Monthly Mash and Killing Preconceptions

Welcome to the Monthly Mash, a mashup of tools, tales and tips on customer service and the customer experience from around the blogosphere.

VOLUME 32: June 2014

Thoughts on the Customer: Killing Preconceptions

At a recent conference, panel attendees were asked to reimagine the layouts of their physical storefronts with this question:

“If collectively the entire human race has amnesia and every brick and mortar [physical store] disappears, and you have to redesign a store tomorrow with no preconceived notions of what it looked like before, what would it look like?”

While the question has a specific context, the approach has merits across all areas of customer experience and customer service.

If I could start from the ground up…

What system would I create to empower employees ?
How would I redesign my customer’s experience?
What process would I create for submitting and processing a trouble ticket?

Our preconceptions often blind us to opportunity and prevent us from considering alternative approaches. Imagining how we might solve problems in the absence of any preconceptions can be a powerful exercise in getting closer to our customers.

The Month in Customer Service Blogging

A collection of the best posts about customer service and the customer experience we read this past month.

5 Telephone Etiquette Tips to Help You Deal with Angry Customers – Telephone etiquette tips for when you have an angry customer on the line including how to transfer in a positive way and how to offer winning solutions.

Here’s Your Next Level Customer Service Action Plan – Eight step action plan to take your already good customer service to the next level.

DThink Twitter Chat Recap: Designing Customer Service – Learn why your customer service should be designed not improvised from the Disney Institute twitter chat recap post.

When You Listen to Customers, Do You Hear What They Say? – Are you suffering from Confirmation Bias? If so, you may not be listening to what your customers are really saying.

Surprise and Delight Your Customers with Technology – Here’s How Chili’s delighted my family with tablets – One example of how to use technology to surprise and delight your customers.

Even better than an app? – And on the other side of the spectrum. Can an App replace human customer service?

Becoming a Customer Centric Company – Becoming a customer-centric company starts with working backwards from the customers.

When Do You Need a Chief Customer Officer? – Six questions to help you decide if your company needs a Chief Customer Officer.

3 Surefire Ways To Keep Your Customer Service Mind Sharp – The answer is, read, read, read!

Do You Feel It Is Important To Celebrate Service Excellence? – Are you celebrating your great customer service moments with your team? Some reasons why you should.

What is Customer Support to You? Necessary Evil or Core Differentiator? – Three ways to strengthen your customer service to make it a core differentiator.

7 Expert Tips for Better Listening – This acronym I.L.I.S.T.E.N will help remind you how to do it daily.

Cost-Efficient Tips For Using the Web as a Service Tool – Four affordable initiatives to turn your website into a stronger customer service tool.

Someone Was Listening

Sometimes the most popular post from the previous month; sometimes just the one I liked best.

SlideShare: 7 #CustServ Qualifications Everyone Must Have — This slideshare shows seven qualifications that are crucial for all customer-facing professionals. Feel free to share with your teams and your hiring managers.

Photo Credit: http://www.dreamstime.com/kati1313_info

About Adam Toporek

By Adam Toporek. Adam Toporek is an internationally recognized customer service expert, keynote speaker, and workshop leader. He is the author of Be Your Customer's Hero: Real-World Tips & Techniques for the Service Front Lines (2015), as well as the founder of the popular Customers That Stick® blog and co-host of the Crack the Customer Code podcast.

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