Be Different or be dead

February 23, 2015

5 really easy ways to make WOW! customer service

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5 really easy ways to make WOW! customer service.

Providing a WOW! customer experience is the end game of many organizations who want to create a base of loyal customers.

Some make progress.

And some fail; instead of WOW! they deliver OW!

For those in the OW! state, here are 5 ways to move your customer service to WOW!

Discover what annoys your customers

OW! is created when a customer smacks into an aspect of your business they can’t live with. It could be a policy, rule or an unfriendly employee attitude.
Reach out to them regularly for input and suggestions for improvement and follow their advice. Have the guts to put yourself at risk and ask “What sucks about us?” No pain, no gain.

Simplify how you do business with the customer in mind

Look at your business processes. Do they make it EASY for your customers to engage with you? If not, revamp them. People want “easy”; if it’s a hassle dealing with you, they won’t.

Treat each of your customers as an individual not as a face in the herd

Concentrate on discovering their unique needs; fashion your marketing efforts accordingly. We live in a “me” society where people expect products and services to reflect their individuality. Those that play to ME will be rewarded with WOW!

Show your fans regularly how much you appreciate them

De-emphasize traditional customer appreciation events which tend to mostly attract the looky-loo and offer no real value to long term loyal customers.
And personalize any recognition you do. Offering the same trash or trinkets to everyone is an insult and will result in OW!

Learn how to take a punch when you when you have a service slip-up

It’s not a matter if mistakes will happen, it’s a matter of when they will and what you do in response.
Here’s the formula: Recovery = ‘I’m Sorry’ + Fix It + Surprise! People remember how you recover from one of your mistakes; they will forget the original mistake if you do it well.

The move from OW! To WOW! depends on how much humanity you are willing to inject into your organization.

Build it to serve humans = WOW!

Build it to serve yourself = OW!

Cheers,
Roy
Check out my BE DiFFERENT or be dead Book Series

• Posted 2.23.15 at 04:22 am by Roy Osing
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February 3, 2015

3 simple steps that will improve your understanding of people

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3 simple steps that will improve your understanding of people.

A continuous process of learning about customers is a core competency that remarkable organizations have; the periodic study process of market research is simply not good enough.

These 3 steps will deepen the understanding you have of your customers and will move you ahead of the pack.

1. Deep segmentation

Define as many different customer segments as you can. Obviously the more segments the more you will know about each individual in the segment.
The objective is to learn about the unique fingerprint of each individual person as opposed to studying the ‘average’customer in a mass market group.

There is no such thing as an average customer. If you think there is, you haven’t segmented deep enough. Keep segmenting until you get as close to a segment of 1 as is practically possible.

2. Ask the customer

On a regular basis (actually every time you contact a customer) ask questions that will give you a better insight into the individual.
Every time your organization ‘touches’ a customer you have a strategic opportunity to learn something about them that you can put to good use: top-line revenue generation or loyalty-building.

Actively listen to what they say. Pay your managers on their ability to contribute toward the organization’s repertoire of customer knowledge - revise your compensation plan to reward this behavior.

3. Understand customer behaviour

Track and study how your customers use your products and services. Actual usage will help you understand the value they receive.
Product and services that tend to be bought together and in specific combinations will also be evident. Use this information to develop predictive purchase models to aid your marketing efforts.

Work on all three fronts and take your marketing efforts to remarkable levels.

Cheers,
Roy
Check out my BE DiFFERENT or be dead Book Series

• Posted 2.3.15 at 01:00 pm by Roy Osing
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January 26, 2015

Why your amazing customers should get awards like employees do

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Why your amazing customers should get awards like employees do.

Many organizations have Employee of the Month awards.

I have no issue with employee recognition; it’s important to shout out those people who go the extra mile and make a solid contribution over time.

But what about customers who go the extra mile? Those who go above and beyond the call to help the organization carry on business successfully?

Don’t they deserve special recognition?

I’m not talking about customer appreciation events that cater to the masses and serve little but to quench the thirst of looky-loos.

I’m referring to individual recognition just like employees are afforded.

Do the same for customers.

Mr Smith of 110 Cedar Drive, Boston, Massachusetts deserves customer of the month if he excelled in delivering benefits to your organization. It may be new sales revenue, a testimonial to your service or it could be referrals.

It really doesn’t matter.

Set out the criteria and make a BIG splash about honouring the special people who contribute to your well being.

In fact how about taking it one step further and celebrate employee-customer teams who create magic together?

Too over the top?

Don’t think so. Anything you can do to involve one of your loyal customers in a recognition scheme is more than a good thing.

Cheers,
Roy
Check out my BE DiFFERENT or be dead Book Series

• Posted 1.26.15 at 04:14 am by Roy Osing
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December 22, 2014

Why great leaders don’t choose among options, they create something new and remarkable

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Why great leaders don’t choose among options, they create something new and remarkable.

Why don’t leaders create something bloody remarkable for their organization? How do leaders create a successful future for their organization?

Some leaders say the answer to the question lies in defining a number of potential alternatives and select the one that provides the highest net benefit —the highest NPV.

I believe most leaders operate in this mode which, in my experience, produces incremental gains.

Breakthrough performance doesn’t come by choosing among which path to follow; it comes from creating a future that you and only you own

Creating a new box to play in. Colouring outside the lines to form art that has your signature alone.

Create don’t choose.

The next time you are asked to choose, don’t. Ask for the impossible; the unheard of; the unconventional.

Talk about that.

Debate that.

Do sensitivity analysis on that.

Unless your chosen path broaches the unknown, you’re not doing your job.

Cheers,
Roy
Check out my BE DiFFERENT or be dead Book Series

• Posted 12.22.14 at 04:35 am by Roy Osing
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