Creating the Ultimate Customer Experience: Customer Communication and Spring Cleaning!

Believe it or not, spring cleaning and customer service have something in common. The urge to purge, to spruce up and air out winter’s doldrums hits all of us this time of year, from critters thinking of nests to homeowners pondering paint.  Even the phrase “spring cleaning” evokes images of fresh breezes and crisp organization, as blessed by Martha Stewart.  Why limit that sweep to the basement storage bin or linen closet?  Sometimes business benefits from a little springtime shakeup too.

For several years I’ve been on the mailing list for a monthly e-newsletter. Except it’s no longer monthly, more like bimonthly, or quarterly. Or whenever it pops up.  The publisher always slips in a slightly apologetic note explaining its late arrival, or lack of a promised article. She thanks readers for their patience and promises that the next one will arrive right on time. But it never does. The latest, for January, came more than a month late. It includes a discount coupon good though Feb. 1. And in her haste to get this first newsletter of 2010 out, the publisher neglected to change the template, which is still dated 2009.

When it launched, the e-newsletter held promise, with easy updates and timely tidbits. Because it came via email, it never cluttered a mailbox or wastebasket, thus saving trees and postage. But its publication became just one more chore for the harried editor putting it together.  She allowed it to grow stale instead of updating its look and promoting it via more current avenues.  Instead of a business tool, it stagnated into an antique, largely ignored. The editor admits to rarely receiving feedback.  And her monthly discount coupons? Unused.  In this economy, a customer skipping the chance to save money, because he didn’t see it? Definitely, time to spring clean that e-newsletter out of there.

Maybe you’ve got an outdated “newsletter” of your own that worked just “then”.  But a fresh approach will give you a better handle on “now.”

Give Market Viewpoint a call and we’ll be happy to take a look at your newsletter and offer suggestions for how you can spring clean and spruce up the most important vehicle for staying in touch with the most important people in your business- the customers!

Mystery Shopping: I Spy

Mystery shoppers are like secret agents. They’re on a mission, and they’re invisible to the general public. They swoop in, size up the situation, gather the info, and vanish. You’d never know a mystery shopper was on the scene.

Except when she announces her presence to the world, or at least, the store she’s surveying.  In the swirling aftermath of a post-Christmas sale, I heard the loud clear tones of a woman telling someone that she was “here to do a mystery shop, you know, look at everything and report about customer service and whether the store is clean.”  Her voice carried like a referee’s announcing a first down.  The woman standing closest to her, pushing a packed shopping cart, had mistaken her for a store employee, so she was busily explaining a mystery shopper’s tasks. “I look at everything, and if someone’s not wearing a name tag, I write it down,” she said. “Later I’ll go to the food court.  Last time I mystery shopped here, the pizza was cold.”  The woman with the cart asked a question and our mystery shopper replied, “Oh, the money isn’t great but I get to buy things and I can keep those. Plus they’ll reimburse me for the food. I mystery shop for [another store] too.  It adds up.”

She might have continued but her cell phone summoned her. “I can’t talk, I’m mystery shopping,” she told her caller. By now, several store employees were nearby.  They adjusted their facial expressions from “when’s my next break?” to “how may I help you?”

The temptation to grab her and deliver a lecture on the do’s and don’ts of mystery shopping was too great.  I left the store with increased respect for mystery shoppers who Do It Right, never even THINKING to behave as Miss Loud did. Hey, when there’s one like this on the loose, the high road is the only place to be.

As you consider your choice of a mystery shopping company, ask lots of questions about how they choose their shoppers and how they train them. It may mean the difference between a successful mystery shopping program or a failed one for your organization.

Creating the Ultimate Customer Experience: Be the Action Hero of Problem Solving

When your customers want action, you’re on the case, focused on getting results.  It should be so simple and basic, but sometimes, in the crush of too much, too fast, the basics get overlooked.  Not to malign any industry, but we’ve all spent too long on hold, or dealt with a rep who parrots a response without hearing our plea.  One company lost me for good last week, a  reality-check reminder of What Not To Do.

What does a customer hope for? Okay, a full-scale Congressional investigation, triple refund and lifetime discount may not be the best answers! But there are others…

A calm oasis: some customers themselves are so agitated, they’re loud, confusing, annoying. Instead of escalating to match their tone, take it down a notch. Let their waves of frustration wash out, and respond in the calmest, “I’m-a-supervisor-and-I’ll-fix-it” tone.  Oh, and please turn off the speaker phone, where the volume feels aggressive and less than personal.

Yes, the personal. The friendlier you are,  the easier it is to find out just what’s wrong, and make a connection. Simple way to do both: use the person’s name. In a respectful but friendly tone, remind that customer that you not only know his demand, you recognize his value.

The solution to his or her demand may be elaborate or easy, but instead of waiting for the customer to tell YOU…propose your own course of action. “I’d recommend we do this to resolve it,” you say. Once you state exactly what you believe will make that person happy, you’ve become the problem solver who saves the day.

If they hesitate, bring their input into the process.  “What would YOU suggest to take care of this?” puts them in the position of agreeing with your proposal, or telling you why they won’t. The dialogue gives you an added chance to personalize the solution—and keep them as a future customer who recalls the individualized attention of someone who believes in basic good business.

For more information on Dealing with Difficult Customers and Action Hero Problem Solving, contact Market Viewpoint.

Creating the Ultimate Customer Experience: Recharging the Idea Machine

Ever wish you could come up with the next big, brilliant idea, the 21^st century equivalent of the light bulb, or even the Post-It note?  Or when you hear of something clever, you think, “Wish I’d thought of that.”  Especially at this time of year, when our brains often feel as frozen as our toes, the warmth of a bright idea seems as appealing, and elusive, as a sunbeam.

Don’t try so hard, berating those gray cells to get creative— just walk away from it. Physically, if you can.  Head outdoors for a moment, take in a gulp of frosty air, scan the sky, whether it’s the color of slush or sapphires.  It’s like mentally clearing your desk, leaving it open to new project or a fresh approach.

For a bigger boost, go for the unfamiliar: a museum or gallery.  Gaze at the paintings or sculptures, letting your mind glide over the hues and shapes and even the quiet surroundings.  Or if you’re in too much of a hurry to absorb culture, check out a place that’s outside of your own interests.  A tech-minded friend claims her creativity pops when she walks into—a fabric store! “It’s so outside my world, that all the different  textures, displays, items I don’t even know the names of, will start my mind clicking,” she says.  “Color especially will ‘speak’ to me.”  If you’re skeptical, just pick up a shade card in any paint department—Meadowbrook Mellow, Birdhouse Blue, Picket Fence.  The color roll call that runs from prosaic to pure poetry may tickle the start of an idea just waiting for an invitation.

Add to the experience by bringing a colleague or friend along, for a parallel but new view of the same horizon. You’ll also double the chances of sparking a new idea. “What if we did that?” your colleague might say, noticing a museum’s collection of informational brochures, or a gift shop’s limited-hours sale.  Even borrowing an idea is okay—it’s new to you.  And it’ll lead to an improved version, customized with your unique take, and fitted to your own customers’ hopes.

For some new ideas and approaches to your customer service plan, consider calling Market Viewpoint for a consultation. We’re always happy to share the great ideas we collect from the various industries we serve. Who knows? Maybe meeting with us us just the spark you need to take your service to the next level!

What are some of the new customer service ideas you’ve come up with recently?

Creating the Ultimate Customer Experience: Add On Selling Drops to the Bottom Line

If you’ve ever shopped at one of those bath and beauty stores, you’ve experienced the “add on” push at the cash register. Just buying one item? The sales clerk will suggest something else in the same scent.  Getting a collection of products for gifts? “But you need something for YOU,” comes the gently insistent tone.  Because those added, impulse “extras” tally lots more profit.

You can find an even better illustration at any big-name coffee shop.  Sure, lots of customers are ordering their standard caffeine-to-go, in sizes to fit the adrenaline lag. But many more are getting a sandwich, or pastry. The oversized to-go cups are popular too, not to mention the small plush teddy bears, greeting cards and even sets of colorful mugs. On a recent snowy morning, I sat in a suburban Starbucks and in half an hour, saw at least 12 customers who didn’t buy a coffee, tea or cocoa. To the musical accompaniment of quiet jazz, they purchased the “extras,” from CDs to gift cards, spending significantly more than they would have on a venti caramel macchiato.

By contrast, a local “independent” coffee shop a block away sat nearly empty, despite much lower prices.  Customers could buy only coffee or tea.  The floor bore traces of slush, and the silence—not even a radio— told me why the place wasn’t filled.

What struck me was the realization that the “big-time” coffee giant, not the struggling little guy, was the one offering an ever-expanding inventory of items. You’d think an internationally successful brand already profited nicely just from those coffee drinks. But rather than rely on the basics, they “added on,” displaying more and different products to keep customers interested.  You’d think the “little” coffee place would try to do the same, just as bookstores have added coffee bars.  But it just seems to shrug, “we sell coffee, take it or leave it.”

Do you go beyond the basics and offer customers an “add on”? Think about what “impulse” might appeal to them.  The lure of “something special” can be irresistible, and brings them back to see what else might be in store.