Here I am, Tuesday night at a major retailer. I’ll be in and out in a jiffy, I tell myself—just need one thing, that’s all.
“Can I help you find anything, sir?” a young employee asks me as I enter the store.
“Nope. I’m good. Thanks.”
“Can I help you find anything?” another employee asks me twenty seconds later.
“Nope. I’m good. Thanks.”
“Can I help you find anything?” Another employee.
“Nope. I’m good. Thanks.”
It was at that moment—thirty seconds before another “Can I help you find anything?”— that I asked myself “can there really be too much of a good thing when it comes to customer service?” I think, the managers at this retailer and this particular location must take a lot of pride in servicing customers well. They definitely understand the importance of the customer experience and employee accessibility and attentiveness. They’ve trained the staff well…and the staff is following through. I should be proud. This validates the work we do every day at Questar.
And yet my answer to that question “can there really be too much of a good thing when it comes to customer service?” A resounding yes!
The year was 1935. Two brothers – aged 10 and 8 – walked along the road to town. It was the height of the depression, so these kids didn’t have any money to spend once they got to town. But they picked up bottles in the ditch and by the time they got there they had enough to buy a couple of small packaged pies at the local café.
In 1935 packaged foods did not print the “sell by” date that we’re so accustomed to seeing today. It wasn’t until he bit into his pie that Kenneth, the younger of the two brothers, noticed that his pie was moldy. The kids tried to return it, but the café refused. “All sales are final” – the kids were out of luck. (more…)
Filed under: Customer Experience
Every encounter with a customer – whether it is face-to-face, over the phone, through the mail, in email, etc. – is an opportunity to build company credibility and put to rest any post-sale jitters that sometimes come with making a large purchase.
I recently bought a new vehicle. Putting on my customer experience management hat and reflecting on what I encountered, there were soooooo many missed opportunities to positively engage me as a customer. The whole experience turns out to be a great case study in how NOT to cultivate a positive relationship with a new customer and gain their loyalty for the long haul.
I know that for some of you, car shopping is a fun, energizing undertaking. For others – like me – it’s a dreaded, torturous necessity of life. While I was looking forward to downsizing to a smaller vehicle and improving on fuel efficiency, parting with my mini-van after seven years was a bittersweet thing. With all the fond memories associated with it, it was sort of like saying good-bye for the last time to an old friend. (more…)
Filed under: Customer Experience
A few weeks back, Joe Stanton wrote a blog entitled “Return…I Don’t Think So.” He told us two stories of recent shopping experiences, one he had while returning a stuffed toy and one his friend “Mike” had while returning a blue ray player. Both returns were done at different national retailers. Mike had an awful experience with his return while Joe had a great experience. Would they shop at these stores again? Mike claimed he would never shop at the store where he had the poor return policy experience. Joe, on the other hand, said he would definitely shop at his retailer again.
How would other shoppers react? Well, 56 of you shared your opinion via the poll on our website. And the results were….….(Drum roll, please)………
Do return policies at stores affect where you shop?
Yes – 46%
No – 29%
Sometimes – 25%
So what can we learn from both the experiences of Joe and Mike and our small poll? It seems that for most of you return policies play a role in where you shop. In fact, over 70% of those who responded, “sometimes” take into account what the return policy of the store is before they shop there. In times like these, where every customer counts, it might not be a bad idea for retailers to take look at their return policies to make sure they aren’t losing customers before they’ve even stepped into the store.
– Beth Holine | Strategic Communications & Marketing Coordinator
Note: stick with me here in the beginning. I know what you’ll be thinking in a second: quit with the sales pitch. I only do it to provide a context for my experience from the other day. I promise. Well, sort of…
At Questar, we measure the customer experience. We help our clients deliver a consistent, superior experience for their customers, because consistent, superior experiences breed customer loyalty. And loyalty equates to sales growth.
It’s what we do.
In our industry, customers are typically invited to provide feedback through transaction-based invitations, meaning that you purchase a good or service and then the invitation is printed on your receipt or emailed to you as a follow up. When customers participate in the survey they’re asked to rate the recent experience across all critical touch points, such as: greeting at the door, friendliness of cashier, wait time in line, etc.
The two critical bits of information here are: transaction-based and critical touch points.
So…let’s get to my recent experiences. One is an experience I actually had and one is the experience of a good friend—let’s call him Mike. Mike recently purchased a Blu-ray player and some necessary components from a large retailer. And he received a survey invitation on his receipt as part of the transaction. But after he set up the player, he realized that one of components was the wrong part. When he went to exchange the component the retailer would only provide him store credit because the box had been opened, even though they didn’t carry the right component. Even after he got the manager involved. (more…)
Filed under: Customer Experience
Fad (fād) n. A temporary fashion, notion, manner of conduct, etc., esp. one followed enthusiastically by a group.
Every year begins with such promise for new ideas and new ideals, a new way of life we fondly refer to as New Year’s Resolutions (So what’s yours this year? Mine: lose ten pounds, what else?) And every year ends with fads…most of them being that year’s resolutions; sorry to burst your bubble so soon. But some fads do go on to become trends. Some of them stand the test of time. Think iPod and YouTube in 2006; Facebook and Poker in 2007; Wii and Obama for President in 2008.
So I thought it fitting, this being my first blog of 2010, that I take a stroll back through the past twelve months—as painful as that might be…and I’m not even talking about the economy. Take a look at these 2009 fads (in no particular order) I collected from various websites: (more…)
Filed under: Customer Experience
A Jaguar.
A Mercedes.
A BMW.
Can you guess where I am? A high-end car dealership would make for a very logical guess, but you would be wrong. Sorry. Maybe a Simon and Garfunkel reunion concert at the Excel Energy Center? That would be a more creative guess—and creativity counts for something, I suppose—but wrong again. How about a Minnesota Timberwolves game? Possibly, if this were five years ago when people went to the games. Give up? I’m actually standing in the parking lot of a discount retail chain. (more…)
Filed under: Customer Experience | Tags: Best Buy, Customer Satisfaction, Customer Service
Best Buy Store
Recently while traveling I lost the charger for my portable DVD player. Last night I ran into a Best Buy and told the greeter I had 7 minutes and what I was looking for. He steered me to the Home Theater area where via headset he said someone would be waiting for me. I was thinking at this time, “wow, great customer service.” Three employees indeed were in the department, but I felt like I was interrupting something more important than me, the customer. They didn’t have the part. Call the whambulance. Don’t you hate those rush nights when you get nothing done?
Today, however, I checked Best Buy’s website for the Eagan location which stated they opened at 9 a.m. I rushed over once more as I am traveling again. The store wasn’t open until 10 a.m.! But OMG, the store manager, Cole was outside telling me to come in. They would take care of me. Cole had changed the hours last night on the website, and understood there would be customers this a.m. based on the listed website store hours. Guess what, yup, I left with my charger and am loving Best Buy again.
These are two great examples of why it is so difficult for a large brand to have consistently great service across all locations. There is nothing worse than the feeling you get as a customer when employees don’t treat you with respect. In contrast, the manager of the second location knew the change in store hours might create confusion for his customers, so he made sure the store was open and ready at 9 a.m.
Lynne Vannelli
Photo credit: Asian Sarah’s (Flickr)Filed under: Customer Experience | Tags: Customer Satisfaction, questions, survey
It’s easy to ask a question. In fact, it might be too easy. Brainstorming survey questions seems simple, but there are plenty of traps to fall into. The way a question is asked has a profound effect on the response it produces. I asked one of our consultants for a few tips on choosing quality questions. He also gave me examples of weak questions. For survey results that give you what your business needs, you have to give customers the information they need to answer your questions. Use these tips to make that happen.
1. Beware of double-barreled questions.
Bad: “Were the employees who served you helpful and knowledgeable?”
Sure, your waitress could recite every single beer they had on tap, but she couldn’t remember to bring you a pint. “Knowledgeable” and “helpful” do not go hand-in-hand. A question like this confuses survey respondents. It asks people about two different characteristics, and this will not result in actionable survey results. It’s like asking if the bathroom was “clean” and “tidy,” or if the food was “warm” and “delicious.” Cold food can be delicious, right? And believe me; tidy bathrooms can still be dirty. Don’t make this mistake. Split the one question in two.
2. Be specific- do not use ambiguous words in your questions.
Bad: “Do you believe gun control law should be changed?”
This question makes assumptions and gives no clarification. It assumes the respondent knows all current federal and state laws on gun control. It also presumes that survey-takers have an opinion. And are they asking about all gun laws? The important point here is to specify what you are talking about. The people reading your survey need to know what you are talking about. Don’t leave room for questions on their part. You should be the only one asking questions here.
Better question: Do you feel Minnesota handgun laws should be more or less strict?
3. Avoid using emotional words in your questions.
Bad: “Do you believe gun control law should be changed?”
“Gun control” is an emotionally-charged phrase because people have strong opinions about the idea. So when you ask customers if you should use cage free eggs in your cooking, expect the possibility for skewed responses. You are asking for a response to an idea or belief, and not about what you really care about such as quality service, value, etc. Stick to the point and don’t start a political debate in your survey.
Every survey question requires a second thought. Read each one out loud, or ask multiple people the questions before you present it to your customers. Make sure the questions you ask allow you to measure the points you want to know about. It might help to think backwards; if you want to measure customer service, think of the question to be asked, and then write it. The next step is choosing the appropriate scale. But until then, work on those question-writing skills.
-Liz Giel
Photo credit: Ethan Lofton (Flickr)
Filed under: Customer Experience | Tags: customer engagement, Customer Satisfaction
As a new Netflix customer, I’ve been impressed with their dedication to customer satisfaction. A few weeks ago, I received an e-mail from them asking for the arrival date of my latest movie, so they could make sure the delivery was timely. Today, they sent me another message:
“Dear Liz, You recently watched Goal! 2: Living the Dream. To help us ensure a great experience for all members, would you take a moment to tell us about the picture and audio quality?”
Two things came to my mind. 1. What in the world is “Goal! 2: Living the Dream,” and why was my husband watching it? 2. Netflix is dedicated to their customers in a way that other companies are not.
Netflix communicates one-on-one with their clients and genuinely cares about their experience. Being a web-based business, this is fairly easy for them to do. Still, I believe every company has the ability and technology to do the same. Imagine buying a computer from Dell and receiving an e-mail from them a few weeks later asking if you like it. Retail stores frequently ask for e-mail addresses during transactions. In addition to adding these patrons to an e-mail newsletter list, why not ask them if they are happy with their purchase, or how the service was? This is customer appreciation. This is making sure customers know that their opinion is valued. This is one of the reasons why the $14 bucks a month I spend on Netflix will be one of the last things ever cut from my budget.
-Liz Giel
Photo credit: HackingNetflix (Flickr)
