Create a Customer Service Scorecard

Add comment February 26th, 2008

According to a recent Newsweek article, over the course of the past several years, customer service satisfaction in the
United States has dropped 12.5 percent for airlines, 8.1 percent for banks, 6.5 percent for stores and 4 percent for hotels.  Customers complained about inaccurate information, poorly trained or rude personnel and long wait times.

With the advent of call routing software – of which a recent survey found that 90 percent of consumers don’t like using – the climb for improved customer service is becoming even more steep.  So, how is your company performing?  Here’s a brief scorecard to evaluate your organization.

• Do we provide an accurate picture and understanding of our product/service to our customers? Are our promotional messages accurate? Do we assess the impact to our customers of price/product/service changes?
• Do we communicate effectively with customers?  Having a working web site or sending a newsletter has some value, but just as important is how personal interactions with customers are being conducted.
• Do we consider service problems opportunities to impress and further develop our relationship with clients?  Do you reward employees to excel in these types of opportunities?
• Is performing the service right the first time a priority?  The service could range from how someone answers the phone to responds to an email to fixing a product. 

You can’t claim superior service if you don’t know where you currently stand on it and the scorecard to evaluate how you are handling customers expectations should be committed to as a standard for judging your service. 

Go (Ever)GREEN: Making News When There’s Nothing “New”

Add comment February 6th, 2008

It’s easy to issue a news release or coordinate interviews when your company is offering a new product or service or an upcoming event is looming.  It becomes a bit more difficult when there’s less of a hook or newness.

However, it’s just as critical to continue to gain name recognition for your organization and its brand throughout the year.  In doing so, your company becomes what we term as “evergreen”: ensuring your organization is relevant throughout the year. 

This also provides opportunities for your company to be thought leaders and experts on topics and issues other than just your announcements.  Here are some ideas to get you rolling:

• If your business is an accounting practice, you can be relevant much more than the April 15^th timeframe when the media regularly covers this topic.  For example, what can individuals do during the summer months or prior to the end of the year to benefit them from a tax perspective?
• If you are a non-profit focused on children’s health, you can garner coverage more than just an annual fundraising event you might hold.  For example, provide insight on how children’s habits change from the elementary to the middle school ages just before the start of the new academic year.  Or, offer expertise on how the summer months might be beneficial or detrimental to a child’s health at the end of the school year.

Take a calendar and mark out special dates or times of the year that your organization can provide especially timely advice or specific expertise that is not associated with a specific company announcement.  Then toss your story ideas to the media for possible interest.  There really should be no time of the year when your business and/or its products cannot be relevant – your job is to find that evergreen hook.