Holiday Customer Service - Champs and Chumps

Holiday shopping is over, except for the after sales, returns and exchanges. I had a few interesting customer service experiences this year that left me with a list of Champs and Chumps to share. Fortunately for my gift recipients, they balanced themselves out.

CHUMP: WILLIAMS-SONOMA
I wanted to buy my husband a CO2 cartridge-charged whipping device to make gourmet foams. I thought I found what I needed at Williams-Sonoma. A manager at the store told me she was sure the product manufactured by iSi Group was the right choice. They were proven wrong, and I went back to W-S the next day to return the Mini-Whip.

CHAMP: iSi NORTH AMERICA
An email to iSi North America (http://www.isi-group.com/) was responded to within hours, and confirmed that I needed either their Gourmet Whip or their Thermo Whip to make culinary foams. They offered to send me a free recipe book if I decided to buy one of their whips. I used Google Shopping to search for a supplier, and placed my order with http://www.creamright.com/. iSi graciously sent me the recipe book for free – a product for sale online for $6.95. Nice!

CHUMP: THE CONTAINER STORE
Each year, The Container Store markets a batch of fun stocking stuffers. When I got the flyer in the mail, I headed to our local store to buy the Ninja Flash Drive. They were already sold out, advised that they wouldn’t be getting any more, and that they were also unavailable online. Sounds like the buyers should have purchased more, don’t you think? They failed to capitalize on a winner.

CHAMPS: AMAZON.COM and FIND-ME-A-GIFT-UK
A quick search of amazon.com yielded a supplier out of the UK (http://www.find-me-a-gift.co.uk/) that shipped the Ninja Flash Drive to me at a good price in time for Christmas.

CHUMP: GOLFSMITH.COM
Golfsmith has recently been having serious issues with inventory management and customer service. My husband ordered himself a used club back in October. After months of waiting and one phone call that yielded little information (“We don’t know when it will be available”), we got an email they the club was no longer available from the manufacturer. They sent a $25 voucher that could be used on http://www.golfsmith.com/ for almost anything but the brand of club my husband wants.

CHAMP: GOLFSMITH.COM
I sent feedback on Golfsmith’s failure to deliver, our lost confidence in ordering from them online, and our opinions on their inappropriate/ insufficient response. They came through by apologizing candidly for the challenges they are experiencing, and provided an additional $25 gift card that can be used for anything they sell. I have to give them credit for making it right.

Losing a Customer is This Easy

Last week, my husband and I revisited a restaurant in Kennebunkport, Maine that we have enjoyed for about 10 years. The food is good, the prices are reasonable, and the casual, friendly atmosphere is right up our alley. I always look forward to their “Lazyman’s Lobster”, which they remove from the shell for you and serve in a bowl, doused in butter. Ah, what a sinful pleasure!

As I perused the menu, I realized that there was no Lazyman’s Lobster being offered. I decided to ask about it. The answer I got, “Well, we can do it if you insist… But we prefer to serve it whole, in the shell.” This was delivered with a sigh, a squirm, and a notable lack of eye contact.

I was not only disappointed, but annoyed with the response. Here was the unspoken conversation that did the real damage to our “relationship”:

HIM: “I’m really going to hate it if you insist.”
ME: “Of course you prefer to serve lobster whole, because it’s easier for YOU. But isn’t this supposed to be about ME?”
HIM: “I told the cooks they wouldn’t have to prepare Lazyman’s Lobster anymore.”
ME: “Don’t you have to take lobster out of the shell to prepare all this other stuff on the menu, like Lobster Rolls, Lobster Stew, and Stuffed Lobster? Why should this be a big deal?”
HIM: “I hate it when these tourists are too lazy to take apart a lobster themselves.”
ME: “Why didn’t I go down the street to ABC Restaurant, where they still have what I want on the menu and don’t make me grovel for it?”

It’s that easy to lose a customer. A bad decision, rolled eyes, the arrogance to ignore what your competition has to offer, and the inability to consistently make your business about delivering what your customers really want. This restaurant in Kennebunkport will probably never notice when I don’t return or recommend their establishment again, but I have to think that they are slowly and silently losing market share with this attitude. It’s a slippery slope.

When Tech Shortfalls Thwart Customer Service

Last week, I took action to redeem some American AAdvantage Miles before they expired. I had enough for a domestic round trip ticket, and my husband had enough for a one-way segment. I logged on to aa.com to make reservations for my reward travel.

It wasn’t too surprising to discover that I could not book our reservations online as part of the same itinerary, because of different AAdvantage accounts and the round trip versus one-way redemptions. STRIKE ONE for American Airlines’ technology. Most of the airline systems (American’s included) are notoriously antiquated behind the scenes, and rigid in their functional capabilities. So I called their 800 number for help, already having checked award flight availability and mapping out an itinerary. I hoped American’s reservation agents might have capabilities unavailable to me on their web site.

Upon reaching an agent and explaining what I was trying to accomplish, I was advised that our reservations could not be booked as part of the same itinerary. OK – I expected that. But then the agent told me that there was only one award flight available for my desired travel date (a flight that did not work for us). I told the agent I had found additional availability online and began to provide the flight numbers, but was abruptly told that she could “see” only the one flight available. American’s reservation system did not show the same availability shown on their web site. STRIKE TWO.

Back to the web site to book our travel online. Here I discovered that Ron’s one-way award had to be booked separately from the one-way return for which we would pay a normal fare. So I made the two reservations and noted the different confirmation numbers. I then made the reservation for my round trip reward ticket.

When double-checking our three confirmed reservations, I discovered that I had made an error. I had booked my husband’s departure and return for the same date. Augh! Operator error. So I retrieved the reservation and submitted a modification for the correct date. The system then advised me that I would be charged $150 for the change. Angry with myself for the mistake, but somewhat resigned to paying the evil airline’s price, I completed the modification and provided a credit card to pay the additional $150.

The more I thought about my experience, the more upset I got. I called American and asked to speak to a supervisor. Much to my surprise, I was told that since I had found my error and made the modification within 24 hours, American would refund my $150.

Hooray, and STRIKE THREE at the same time! If American’s policy was to refund the change penalty, why doesn’t the system support that policy and not impose the fee in the first place? This limitation in their technology conveniently generates revenue from all the people who don’t bother to call and complain.

All’s well that ends well, except that I am reminded of several of the reasons I fly Southwest now instead of American.

The negative impact that ineffective technology can have on customer loyalty should not be overlooked by any business. Keep your technology updated to serve not only your operation, but your customers.

P.S.  I'm not paying for checking any baggage either.  So there.

New Year's Resolutions for Marketers

Last year, we offered a list of suggested resolutions for corporations. This year, we'd like marketers to use these resolutions to gain more loyal fans for the brands they promote. Better yet, perhaps they would less frequently disappoint the customers they already have!

• Our membership program will be valuable to our customers, and allow for easy participation (i.e. no card to carry in already overstuffed wallets).

• Forays into social networking will be driven by a plan with measurable goals, and will be managed as a serious offshoot of our overall, integrated marketing plan.

• Our Facebook presence will reflect the personality of our brand, and provide important information that lets our “friends” feel like insiders, and presents valuable deals that lure repeat visitors to our page and attracts new customers.

• We will strive to engage our fans with our brands and products, and create opportunities for them to interact as a community, share experiences, and generate buzz.

• Managing negative feedback will be part of our transparent communication with our customers. We will view it as a positive opportunity.

If you missed last year’s blog on resolutions for corporations, click here:
http://habaconsulting.blogspot.com/2009/12/new-years-resolutions-for-corporations.html

Lessons from Kindle

I’ve only had an Amazon Kindle eReader for about 3 months, but I have already experienced multiple examples of Kindle Customer Service that were really impressive. Here are the lessons customer service providers can glean from Kindle’s practices:

TIMELY & TARGETED COMMUNICATION: Before Kindle released its new generation Kindle, it announced that pre-sales were available. I ordered mine through a link made available on Facebook. On the release date, the new Kindle was shipped to me overnight at no additional cost.

MAKE PRODUCTS EASY TO USE: The Kindle is very user-friendly. Start-up was amazingly simple, and I downloaded books and started reading immediately.

PARTICIPATE IN SOCIAL MEDIA: I “Like” Kindle on Facebook, and have received many useful tips and recommendations by monitoring their page.

APOLOGIZE FOR ISSUES & MAKE IT RIGHT: I use my Kindle a lot to play word games like Scrabble, and (to my dismay) the letters started to wear off the keyboard. I called Kindle Customer Service, and the first thing they did was to apologize. Then they arranged to send me a new Kindle via overnight delivery.

GREAT PRODUCTS HAVE GREAT SOLUTIONS: My replacement Kindle came with simple instructions for re-loading content I had already purchased. I was up and running within minutes.

MAKE LOGISTICAL ISSUES YOURS; NOT YOUR CUSTOMER’S: I needed to return my defective Kindle within 30 days, in order to avoid being charged for the replacement. Kindle made it easy. I used the new packaging to pack up the old Kindle, and printed a prepaid mailing label provided via a link in an email from Kindle.

USE TECHNOLOGY TO SMOOTH THE WAY: Just as I was wondering how to “wipe” my old Kindle before sending it back…it turned itself on, activated its wireless communication, and displayed a progress bar indicating that content was being deleted. When done, it turned itself back off – ready to be sealed up and shipped. That was a “Wow”.

The only thing that would have made the exchange with Kindle more perfect was to be reassured that they have resolved the issue with the letters on the keyboard, so that I know I won’t have the same problem with the replacement. But, time will tell.

Kindle has a new loyal customer in me, and I’ll be providing a referral to Santa for additional purchases. HO, HO, HO!

An Alliance That Misses the Service Mark

When I discovered that Qwest and DirecTV have an alliance in my area, I thought, “This will make getting internet and TV a simple process.” I was encouraged by the marketing material, which promised that the alliance would provide “an enhanced customer experience through streamlined customer support and the development of integrated products and services”. Perfect. In addition, the Key Consumer Benefits stated, “Qwest customers have one primary point of contact for customer service, installation and billing inquiries.” I was sold, and placed a phone call to Qwest to set up installation.

This is when I encountered the reality of the customer experience part of this business alliance. The customer service process has been almost ludicrously onerous, confusing, and AWFUL. Here’s what has happened:

1. I called Qwest to arrange installation. The representative was knowledgeable, professional, and friendly. However, the review of package options, one-time deals, rebates, and long-term discounts took a long time, and was very confusing. They collected our personal information (including social security number for a credit check) and billing information, so we could receive the automated payment discount. After 45 minutes on the phone, I hoped I was done. But, no.
2. The first representative passed me another representative; to “verify information” they had already collected. She was pleasant, but had a very heavy accent that was a challenge to interpret. And, trying to be friendly, she wanted to chat, asking me how my day was, etc. I apologetically asked her to stick to business so I could get on with my day. We scheduled my Qwest internet installation.
3. I was provided with another number to call to schedule my DirectTV installation myself, which I did. That was fairly painless, but it was another phone call.
4. The next morning, I received an email that I had cancelled my DirecTV installation. I called Qwest customer service to find out what happened. They advised that I had scheduled my installation with a subcontractor that does not service my area. (Their mistake.) They gave me another phone number to reschedule. When I suggested they should do that for me, they hemmed and hawed and said they COULD, but it would be better if I did it myself.
5. I called the new number to schedule my installation, and reached a subcontractor who obviously works from home. (He had a noisy meowing cat in the background.) We had a nice chat during which I was rolling my eyes, and he (re)scheduled my DirecTV installation.

The good news is that the installations went smoothly. Both techs were competent and capable. My internet and DirecTV services work as advertised, and I am pleased.

But, there were still two more steps for me to complete on my own initiative:

6. Go online to register for my DirecTV rebate.
7. Call Qwest Customer Service (again) to link my Qwest and DirecTV accounts so billing can be combined.

What’s wrong with this alliance? I presume that it’s working for Qwest and DirecTV, but it’s ugly and awkward from where I sit as a customer. An alliance should be beneficial for all parties – the business partners and the customer. Their business arrangement should be much more transparent to me. Qwest and DirecTV really need to work to streamline the customer experience. I plan to contact the Senior Vice President of Sales (whose name is in the press release) to ask about their plans. Maybe they need assistance from Haropulos Bailey Consulting…

Challenge Your Processes

When it comes to customer service, applying efficiencies and technology to processes can be a dangerously slippery slope. Of course, I completely support the use of technology to be more efficient! The issue lies in the potential to focus solely on internal operations, and not enough on the customer experience. It happens every day, and it irritates and alientates customers.

Your job is to make sure you are always connected with the wants, needs and emotions of your customers. Put yourselves in their shoes. Talk to them about their likes and dislikes. CHANGE what needs to be changed to improve customer service, while creating processes that make your employee's jobs easier and more enjoyable.

Want some examples?

BAD BUT TRUE!

At a corporate-operated Verizon store, a greeter/receptionist asks how they can help you. Then they make you enter your name, phone number and what type of service you need into a touch screen system - only to assign you to a service queue! This process is clearly to make things easier for Verizon - not for their customers.

I like Dillards merchandise, and even their service. But their checkout processes are bizarrely antiquated. For every item you purchase, the clerk manually sticks a little yellow bar code on the price tag. Then they have to scan the price tag and the inventory sticker. It's insanely slow, and it doesn't benefit me - just Dillards' bean counters.

GOOD AND ALSO TRUE

As a new customer at Safeway, I was asked whether I had one of their discount cards. I did not, and really didn't want to take the time to fill out the form at the register to get one. No problem. They gave me a card, along with a form with the card number filled in, and asked me to complete it and drop it off the next time I came into the store. I got my valuable discounts right away, yet was able to fill out the form at my convenience.

My Subaru dealership allows customers to make scheduled service appointments by phone or online. On site, they maintain a perfectly lovely waiting room, complete with Starbucks coffee and high definition flat screen TV's. Yet they are so customer-focused, they also provide chauffeur service to home, office or shopping - or even a free rental vehicle for the day. Obviously, these amenities are an added expense to the dealership, but they recognize that they are important to retaining customer loyalty.

Constantly CHALLENGE YOUR PROCESSES. What worked yesterday may not work any more, because of changing customer expectations. Don't let technology itself drive your processes; it should always be an enabler (in a good way). Be sure your service procedures are really for to serve the customer - not only for ease of your operations. If you're really smart, you can accomplish both.

Textbook Service Recovery by Crate & Barrel

It’s not often you have a customer service experience that is SO GOOD you feel compelled to tell people about it, but I had one recently with Crate & Barrel. What they did to recover from a service issue was perfect, and I am one impressed customer (and customer service consultant). Here’s what happened:

I ordered a rug for my vacation home, paying extra for expedited, 2-day delivery. I needed the rug to arrive before I left town to return to my primary residence. I was assured that the 2-day delivery was “guaranteed”. Unfortunately, the rug did not arrive as scheduled.

I called Crate & Barrel Customer service from the airport, on my way home. The agent (I’ll call her Nancy), immediately apologized. She told me she was sure the rug would arrive today. When I explained that I wouldn’t be there, she said, “Oh no!”. (Points given for immediate apology, and for the genuine expression of dismay.)

I explained that my 60-year old neighbor lady planned to watch for the rug to arrive, and get it into the house herself, and expressed concern about her trying to wrestle with a very heavy 8’ X 10’ wool rug. Nancy blurted out another “Oh no!”, and offered to “send someone” to my home to meet my neighbor to move the rug into my house. She also explained that Crate & Barrel takes “full responsibility” for UPS’s failure to deliver as guaranteed. (Points given for the second “Oh no!”, the offer of help for my neighbor, and for taking responsibility for something beyond C & B’s immediate control.)

As it turns out, the rug did show up the next day and my neighbor managed somehow to get it into my house. Nancy from C & B made a follow-up call to me to check up on whether they needed to send help. She also assured me that C & B would refund all delivery charges to me (before I asked). (Points given for follow up call and for doing the right thing regarding delivery charges.)

Now for the icing on the cake, in terms of service recovery… When I explained that my biggest disappointment was inconveniencing my neighbor, Nancy asked if I would provide her with contact information. C & B is sending my neighbor a note of thanks and apology, along with a gift card. (Major points accrued for this!!)

Would I order from Crate & Barrel again? Already have – to the tune of several thousand dollars. This is a company that hires good people for customer service, trains them well, and empowers them to do the right thing. I was so wow’ed, that I had to spread the story around. Thank you, Crate & Barrel.

Customer Service Issues? Look to Management First

If you have systemic issues with your customer service organization, it may very well stink from the head (just like a dead fish). You need to assess some of the basics controlled by management.

IS THERE A WELL-DEFINED SERVICE PHILOSOPHY? Management should be able to articulate a mission, and how they intend to go about fulfilling it. Leaders should be passionate about their service philosophy. If they don’t have one, then their team doesn’t have a guiding force.

ARE YOU HIRING THE RIGHT PEOPLE? Check your interviewing and hiring practices. This is particularly important if you are receiving complaints from your customers about “attitude”. Some people may just not be cut out for a customer service role, or they may require more training and coaching.

HAVE PEOPLE BEEN PUT IN THE POSITIONS IN WHICH THEY WILL BE MOST EFFECTIVE? If necessary, adjust your jobs and procedures to make the best use of people’s skills. For example, you could have someone who is technically able, but does not communicate well with customers. You may be able to adjust their role to better take advantage of their abilities.

ARE GOALS AND MEASURES IN PLACE? You must have benchmarks and measures, and know how you want your organization and people to perform. How fast do you answer the phone? Is it fast enough? How many calls/chats/whatever should one rep be able to handle in a shift? How satisfied are your customers? Everyone on the team should be aware of the goals and measures.

DOES MANAGEMENT EMPOWER THEIR TEAM TO DO WHAT’S RIGHT? If people feel like their hands are tied, the customer is probably going to hear about it. When the service team knows what the philosophy is – give them the freedom to take care of the customer within those guidelines.

IS YOUR MANAGEMENT TEAM “HANDS-ON” AND OPEN TO SUGGESTIONS AND CHANGE? Does your manager spend a lot of time in intra-departmental meetings, on conference calls, sending CYA emails, having lunch with vendors…? Be sure they are truly connected with the day-to-day operation and know what’s going on. Who is really running the organization?

DOES THE TEAM HAVE THE TOOLS THEY NEED? Management is responsible for ensuring that their department has the tools they need to do their jobs effectively. This may be technology, communication, information, training and/or education.

DO YOU SEE EVIDENCE OF POSITIVE REINFORCEMENT? The best way to reinforce the service philosophy and make continued progress toward goals is to recognize and reward team members when their performance is “spot on”. Recognition and reward doesn’t have to cost a lot of money. It can be as simple as a note, a thank you, or a mention in a team meeting. Management should be creative about positive reinforcement and change up their techniques, in order to remain effective.

Haropulos Bailey Consulting is experienced in establishing and operating world class Customer Service and Support centers. If you are interested in obtaining consulting services in this discipline, email us at habaconsulting@comcast.net.

Know Your Stuff

There are many fine points to providing good customer service, including the application of empathy, listening and communication skills, and follow up. With the aim of improving the care we provide to our customers, we receive individual coaching, work as a team to develop strategies and procedures, and go to endless learning sessions du jour designed to improve specific skills that contribute to our service abilities. That’s all important – very important. But I maintain that the foundation of good customer service is for people to be extremely competent at their jobs. Yes, just Know Your Stuff. Think about times you have been disappointed with service you have received. How often has the root of the issue been a service provider who doesn’t know what they are doing? For example: Long lines at the register at a store because the clerk doesn’t know the computer functions. Hotel checkout takes longer than it should because the agent doesn’t know how to correct the charges added to a bill in error. Empty your grocery bags at home and find the poor defenseless raspberries crushed under a jug of orange juice. Waiters put dishes down in front of the wrong guest because they didn’t note who ordered what. Any of these scenarios result in customer DIS-satisfaction as a result of incompetence on the job. Sweet smiles, hollow apologies, and thanks rarely take the stink off a customer encounter badly botched. “Sorry you had to wait” or “Thank you for being patient” are well-intentioned, but I’m sorrier than you that I had to wait! And I’m not patient! I beseech companies to collect and examine their customer feedback data and get to the root of their customer complaints. Take time and spend money first on preparing your employees to do their jobs efficiently and effectively. Then layer the finer points of customer service on top of competency. Show that you Know Your Stuff, and your enterprise and its representatives will both be more successful.

Customer Service at Retail Stores-Dying or Already Dead?

I am an enthusiastic shopper, and find browsing stores to be a form of relaxation. Besides, it helps me stay knowledgeable about current styles and trends. (I have a fear of slowly sliding into a decidedly middle-aged look.) So why do stores seem so intent on driving me away to shop on the Internet? Customer service issues are at the heart of the issue. That trickles down from the capabilities of the management team, how they hire, and how they communicate priorities. Retail is in crisis, folks! Don’t you think that requires you to think differently? Most of my corporate career was spent in service-related roles. The pursuit of great customer service is a passion of mine, and you will often find me on a soapbox on this subject. The crime of it is that the techniques involved in delivering really good customer service are simple, even FUN, and yet few retailers have found the secret to motivating consistently positive behavior from their associates. Recently, while shopping at The Sports Authority for a specific item I was told, “We don’t carry that in the store, but you might try the Internet.” Yes, I might. But why couldn’t the store offer to obtain the item for me and either hold it for pick-up or send it to me? At Macy’s, I had to return a pair of shoes because the clerk had mistakenly put the wrong shoes in my bag at the checkout counter. When I came back to the store and explained the problem, I wanted to buy two pair of shoes to replace the one pair I was returning. Gosh, I was treated like that was an unsolvable problem! Return one pair, buy two. That’s good for the store – right? When the dust settled, I had a refund for the original purchase, no new shoes, and no apology. I called the General Manager the next day to explain how her associates don’t seem to want to actually make sales. Have you noticed how you often can’t find an item in the size or color you want in the brick and mortar stores? But go home and search the Internet, and you find what you want right away. Why wouldn’t I stop trolling the stores for hours, going home empty-handed, when I can shop online and have my purchase sent to my home? Then when the package is delivered, it’s almost like getting a gift in the mail! You often have to pay shipping fees, but you didn’t drive your car or take public transportation to get to the store – so it’s almost a wash. My call to action for retailers is this: Stop thinking like it’s still 1980! Put yourself in the customer’s shoes and deliver a shopping experience that they can’t get online – in a good way. Clueless, inattentive, lazy, gum-popping drones as sales associates are driving us away forever. Establish a well-communicated service philosophy, make sure management ingrains it into the culture, hire people who will respond to coaching, and deliver real service to your customers. Otherwise, kiss your stores goodbye one-by-one.