Top Customer Service and Business Articles
Each week I read a number of customer service articles from various online resources. Here are my top five picks from last week. I have added my comment about each article and would like to hear what you think too.
How to Demotivate Your Best Employees by Dina Gerdeman
(Harvard Business School) Many companies hand out awards such as “employee of the month,” but do they work to motivate performance? Not really, says professor Ian Larkin. In fact, they may turn off your best employees altogether.
My Comment: This is an interesting article about those employees that “appear” to be engaged and productive, but are not. The incentives and the rewards that we think might be motivating our employees may not be doing their job. The good news is that there are some rewards that work, and I appreciate that the author shared some great examples of both.
CEOs: Employee engagement matters by Joel Trammell
(The American CEO) This infographic from CEO.com is a good depiction of why employee engagement matters. It is essential in driving a high-performance culture.
My Comment: Love this infographic! Employee engagement is real. And, it impacts the bottom line and customer service/experience. Many companies have proven that if you treat the employees well, they will return the favor by treating your customers well.
Chef stabs man after complaint about service: Five lessons in customer service by Cara Waters
(Smart Company) “Business owners and staff need tor remember that everybody has the right to complain, but the person making the complaint does not have the right to be abusive, offensive or violent,” she says.
“If you do feel that somebody is overstepping the boundary in terms of being too emotional you need to have some strategies in place.” Ucukalo has the following tips for businesses in handling customer complaints.
My Comment: Sometimes we can learn a lot from another company’s (or person’s) mistakes. In this case, I would suggest not stabbing the customer and following the five tips on how to handle the irate customer. Someone once said: You’re not trying to win the argument. You’re to win he customer.
What Does it Mean to Do Right? by Annette Franz Gleneicki
(CX Journey) In the CX world, we talk a lot about doing the right thing at the right time with the right data, right tools, right culture, right people, etc. But I was curious about the “practical application,” especially since Union Bank has adopted it as their tag line.
My Comment: Every once in a while someone says something so simple it is profound. The concept of “Do Right” is one of those. It really is simple. As it applies to business, do right by the customer and do right by your employees. The combination is what the best companies are made of. This article reminds of the importance of two simple words… Do right!
1 Way Starbucks Keeps People Coming Back for More By Tom Gardner
(The Motley Fool) In the video below, Motley Fool CEO Tom Gardner sits down with Starbucks (NASDAQ: SBUX) CFO Troy Alstead during a recent visit to Starbucks headquarters in Seattle. In this portion of the video, they discuss Starbucks’ loyalty card, including how the idea evolved and how it helps to increase customer loyalty and gift-giving. A full transcript follows the video.
My Comment: Anytime the executives at Starbucks talks, we should listen. Starbucks is one of the companies that has truly loyal customers. I believe that even without a loyalty program, their customers would stay loyal. That’s because their service and their product are that good. Contrast that with most of the airlines. Take away those frequent flier miles and the customer will switch to the another carrier who continues to give them miles. That’s not a loyalty program. That’s a discount marketing program. What Starbucks offers is a true loyalty program. And, I love that the video is included with the article.
