WHAT'S THE
POINT
Here's
a brain teaser for you - just to help you warm up for the challenges
1999 is sure to bring: Why spend a lot of time and money attracting
customers
to your business and then, when you finally succeed in capturing them
- or even more remarkably, actually persuading them to purchase something,
do
something to annoy them?
I don't know the answer either but there must be one because so many businesses
do just that. You know, the companies whose customer services number should
be 0800 ALWAYS BUSY. Or those whose managers recruit graduates from the School
of Rudeness. Then there are the customer service departments full of people
who make Mike Tyson look like a pussy. And, we won't even mention the salespeople
in retail stores who chat with each other while you desperately search for
assistance.
I expect that the boss's of these businesses would be horrified to see that
their staff were treating customers as if they were so plentiful that they
could afford to lose a bunch. But in the end it really is the boss's fault
that their customers are being turned off. Here are four reasons why.
1. It was the boss who hired these people in the first place? Think about your
own situation. Did you hire your people because they had a spectacular attitude
towards customer service, or because they had product knowledge or just happened
to be handy? Do you customers hear your staff say: "That's not my responsibility." "We
don't do that." "I don't know." "Most of our customers
are happy with that." "They don't pay me to do that."
2. It is ultimately the boss's job to provide training, coaching and performance
reviews. What about your business? Do your people know their strengths and
weaknesses, particularly in the area of customer relations? Have you implemented
a process for providing customer feedback to all staff, especially front-line
staff? Are staff required to attend regular training courses? Does their supervisor
or manager provide regularly scheduled coaching sessions? Athletes train, actors
rehearse, operators learn how to operate a machine before taking over responsibility
but most people who have customer contact just walk-in and start doing what
they do. The trouble is, what they do is costing you customers.
3. The boss gives the wrong direction. In spite of customer-focused mission
and vision statements, the boss's actions and words tell people what's really
important. Take the case of a bus service in rural England where drivers often
drove past long queues of passengers without stopping (they did smile and wave). "It
is impossible for their drivers to keep to their timetables if they stop for
passengers," explained one company official. Guess what mattered most
to management?
4. Company policy, for which the boss is ultimately responsible, prevents staff
from satisfying the customers. Do your staff say: "Our policy is ...." "You'll
have to call back between 9AM and 5PM." "We cannot do that because..." Don't
forget, your customers don't want to hear 'no.' From you they want 100% solutions
to their problems not more problems.
So, do your customers and yourself a favour this year. Make it your goal to
eliminate company policies and staff behaviours that annoy your customers.
You worked hard to attract them and they are worth a lot of money to you. Why
give them a reason to leave?
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