Make sure that callers don’t have to repeat themselves. Someone who has explained a problem three times to three different people hangs up angry, whether or not problem is solved.

All Time

Create a positive image to attract business. Remember that squirrels are just rats with good publicity.

Display compassion for people who are upset. People who don’t think you care won’t value your solution.

Be very clear when you explain a process. When customers don’t know what you’re talking about, they assume you don’t either.

Do what you say you’re going to do. When you don’t follow through, people don’t think you have forgotten. They think you don’t care.

Know when to bring in someone else. When it becomes clear that customer thinks you are problem, set your ego aside and send in a fresh face.

Establish a simple, easy-to-implement, customer service plan. When something is really complicated, it’s hard to tell if it’s working.

Well, I think customer service will survive—and I feel better now that I’ve written this article—but it’s important that we help nurse that ailing customer service to a full recovery, ensuring a healthy prognosis for today’s businesses. The companies that attract and keep best customers are usually most effective at managing expectations and emotions. Successful companies train their people to anticipate customer needs and to solve problems before customer knows they exist. But before you can do any of this, you have to start with basics. If you really want customers, set customer service goals. Remember, if you don’t know where you’re going, any road will take you there.

Garrison Wynn is a nationally known speaker, trainer, and coach. He is President and founder of Wynn Solutions, specializing in The Truth about Success. www.wynnsolutions.com

But he didn’t stop here, he once again remodeled his store. When you walk in, it’s like a breath of fresh air. You will not find display after display, rack after rack, nope. Rather you find large comfy cushioned chairs, coffee tables with magazines, fireplaces, tile and wood floors. You are greeted with smiles and warm handshakes and asked if you would like some sweet bread, fruit or a beverage. His employees encourage everyone to take a seat and then they ask customer, what they can help them find. The customer tells them and employee runs off to gather what it is they have to fill customers request.

The customers sit, relaxed from rat race, rush to get from here to there—they sip their cup of tea or soda and eat snack they were served---while employee runs around and serves them up all their requests. When their experience is completed, they make their purchases and leave store with a smile.

I asked him how his cyber-customers brought about this change and he replied—“because world of internet took a key factor out of equation---it took hand shake, friendliness and smile. Many stores have also gone to attitude of---find it buy it—they even you to ring it up yourself---they have made world a strangers world where no one knows a name”. He said through years he fell into this category and managed quite well for more than 30 years under guise that offering more was what his customers wanted and needed. His internet customers proved to him that they wanted to ‘SEE’ less and be offered more---they still wanted human interaction and they wanted to know their purchase mattered to someone.

I asked him how his sales were going and he replied (I could feel warm smile through phone) “They have gone through roof”. He attributes a nearly doubled ticket amount to fact that. “We serve our customers in more ways than one. They no longer rush through our doors in a hurry to get somewhere. They come in, sit down and we ASK, we serve them not only in items they need, but serve them on basic level—the human side of money we ask them to part with. In offering them less to look at, we must SERVE them twice as much.”

I asked him how much he had to raise prices in order to offer such a great experience. He responded that his prices never rose at all—in fact they still compete on a price level of all other ‘similar product’ stores around. But he was most excited to share fact that even his own personal life has slowed down, he rushes around less and ENJOYS so much more. “We found to some extent that service offered to our customers who entered doors was sometimes just as cold as service offered on internet—so we brought whole experience, including internet back to days of a warm handshake and found success in fact that ‘offering less—and serving more’ is what people are after”.

Sorry this was so very long, but I thought it was important to share.

The bottom line is---break free from your habits if you are not realizing RESULTS you are looking for, and remember—“sometimes offering less—and serving more”—can often bring greater success.

Hope you enjoyed this weeks message.

Timber

http://www.timbersnoni.com

My favorite saying: