Providing Excellent Customer Service Part 2

Customers and clients are becoming increasingly disenchanted with the merely adequate. For them, extraordinary service is the rule, not the exception. Anything less and they’re happy to vote with their feet and their wallets.

For business success you need to help your business establish and maintain an ongoing climate of service excellence.

Share Information 

If you run a retail business, business management tools, can be invaluable in tracking critical data, such as what items and services are selling particularly well.  If you have that data, don’t keep it a state secret.   Sharing the information with your employees lets them know what is hitting on all cylinders.  It also helps them promote these products or services to customers.  Sharing information with others is a really positive step.  In other words, don’t keep critical customer information close to the chest. That holds true with businesses other than retail. 

Customer Relationship Management, (CRM), software lets you share valuable information about clients and customers with your entire organization. Customer buying habits, particular needs, interests and other data can be stored in a central location and easily shared.  

Share The Commitment. 

Nothing can prove more destructive to a commitment to extraordinary service than management for whom the concept is little more than lip service.  Walk the walk by buying into that commitment just as much as you hope your people will.  Make sure you reward top performance.  Invest the time and expense in any sort of training that may help employees carry out and maintain high performance standards. 

Don’t forget yourself and others in the front office.  Make sure that training takes in everyone, not just sales, marketing and other front line employees.   Training is an important part of creating a lifelong culture for service excellence since it helps build an understanding of the concept of service.  And that means a top-down commitment.  Leadership should set the tone for the entire effort. 

Don’t Expect Magic Overnight 

Another potential hurdle to extraordinary service is the expectation that it’s like flicking a light switch, on it goes, and everything’s hunky dory.

The truth is, exceptional service takes time to take hold in an organisation, particularly one with an array of people and departments.  Give it enough time. Review performance every four to six months.  It is essential to stay the course so you can improve service ratings. 

Expect Mistakes And React Accordingly 

The road to top notch service is not without its bumps. Don’t pretend they are not there.  Rather, make them a part of the journey by acknowledging a slip up and, in so doing, recommitting to extraordinary performance.   

For example, if a customer receives the wrong item, don’t stop at making sure they get the right one.  Let the customer know that you are sorry for the mistake and build their confidence that it will not happen again.  When you apologise for problems and really listen, you build a relationship.  Build customer loyalty, not just satisfaction.

© James Chapman Business Leader Coachinghttp://www.adversityovercome.com

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