E-Zine Volume10 : “SO YOU’VE GOT CLIENTS, NOW WHAT?”

I write this on a concrete bird stained bench in the alleyway outside the Nassau Airport, into the third hour of waiting for my flight home. 

Don’t feel too bad for me, the glorious sun is shining, it’s at least 35C and I’m still wearing a t-shirt while it’s snowing in Toronto. My experiences for the past two weeks on this idyllic island have prompted my long planned e-zine about customer service into fruition.  Nothing is a coincidence after all.

My travel agent’s erroneous itinerary placed me in the predicament of getting to the airport several hours early (Customer Service sin #1).  Upon attempting to check-in, I was informed I had to wait a whole hour (sin #2) before they’d relieve me of my heavy bags. If you’ve ever been to Nassau, there aren’t a lot of seats to be had at the airport, but I managed to find one where I overheard an unfortunate couple’s own sad story of luggage gone missing (vicarious sin #3).

After finally checking in, I wandered into the only bookstore-slash-gift store and started leafing through a magazine. Before I got to page two, I was being called upon in a rather stern “Miss!”(sin #4) I had to gawk and actually say “who, me?” and the store clerk confirmed her target by pointing to me and saying ‘Read the sign’ which in bold, large letters on the newsstand claimed ‘no reading’. 

Dumbfounded, I tried to explain to her that this was an airport and that everyone read magazines at an airport newsstand. After her curt ‘NOT in the Bahamas Miss’, I actually tripped on my way out mumbling something like a very Canadian ‘sorry’.

The funny (sad?) thing is that I was actually thinking about buying that magazine or the water or the muffin next to the magazine. However, the humiliation of it was too much, so I hauled myself to the next store.

This was like the continuation to a whole week full of serious customer service no-nos. I am a marketer and a business coach but when I’m just a tourist, I still can’t seem to turn off the brain that keeps seeing so many missed opportunities to keep that customer the marketing departments spent so much money to capture.

The snafus began with the five star hotel that refused, despite many promises to send housekeeping, to take away the giant cockroach that greeted me in my room (sin #5).  The next customer experience was at another hotel where the receptionist with the golden heart switched our room from the noisy March break teens screaming until 4am for the blissful peace and quiet that could be expected from a room directly facing a disco (sin #6)!

I began to think seriously about what constitutes good customer service not just in the hotel and travel industries, but for all businesses—big and small. I thought of the lessons learned for my own clients’ businesses and my own.
Here’s the best top 10 list of customer service rules I’ve found, courtesy of Allbusiness.com:

1. Commit to quality service. Everyone in the company needs to be devoted to creating a positive experience for the customer. Always try to go above and beyond customer expectations.
2. Know your products. Conveying knowledge about products and services will help you win a customer's trust and confidence. Know your company's products, services and return policies inside out. Try to anticipate the types of questions customers will ask.
3. Know your customers. Try to learn everything you can about your customers so you can tailor your service approach to their needs and buying habits. Talk to people and listen to their complaints so you can get to the root of customer dissatisfaction.
4. Treat people with courtesy and respect. Remember that every contact with a customer - whether it's by email, phone, written correspondence, or face-to-face meeting - leaves an impression. Use phrases like "sorry to keep you waiting," "thanks for your order," "you're welcome," and "it's been a pleasure helping you."
5. Never argue with a customer. You know darn well that the customer isn't always right. But instead of focusing on what went wrong in a particular situation, concentrate on how to fix it. Research shows that 7 out of 10 customers will do business with you again if you resolve a complaint in their favor.
6. Don't leave customers hanging. Repairs, callbacks and emails need to be handled with a sense of urgency. Customers want immediate resolution, and if you can give it to them, you'll probably win their repeat business. Research shows that 95 percent of dissatisfied customers will do business with a company again if their complaint is resolved on the spot.
7. Always provide what you promise. Fail to do this and you'll lose credibility - and customers. If you guarantee a quote within 24 hours, get the quote out in a day or less. If you can't make good on your promise, apologize to the customer and offer some type of compensation, such as a discount or free delivery.
8. Assume that customers are telling the truth. Even though it sometimes appears that customers are lying or giving you a hard time, always give them the benefit of the doubt. The majority of customers don't like to complain; in fact, they'll go out of their way to avoid it.
9. Focus on making customers, not making sales. Salespeople, especially those who get paid on commission, sometimes focus on the volume instead of the quality of the sale. Remember that keeping a customer's business is more important than closing a sale. Research shows that it costs six times more to attract a new customer than it does to keep an existing one.
10. Make it easy to buy. The buying experience in your store, on your Web site or through your catalog should be as easy as possible. Eliminate unnecessary paperwork and forms, help people find what they need, explain how products work, and do whatever you can to facilitate transactions.

Settling back to life in Canada again, I ponder how much better my time away might have been and the ensuing word of mouth that is sure to affect so many people, had they taken to heart the principles presented in this list.
I challenge you to look at your own businesses in the same way. Whether you’re a manufacturer, a retailer, or a small business owner, please pause a moment in what you’re doing and see where you can make a change, even a little one today to make sure that no customer of yours ever has to experience what I did over and over again in the wonderful, sunny Bahamas.

With kindness as always,