Creating the Ultimate Customer Experience: Product Knowledge- a Must for Happy Customers

Do your employees really know the products and services you sell?

I can’t think of a greater dissatisfier than lack of product knowledge when it comes to customer satisfaction and retention. How much your employees know about your products and services can instill confidence in the organization for the sales transaction to take place, and indicate interest in the customer. Think of it this way, if an employee doesn’t know your products and services inside and out, how can they possibly match the needs of the customer with the appropriate product or service?

And customers are really smart, if an employee doesn’t come out with an honest reply of  “I don’t know” when a question is posed to them, a customer can tell when an employee is faking knowledge. The employee’s discomfort comes through their body language.

So do yourselves a favor and mystery shop to see where there may be holes in the product knowledge of your staff. A good mystery shopping company will help you devise scenarios to determine where more training may be necessary to get your staff comfortable with the array of products and services you offer.

Now get out there and make sure your staff knows your products inside and out!

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Creating the Ultimate Customer Experience: Why Creativity May Be the Key to Customer Retention

Creativity. Where is it in today’s corporations? Why do we all seem to be so afraid of innovative thinking? Is is fear? Laziness? Disinterest? Too much TV, Internet, or other shallow data pools? Whatever it is, American businesses are losing out.

I was in a retail store the other day when I overheard a customer making an impassioned plea to the sales associate to help her with an “out of stock” situation. The customer was desperate to obtain this item for her son’s birthday. She asked the sales associate if there wasn’t something he could do to help. His response was that the store was out of the item and they weren’t expecting any more until the holiday season. He explained that the economy has slowed down their shipments with corporate controlling inventory levels on a much tighter basis. The customer was frantic and near tears. I could relate. I’ve been there myself. Rather than the sales associate offering to check other stores in the area, he simply terminated the interaction with the  customer by muttering an insincere “sorry” and walking away. The associate missed a prime opportunity to create a customer for life. He could have been so much more creative at solving this problem. What a dumb move!

What are you doing to encourage creative problem solving in your place of business? What should you be doing? As you budget and plan for the upcoming fiscal year, consider some training workshops on creativity and innovative thinking. It may be one of the best things you’ll ever do to foster greater levels of customer retention.

Now let’s get out there and be creative!

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• Market Viewpoint …helping you see your business through your customers’ eyes.
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Creating the Ultimate Customer Experience: Watch Your Ps and Qs! – The Danger of Bad Emails

Could the way you word your emails be costing you customers? Absolutely! As a matter of fact, we have some customers who are so worried about this, they have asked us to mystery shop their email system to make sure that their staff members are responding in timely and appropriate ways. Some of our clients are so worried, they’ve created template responses to ensure that their communication is consistent each and every time the “send” button gets pushed.

We’ve all heard the horror stories about bad emails. Chances are you’ve sent one or two yourself. They are usually good learning experiences because once you’ve sent a bad one, you rarely make that mistake again. Consider the misuse of “Reply to All”, or the email in ALL CAPS that makes it seem as though you are yelling. Clients and colleagues have shared that they’ve lost business in some cases due to the misinterpretation of emails. When I hear this I feel sad because I know this doesn’t have to happen.

For a little communication insurance, consider the following:

• Mystery shop your email system on a regular basis to see how you are being perceived by the customer. Add a few email shops into the mystery shopping mix of phone calls and on-site visits to make a full assessment of all the ways customers attempt to contact you.
• Craft “canned” emails to be used when such responses are appropriate. You’ll see this used in situations where questions are asked frequently and the response always remains the same.
• Train your staff on the rules of when to use emails (sometimes a phone call is much more appropriate) and how to use emails. There really is an art to this form of communication.

Oh and by the way…You’ve Got Mail!

Creating the Ultimate Customer Experience: How Reaching Out To Your Customers By Phone Can Make A Difference

Phones! They drive us crazy! Ever since they were invented by Alexander Graham Bell in 1876, people have been seeking ways to avoid answering them. Telephones really get a bad rap! People see them as an interruption and intrusion in their lives. Somehow I doubt this was Mr. Bell’s intention.

Add-on inventions for the telephone like caller ID, voice mail, and special ring tones have made it so we never have to pick up a phone again if we don’t want to talk to the party who’s calling. This is especially true in business where many people opt for the ease of dashing off emails, instant messages, or text messages in lieu of getting involved in a phone conversation.

Personally, I think the sound of a ringing phone is the sound of commerce. When the phones in my office get quiet, I get nervous. I love reaching out to my clients by phone for 3 simple reasons:

1. It creates an opportunity to see if there are ways we can help make the lives of our customers easier, and let’s be honest, isn’t that why we’re in business?
2. It creates the opportunity to connect and strengthen the relationship we have with our customers. Sharing a laugh or something that’s happening in our personal lives makes us feel closer to those we’re serving.
3. It gives our customers a chance to be heard.

So before you reach for the nearest keyboard, consider some of these reasons why you should reach for the nearest phone:

• Nobody uses the phone anymore. You’ll be seen as different and unique in your approach.
• Phone conversations allow for greater self expression through the quality, tone, and characteristics of your voice.
• Your customer will have a greater sense that you care.
• And finally, sometimes it’s just easier to call someone than it is to spend the entire day going back and forth via email. Most people talk a whole lot faster than they type, so in some cases, the phone is a more efficient communication tool.

Make it a point to connect more often by phone. It may be considered an antique by some but the telephone still gets the job done.

To deliver the highest possible levels of customer service by using your telephone, consider brushing up on your phone skills. Market Viewpoint’s training team is dedicated to your success and will be happy to design and schedule a telephone skills workshop guaranteed to give your staff the tools they need to deliver the ultimate customer experience with every single call!

Happy dialing!

Creating the Ultimate Customer Experience: Training- What Are You Afraid Of?

Finding the customer experience in everyday life is just something I look for. It was a Monday morning in late August, and as I was getting ready for work, I snapped on one of the morning news and entertainment shows. They were doing a story on preparing parents for the stress their children would experience as we got closer to the start of the new school year. The reporter explained that children have many issues with the start of school and that parents need to be sensitive to these and support their child through the process. Of course the part of the story I liked the most was when they interviewed the kids to find out what their thoughts were on this subject and what they had to say brought back some memories for me. Some of the more popular responses are listed here:

• “I’m afraid of failing.”
• “I’m afraid I won’t know where to go in my new school.”
• “I heard the teacher I am going to have is really tough.”
• “I am afraid of getting lost.”
• “I am nervous about learning three digit numbers.”

The thing that really struck me is that corporations are a lot like the kids who were interviewed for this report. They fear getting lost in the sea of vendors. They fear failure – and in this era, it’s not an option if you want to keep your job. They fear being exposed as bad managers. They fear the unknown and complex.

One of the things I tell clients and prospects is that our fears are often irrational. They hold us back from experiencing life and growing to our fullest capacity. Instead, I ask that they think of the new things in their organizations, like mystery shopping and training and development programs aimed at customer retention, as adventures that will always have a positive impact on the employee and the customer.

As you budget for the new year, don’t be afraid to appropriate funding for the training and development programs you know are needed in your organization. Your employees will be better prepared to handle all the things that come their way and your customers will notice the difference!

Creating the Ultimate Customer Experience: Training and Development – Is There a Difference?

Training and Development. We always say these terms together – like peanut butter and jelly, ham and cheese, or profit and loss. But, is there a difference? Can we do one without the other? The answer to the first question is that there is most definitely a difference and the answer to the second question is maybe. Let’s take a look at defining these two terms as they apply to your organization’s needs.

Training is providing the basics to your work force. When education professionals use this terms they are usually referring to the skills that are essential to performing the most rudimentary tasks. Training also refers to  providing your work force with information that is essential to smooth operations. Training might include familiarizing your work force with the products you sell and support, delineating how the organization defines the customer experience, and explaining operational policies.  Training is most often associated with that portion of the work force that is classified as entry level or for those who may be brand new to your organization.

Development, on the other hand, has to do with the teaching of more advanced skills. Think in terms of advanced product applications, advanced technology skills in the areas of systems and software, leadership development, management development, creative problem solving, productive thinking, etc.

Many of our clients ask if they need to be concerned with both aspects of education in their organizations and my answer is that it depends on the composition of your work force. Do you have a pool of young talent that is new to the working world or new to your organization? Then you probably need to be concerned with teaching them the basics. As your work force matures, in terms of age and experience, or if you already have a percentage of more experienced personnel working for you, they will be hungry for more advanced knowledge of how to perform their jobs better, faster, and easier and that’s where development time in the classroom comes in.

As you budget for the year ahead, be sure to plan for both – training and development. An educated employee is a happy employee and that makes for happy customers! Let Market Viewpoint help you plan for the training and development of your staff in the year ahead.

Now let’s get out there and make some employees and customers happy!

Creating the Ultimate Customer Experience: Generational Marketing and Selling

Generational marketing is huge right now. Many companies are tapping into understanding the various generations in an effort to make more of an impact on the marketplace and capture more  market share. But so what if there are four unique generations working and making purchases in today’s companies and marketplace?

Who cares?

You should. That’s who!

For the first time in history we are dealing with four generations that have very particular needs and patterns of behavior when it comes to making purchases, being managed, being motivated, and being hired. Successful companies know that forging strong relationships with our customers is the key to profitable business because long-term customer loyalty pays off in the form of repeat sales, referrals, and positive word- of-mouth advertising. We create strong relationships with our clients when we truly understand their needs and wants. We all like dealing with people and companies that “get it” when it comes to understanding who we are.

Let me give you an example. I can not begin to tell you how frustrating it is for me, as a Baby Boomer,  every time I am in line at the checkout at the grocery store. I always make an attempt to engage the cashier in conversation. It’s usually about little things like the weather or the price of eggs. I find it frustrating when the Millennial (a person born between 1981 – 1999) at the register fails to make eye contact or laugh at my silly jokes. I feel left out of the transaction somehow. I sometimes even go so far as to look for a cashier who is about my age before I pull into a register station so that I might make a connection. You see, as a Baby Boomer, it’s all about connecting and I will go to great lengths to patronize businesses who understand that part of who I am.

Making your staff aware of the things that are unique to each of the generations can go a long way to creating customer experiences that are positive and enduring. Isn’t that what we’re all after? If you haven’t checked out Market Viewpoint’s Generations in the Workplace Seminar series, it’s not too late. Contact us to get the latest on this popular series and how it has helped other businesses.

Market Viewpoint wants to hear from you! What are some of your most frustrating encounters with people from other generations?

I bet we have a lot of talk about!

Creating the Ultimate Customer Experience: Back To School – Why Train Your Staff?

Is this your employee training room? If so, why is it empty?

As businesses, we are all very concerned about cutting costs and saving money. It’s a “must do” in these challenging times. I cringe however, when I see prospects and clients cutting the training and development budget in their organizations. Why do I cringe? Have you seen the national customer satisfaction scores lately?

Bottom line – Employees need training and they want training.

Let’s take a look at the need for training, shall we? The national average for customer satisfaction currently averages 76.0%. What this means is that as businesses, we are delivering average, mediocre, middle of the road service. We are falling short of giving our customers that WOW experience. There are many reasons for this, with one being the fact that in many cases employees don’t know how to create the ultimate customer experience for their customers. As owners, managers, and supervisors it is our responsibility to teach them how and evaluate and reinforce this training on a regular basis.

Now let’s take a look at the fact that employees want training. It is a proven fact that businesses regularly and actively engaged in the training and developing their employees have greater employee retention. Greater employee retention means greater profitability and higher levels of customer satisfaction. Employees appreciate it when their employer makes an investment in them as individuals and valued professionals.

As you budget for the coming year, why not dedicate a portion of your budget to the training and development of your staff? Your employees will appreciate it, your customers will love it, and you will profit from greater employee and customer retention.

Now let’s go teach our staff how to deliver that WOW experience!

Mystery Shopping: How to Choose a Great Mystery Shopping Company – The Final Question

In our last post, we talked about the importance of working with a mystery shopping company that can provide the high tech component that lends itself to efficiency and effectiveness in today’s competitive environment. But what about the personal touch? The way a mystery shopping company treats its is something you should be concerned about. But you can’t just come out and ask. Instead, you need to ask indirect questions that will clearly indicate how these companies react to their clients.

The following list of questions might help you get to the heart of this matter:

• How often can I expect you to be in touch after the launch of my program?
• Are there special offers or discounts for loyal customers?
• Will you come and visit from time to time to help us evaluate the results of our mystery shopping efforts?
• Do you provide training or additional programs and services to help my staff excel?
• How are client problems resolved?
• When was the last time you received an unsolicited testimonial from a client?

Keep in mind that mystery shopping companies are handling intimate data about your operations and your staff. You want this vendor to be considerate and sensitive to the fact that they are delivering information that has the potential to change the quality of people’s lives and the direction of a corporation.

So what kinds of questions would you ask if you were trying to determine how a company treats its customers?

And remember …not only is the customer always watching, they’re always listening too!