In a business where each vendor is selling a relatively identical product set, service is one of the few ways providers can distinguish themselves from the competition.
Art Sobczak, who writes the Smart Calling sales tips email, used a recent post to recount an unsatisfactory experience he had at a Subway sandwich shop. There was no line at the counter, but also no one available behind the counter to deal with customers who came into the store.
When one did eventually appear, Sobczak noted the “20-something customer servicer came out, didn’t look me in the eye and blurted, 'Hep ya?’”
He asked for a turkey sandwich on whole grain bread and not to toast it, but after putting on gloves to start making it, the server said, “You said meatball, right?”
After getting the turkey, the server then asked him “white bread?” The next question was “You said toasted, right?”
Sobczak commented, “I’d like to think this experience is the exception with service people, sales people, or even just people in general. You and I both know that unfortunately it is more the norm.
“The typical attention span today is mere seconds—if that. People are addicted to distraction.”
In order to be effective with their clients, he continued, today’s sales professionals have to “proactively counteract” the distractions which impact the social media generation.
“A couple of very rudimentary, but nevertheless, important points. Pay attention. I believe that to truly be an effective communicator, you need to work hard at the art and science of simply paying attention.
“Yes, that means actually listening to what the other person is saying, and not thinking of what you will say next. Or worse, interrupting them with what you want to say. It means not checking your emails, texts, tweets, Facebook or any other site while you are speaking with a prospect or customer.
“I heard a speaker say that there is no such thing as multitasking, since a person can only do one thing at a time. If you are flitting from thing to thing, you are not doing any of them very well. Certainly you wouldn’t have your A-game when you are talking on the phone and trying to perform several other activities.”
His next point is to pre-empt the customer’s distraction. You need to grab and keep their attention. “Talk about their favorite subject: them. This is not new. But then again, I don’t know why more reps don’t do it.”
Sobczak concludes, “So, if you are having a difficult time reaching decision makers, getting prospects to read—or even open—your emails, and then if you are able to get through, actually selling, well, brace yourself: it’s you. Money and attention flows to value. How can you communicate that?”
Ron Kaufman, a consultant and author who speaks about providing uplifting customer service, said, “There is a vast disconnect between the volume of service we need and the quality of service we are giving and receiving.”
He writes about 12 building blocks of a service culture. The first is using a common service language. “We create meaning with language, and we can change our world by inventing or adopting new language. Your common service language should be meaningful and attractive—a shared vocabulary to focus the attention and the actions of your team. It should clarify meaning, promote purpose and align everyone’s intentions and objectives.”
Next is having an engaging service vision. These “unify and energize everyone in an organization,” explained Kaufman. “They pose a possibility each person can understand and aim to achieve in his or her work, role, team and organization.”
Service recruitment, or the hiring of the right people, is third. He points to Google and Zappos, which look to hire new people with the right attitude than to hire people for their skills alone and then try to align them around a common service vision.
This is followed by service orientation, or training the new hires in your corporate culture. Most companies have “basic introductions and inductions,” which “don’t connect new employees to the company or the culture in a welcoming and motivating way,” he said.
“Zappos really gets this. Its four-week cross-department orientation process is an example of new-hire orientation at its finest—deeply embedding and delivering on the company’s brand and core value, 'Deliver WOW Through Service.’ Zappos understands that new team members should feel informed, inspired and encouraged to contribute to the culture.”
Service communications are used to educate and inform, to connect people, and to encourage collaboration, motivate, congratulate and inspire. “They’re essential because they can be used to promote your service language, expand your service vision, showcase your new hires, announce your latest contest, explain your measures and service metrics, and give voice to your customers’ compliments and complaints,” says Kaufman.
Service recognition and rewards are a vital building block. Recognition is a human performance accelerator and one of the fastest ways to encourage repeat service behavior.
But money is not the most effective way to do achieve this, he said. There are ways to genuinely show appreciation. “You can do it with a handwritten letter, a standing ovation, two tickets to a concert or a ball game, an extra day off, dinner for the family, a star on the nametag—I could go on and on,” he continued.
The next block echoes Sobczak’s main point—listen to the voice of the customer.
“The voices you gather may come through formal means such as survey forms, hotlines, comment cards and focus groups, or through social channels like Facebook, Twitter, Yelp and TripAdvisor,” notes Kaufman. “Wherever it comes from, whatever it says, the value you gain from the voice of the customer is achieved only when this river of input connects with a team that wants to hear it, understand it and do something about it. When these vital voices are shared with service providers throughout your organization, they contribute immediately and powerfully to a better service experience.”
This is followed by using service measures and metrics. He said these “are most effective when they help you prioritize what’s most important from customer satisfaction to customer loyalty to employee engagement. Measure what matters to focus attention, design new action and create positive service results.”
Once these are examined, the next step is having a service improvement process. “A well-designed service improvement process promotes communication across functions, divisions and departments. It stimulates collaboration across levels, languages, and locations. With thoughtful planning and invitations, you can also tap the creative energy of your customers, vendors, distributors and even your government or industry regulators,” he said.
Service recovery and guarantees deals with the complaint resolution process. “The goal of this building block is to create a culture that earns and retains many loyal customers while building pride and problem-solving passion in every service provider,” said Kaufman. “Confidence is the key. When customers are confident about the service you deliver, they will return, refer, and recommend. When team members are confident about your commitment and your culture, they will work enthusiastically to deliver uplifting service.”
Service benchmarking is the 11th block followed by the fact that everyone in the organization is a service role model. He said, “Everyone is a service role model. Leaders, managers and frontline staff must walk-the-talk with powerful personal actions every day. Being a service role model is not just for senior managers and members of the leadership team. It is what happens every time people can see what you do, read what you write, or hear what you say in an internal or external service situation.”
