoy lengthy hold times?

The proliferation of voice mail and email creates barriers to communication. Think about times when you call a bank or credit card issuer. Your call falls prey to an automated phone bank, requiring you to input your account information, social security number, phone number, name of first-born, etc. With each keystroke, you are required to repeat this perfunctory exercise only to repeat yet again to a live operator. By this time your only desire is to end the call!

Organizations must streamline processes and become available. The best organizations use live operators without rote scripts. If voice prompts are required eliminate wasteful methods to expedite wait times.

Partnership

The proliferation of the Internet evens the playing field for clients and organization. Similar to fifty years ago, clients have issues and they clamor for quick resolution. When possible they desire one voice for all questions. They desire collaboration. Rather than frequent several vendors, it is easier for one vendor to address the myriad of issues clients face. Collaborative efforts leverage solutions, price and most importantly client vendor relations. Organizations eliminate duality in sales and service issues, lower cost of acquisition while clients obtain expeditious solutions to their issues.

Advice

Seth Godin had a wonderful Blog entitled ?The Marketing of Fear?. The notion exists in selling that consumers have pain. Sales training schools and many managers instruct sales professionals to identify the pain for the benefit of establishing solutions.

The truth is that no consumer desires to be reminded of his or her pain. Clients want from selling professionals: trust and respect. Clients want to know you understand the issue, researched their objectives and can expeditiously provide value in solutions. There is a need for a trusted advisor that continually illustrates client efficiency. Pain is negative, value positive.

Refrain from FEAR FACTOR and create relationships with clients. Deter the notion of pain and begin to ask provocative questions that align with objectives to gain immediate results. Questions keep them talking, illustrate your continued interest and open the door for additional questions. Customer service and selling professionals come and go, advisors remain in site forever!

Customer Service is not an exact science. New issues arise daily requiring flexibility. Yet after significant research, issues typically align with the four factors- accuracy, availability, partnership and advice. Competition and information increase the difficulties for success. Differentiation is paramount in today?s global landscape. Review these four functional areas and begin to lower service costs and increase client retention today.