‘Unforgettable’ is such an arbitrary word. Good or bad experiences can be ‘unforgettable.’ They can be glib or profound. They can lead to recommendations (free advertising and more business), or they can be warnings that can kill your brand.
However, in the realm of customer experience, it is easier to work ‘unforgettable’ into their vocabulary, and there’s simply one word you should always remember: surprise.
Surprise cuts through the routine and brings fun to an otherwise boring day. It can make disappointment forgettable. It allows you to create, strengthen, and reward loyalty. Best of all, it gets you talked about.
From a management perspective, we need systems because they make output and input neat and organized. Business runs smoothest when everybody is following the manual, step by step.
However, when we consider that employees must also take care of customer management, the systems—keeping inventory, managing the register, stocking supplies, accomplishing timesheets, expense reports, and hundreds of other minutiae—inevitably get in the way.
A customer service survey can be as indicative of your brand personality as a business card or storefront design.
Specificity is essential in composing surveys like a pro. I think it’s also essential to be specific in the tone and mood of your survey. (more…)
Asking for customer feedback is never easy, especially in person. The potential for being “put on the spot” is heavy on both parties, and is generally avoided. But thanks to the internet, it’s a lot easier to give unsolicited feedback. Online accounts for people and for businesses work on so many levels, as consumer protection and free marketing. But as it has opened the valves on people’s opinion, it released a torrent of opinion.
Starting with anonymous accounts, to the various Like/Dislike, +1, ReTweets, and Favorites, customer feedback is getting more and more important to host and to guest. Companies like TripAdvisor rely mainly on guest recommendations and warnings to hostels and hotels alike. A business owner should only Google their own business name to find out what are being said about them.
A common practice some years ago was to type in “I hate (company name)” to see if that web page was constructed. But it seems to have died out in the advent of social networking sites. It seems people prefer to let their friends hear their gripes, rather than to no one in particular.
The power of computers has taken us such a long way in improving customer service management. But how can business owners like us take advantage of having customer data on file? Which information is best to ask from customers? Email, home address, or cellphone? (Or Facebook, BBM, LinkedIn, Twitter, Skype?)