We are only halfway through the year, but Big Data seems on track to be crowned the official “hot” customer experience term for the year 2012. A quick definition of Big Data from my pals over at Vivisimo: “While “big data” lacks a formal definition, it generally refers to extremely large data sets that are …

Big Data Knows Your Name: You Better Know Hers Read More »

No matter what you are doing, you are always in one of three states with your customer: proactive, reactive, or inactive. While this framework is broad, categorizing your customer focus in this way can bring ineffective behaviors and inefficient priorities into sharp relief. Do you ignore proactive customer service because you are frequently in reactive …

How to Make the Three States of Customer Service Work for You Read More »

The reality of the customer relationship is that the two parties are not on equal terms. Businesses exist to serve customers, and as such, business professionals must embrace the challenge of attempting to understand the customer, they must embrace the responsibility of empathy. To deliver effective customer care, we need to understand that we do …

Customer Service Is Not a Two-Way Street Read More »

This topic came up in a discussion with a team member. She asked, “how do I know when to jump in and help someone with a customer?” It was not a problem I had thought much about before. While I had discussed the eventuality in training, I had not given much consideration to the level …

When Should You Help A Coworker Struggling With A Customer Read More »

Loyalty programs seem to be everywhere these days. From major airlines to local dry cleaners, it seems like wherever we go a company is offering us the option of joining their rewards program or loyalty club. So what are these loyalty programs and, more importantly, how effective are they? What Is a Loyalty Program? To …

What Is a Loyalty Program? (And Will It Work For You) Read More »

What airline has the best customer service scores? The annual American Customer Satisfaction Index for the airline industry was just released. If you are not familiar with the ASCI, here is a blurb from its site (link no longer available): The ACSI reports scores on a scale of 0 to 100 at the national level. …

Customer Service In Airlines: Who Is Best and Does It Matter? Read More »

One aspect of the customer experience that is seldom discussed is how employees represent the brand “in uniform,” even when they are not working at the counter or desk. My wife went to a local bagel franchise last week, and as she was leaving, she noticed an employee of the bagel store in the parking …

Does Your Business Have An Employee Uniform Policy? Read More »

Author’s note. This incident occurred around three years ago. All times and dialogue are approximate. Company and personnel names have been changed to protect the guilty. We have all experienced the joy of hard shell plastic clam packaging. You know the type, the packaging that requires the Jaws of Life just to get to your …

Just Sit There and Bleed: A Tale of Healthcare Customer Service Read More »

When was the last time you received a handwritten thank you note from a business? In this age of high volume and low touch, the handwritten customer thank you note seems to be dying a quick and quiet death. Technology has made the customer thank you easy, and as a result, almost worthless. We have …

Is The Customer Thank You Note Dead? Read More »