Shep Hyken's Blog, page 232
February 10, 2014
5 Top Customer Service Articles For the Week of February 10, 2014
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.
What Great Customer Service Looks Like by Karin Hurt
(Let’s Grow Leaders) It was Superbowl Sunday just before kickoff. It was the first appointment the Apple Genius Bar had available. My hard drive had crashed, and I was in a tailspin. The book I had finished that weekend, was stuck in a system that wouldn’t boot, the last third lost with no back-up. Not to mention the trapped keynote presentations and other docs I’d lost.
My Comment: This really is what good customer service looks like. A great story. Of course I wouldn’t expect anything less from Apple. But more than the story is what we can learn from it. When a customer has a problem, this is the way to respond.
5 Ways to Lose Your Customers … For Good by Nicole Fallon
(Business News Daily) Keeping your customers happy is the key to earning their trust and their business. Some companies do this well, and go above and beyond to make sure their customers are satisfied. Others seem to view customer service as an afterthought.
My Comment: Who’s guilty of any of these five “mistakes” in dealing with the customer? Any one of these can lose the customer forever, or at least destroy the customer’s confidence and erode loyalty. Avoiding these five mistakes is common sense – that may not always be so common.
10 Shocking Statistics About Employee Engagement [infographic] by J.P. Blackard
(Daily Infographic) Having a role is good. Doing well feels great. Being acknowledged for a job well done feels even better. That sensation we get when we do something right and you know that everyone around is thinking, “dang, you go!” instills a sense of pride that no one can take away.
My Comment: So much about the success of the company comes down to employees; how motivated they are to do a good job, take care of customers, take care of co-workers and more. This infographic gives some insight as to why some employees do great while others don’t quite live up to expectations or even fail. Great information.
Strive For A Stress-Free Customer Experience by Craig Menzies
(Forrester) For years, Forrester has been talking about customer experience in terms of a pyramid. While Forrester defines customer experience as simply “how customers perceive their interactions with your company,” we also subdivide this overall experience into three key aspects.
My Comment: This is an interesting concept; a stress free customer experience. The question is, what point in the customer journey, if any, could cause stress? Creating a stress-free experience is another way to enhance the customer experience.
5 Retail Customer Experience Predictions for 2014 by Jeannie Walters
(MultiChannel Merchant) The customer experience is one of constant change. And customers are expecting retailers to keep up, regardless of the channel. Here are a few things we might get to see in 2014.
My Comment: You don’t have to be in a retail business to appreciate some of the ideas shared here. What appeals most to me is the idea of a “frictionless” experience. That’s a stress free, totally customer-focused experience. And the last idea, about how customers don’t care anymore about big launches is spot on. Companies need to stop focusing on themselves and really focus more on how the customer is treated. Rather than launch a new logo, company name, etc., launch a new customer service initiative. That’s what will make customers want to do business with you.
Shep Hyken is a customer service expert, professional speaker and New York Times bestselling business author. For information contact (314)692-2200 or www.hyken.com. For information on The Customer Focus™ customer service training programs go to http://www.thecustomerfocus.com. Follow on Twitter: @Hyken
(Copyright ©MMXIV, Shep Hyken)
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February 7, 2014
Guest Post: Your Brand Promise is Your Customer Experience Mission
This week on our Friends on Friday guest blog post, my colleague Jeannie Walters writes about how important it is to align customer service with your brand promise. I agree and taking that brand promise to the next level is when we can get customers to feel ownership in our business. – Shep Hyken
What’s your organization’s brand promise? Do you know? If you do know, is it top of mind? Or is it just printed on a few fancy posters or scrolling through your company-installed screen saver on your laptop?
Your brand promise should be a promise to your customers. It should be something they understand before, during and after doing business with your company. The customer service they receive as customers should be carefully aligned with this promise.
Image credit: kayladavis via Creative Commons license
The organizations who continuously lead the pack in customer service are the ones who put their brand promise and customer experience missions front-and-center. Southwest Airlines promises freedom, thanks to the love that is prominently displayed in their logo. They hire accordingly, finding those people who are best with people, not just those who are “ good enough.”
Too many organizations ignore the importance of this connection. They blame their customer service woes on the employees. They implement training focused on following scripts instead of staying connected to what should anchor their customer service in the first place. What if a promise isn’t a promise?
3 Ways Your Brand Promise is No Promise at All
1. The brand promise is empty of any meaning for customers.
In fact, they laugh at it. They create their “honest” version like in this recent Buzzfeed list.
Your brand promise should be setting expectations for the customer experience. If it’s not, it is no better than a motivational kitty poster on the wall.
2. Your brand promise is unknown.
I’ve interviewed executives across major corporations who are literally stumped at the question, “What is your brand promise?” It’s easy to overlook the importance of repeating it to your core leadership team, assuming they know it. They often don’t. If they don’t know it, those they lead sure don’t, either.
3. Your brand promise is not connected to the actions of the company.
If the brand promise is about “being the best” or “providing shareholder value” it’s difficult to connect that to the actions your employees must take every day. The brand promise, your customer experience mission, should be about how you want to make your employees feel. Target’s brand promise of “Expect More. Pay Less.” Is a good example of setting the right expectation. Customers know what to expect, and the employees know what to deliver. Do they always get it right? No, because we’re all human. But at least we know what promise is being made.
So what’s your brand promise? For real? Do your customers know what to expect and do your employees know what to deliver? Do your executives know it by heart?
Tie your brand promise with your customer service mission and watch the magic that can happen.
Jeannie Walters is the CEO/Founder of 360Connext, a global customer experience consulting firm based near Chicago. She has more than 15 years of experience helping companies improve retention, employee engagement, and overall customer experience. Connect with Jeannie on Twitter @jeanniecw, on Facebook and on Google+.
For more articles from Shep Hyken and his guest contributors go to customerserviceblog.com
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February 5, 2014
Customer Service Strategy: Deliver Value with Time
Amazing Customer ServiceI don’t know very many people who enjoy waiting on anything. It’s not that everyone is impatient. It’s just frustrating to have to waste time standing in line, being put on hold, or waiting for a response from anyone. How about showing up on time for lunch with a friend, only to have that friend show up twenty minutes late? You may cut a friend some slack, but you will surely be upset or angry with the company that makes you wait an extra twenty minutes.
Not long ago I was forced to stay in a hotel because my flight was canceled due to bad weather. I showed up late in the evening and couldn’t believe how long the line was to check into the hotel. Their excuse was that they didn’t expect the hotel to be so busy. Yet, according to the reservations person I talked with earlier that day, the hotel was just about sold out sold out of rooms. How could they not have known? I blame a manager for making a bad staffing decision. That moment eroded the hotel’s guest focused brand and image that they worked so hard to create through advertising and marketing.
Don’t you just hate when you call a company for help or support and you get the recording that goes something like this: “We’re sorry. Due to unexpected call volume you may experience longer than normal wait times.” I hate when this happens.
I’m sensing a pattern. Don’t these companies respect our time?
Customers are turning to alternative ways of doing business because of speed. Usually it is much faster to order something online. Self-service checkout in a grocery store may be a good alternative to save a few minutes. Even when it comes to customer service, customers turn to an online alternative rather than having to make a call and be put on hold, be transferred to numerous people and have to repeat their story to multiple employees.
Amazon.com gets it. Once you understand their system, you can find what you want and check out with “one click.” Their Amazon Prime Membership, for which customers pay an annual fee, offers free two-day shipping on most purchases. It’s all about speed and convenience. Their customers love it, and are willing to pay for it.
Some companies offer various levels of support. Pay more and you may get a special number that gets you to someone faster. Or just do more business to earn that perk. While I’m not so sure that may be the best strategy, here is the type of response I think you want from your customers:
The company may not be the lowest priced, but they are fairly priced and I’m willing to pay a little more for the value they deliver. I love that my questions are answered and problems resolved without having to wait.
Here’s the point: Value my time and you value me. It’s part of delivering amazing service.
Shep Hyken is a customer service expert, professional speaker and New York Times bestselling business author. For information contact (314)692-2200 or www.hyken.com. For information on The Customer Focus™ customer service training programs go to http://www.thecustomerfocus.com. Follow on Twitter: @Hyken
(Copyright ©MMXIV, Shep Hyken)
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February 3, 2014
5 Top Customer Service Articles For the Week of February 3, 2014
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.
3 Tips for Employee Engagement and Passion by Chuck Reynolds
(The Growing Coach) The challenge of any organization today, and for the foreseeable future ‘talent crunch’ time, will be identifying, hiring, and keeping engaged talent who contribute to superior innovation, customer engagement and profit growth. In short, these three factors must be embedded in the culture to ensure success: 1) Hire Right, 2) Coach Well, and 3) Fire the Wrong Fit.
My Comment: People don’t do business with a company. They do business with the people who work in the company. (Even an online company’s website is designed for the customer by people.) Having the right people in the job, engaged and fulfilled, is the key to creating a customer focused company. Engaged employees are more motivated to take care of the customer. The three tips in this article can only help create a more engaged organization.
Social Media 101: Be nice to customers by Popcorn & Ice Cream
(Popcorn & Ice Cream Kernels) Small businesses are often quick to write off big businesses as out of touch and too big to avoid occasional poor judgment or bad behavior on social media. We completely disagree. Businesses large and small can do better. While we adore Erin Condren Designs, we can sadly use its recent incident as a good reminder of some key benefits and drawbacks of social media.
My Comment: A great reminder that the customer’s voice is louder than ever before. Used to be unhappy customers told an average of 8-12 people about the problem. 13% told more than 20. How many more than 20? Thanks to social media, they can tell hundreds, if not hundreds of thousands. Take a look at the David Carroll video on YouTube, “United Breaks Guitars.” He told millions. The message to business: Take care of the customer. They talk (loudly)!
Marketing 101: Make the Customer the Hero by Geoffrey James
(Inc) The most consistent mistake companies make in sales and marketing is to position their company or product as the hero of the story. If you want customers to buy, you must tell a story where the customer is the hero–not you.
My Comment: You can call this marketing. You can call it sales. I think it crosses over wonderfully into the customer experience world. More than making a customer like your product and want to buy more, make them feel as if using your product made a difference in their business, or even their life.
3 Ways to Solve Your Customers’ Problem the First Time by Laura Bassett
(Business2Community) If you don’t know what it’s like to be a customer of your own business, how can you really relate to customers when they have an issue? How can you create a truly differentiated customer experience? It’s a blind spot I see in businesses all the time.
My Comment: Whenever a customer contacts a business with a problem, the goal should be to get it taken care of quickly, which means “first call resolution.” Sometimes it’s more than a customer support representative managing the complaint. Sometimes it takes a system or proactive strategy for preventing a multiple call problem.
Teach staff the ABCs of customer service by BMD Editors
(Business Management Daily) Here is a primer to help your employees understand what it takes to not only hang on to customers, but leave them with a positive impression of your business.
My Comment: So many times customer service is common sense that unfortunately is not always so common. This list is full of common sense ideas that are not just good for customer service, but good for all business (and many personal) interactions.
Shep Hyken is a customer service expert, professional speaker and New York Times bestselling business author. For information contact (314)692-2200 or www.hyken.com. For information on The Customer Focus™ customer service training programs go to http://www.thecustomerfocus.com. Follow on Twitter: @Hyken
(Copyright ©MMXIV, Shep Hyken)
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January 31, 2014
Guest Post: hold the cone
This week on our Friends on Friday guest blog post, my colleague Denise Lee Yohn talks about how the customer experience can influence the service philosophy of the brand. She makes great sense about how important each experience is for your organization. – Shep Hyken
brand-as-business bit: Hold the cone! No, I don’t mean “hold the phone.” I’m saying “hold the cone” because that’s what ice cream shop workers should do. Allow me to explain.
Recently while in the terminal at SFO, I decided to treat myself to some Pinkberry. After preparing my cone of yogurt yumminess, the server rang up my order, swiped my credit card, and handed me the receipt, all while holding the cone for me. Of course those tasks are easier to do with two hands and doing them with one was clearly awkward for her – but here’s the thing: It would have been me struggling with the cone if she had handed it to me before I got my credit card out of my wallet, put it and the receipt back in, and put my wallet back in my bag. So she held it for me and waited until I was ready to take it.
Contrast that to the check-out clerk who recently dumped a pile of bills and change into my hand at once and expected me to immediately move out of the way for the next customer – and the restaurant hostess who handed over a large, heavy take-out order and watched me struggle out the door and into my car – and the fast food order taker who made me repeat the last two items of my order because on the first one I didn’t specify what size combo meal I wanted.
Yes, these are small details that aren’t high on the list of customer experience impressions, but they speak volumes about the service philosophy of the brand. Are the employees trained to put customers’ needs first? Are service procedures in place to take the hassles out of the experience? Does the company design its customer experience down to the last detail? Great brands know that every detail communicates — every touchpoint matters.
Denise Lee Yohn is a leading authority on building and positioning exceptional brands. In her new book What Great Brands Do: The Seven Brand-Building Principles That Separate the Best From the Rest she reveals the secrets behind how top companies develop standout brands that foster customer loyalty and increase profit margins. For more articles from Shep Hyken and his guest contributors go to customerserviceblog.com
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January 29, 2014
Above and Beyond Customer Service
Amazing ExperienceWouldn’t you like all of your customers to say this?
“They have the best customer service. They go above and beyond.”
In just the last week I’ve heard four completely unrelated people talk about the “above and beyond” experiences they received from people they did business with.
What is going above and beyond? I asked around and the answers were generally the same. Most of the people said that it was when a company delivered an over-the-top WOW level customer service experience.
Well, my definition is a little different. I’ve written about this before, but it is worth repeating and emphasizing. A company that goes above and beyond cannot always create the WOW level experience. The reason is because it is usually isolated to solving a customer’s problem or dilemma, sometimes even a complaint. These are typically isolated incidents that don’t happen over and over again. I applaud the companies that deliver in the face of a problem or confrontation. But here is where I take issue.
Let’s take an average company. I emphasize the word average because that is what most companies are. They deliver an average experience. Even if the company is good at handling the problems, the rest of the time they are average. Assuming that not every customer has a problem, and I’m willing to wager that most customers don’t have problems, then that means most customers doing business with that company experience average customer service.
My definition of above and beyond is when the company is just a little above average, all of the time. That’s what the best companies do. As a result, they deliver beyond their customers’ expectations. That’s because most of their customers experience average at other places they do business. And I want to emphasize that it happens all of the time. That’s what truly makes the difference.
When you are above average and there is problem or confrontation, then you step the customer service up to take care of the customer. The result is a loyal customer who says, “They are an amazing company to do business with. And once in a while, when I have a problem, they really take great care of me. I can count on them.”
Your customers may not use those exact words, but that is what you want them to be thinking. Anything less probably qualifies as just average. Just be consistently better than average and your customers will do more than think of you as going above and beyond. They will think of you as AMAZING!
Shep Hyken is a customer service expert, professional speaker and New York Times bestselling business author. For information contact (314)692-2200 or www.hyken.com. For information on The Customer Focus™ customer service training programs go to http://www.thecustomerfocus.com. Follow on Twitter: @Hyken
(Copyright ©MMXIV, Shep Hyken)
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January 27, 2014
5 Top Customer Service Articles For the Week of January 27, 2014
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 Mature Is Your CX? by Derek Lewis
(The Eptica Customer Experience Blog) As companies move beyond the basics of customer service, and consumers demand more, make 2014 the year you move forward with improving your Customer Experience.
My Comment: The four phases that companies go through to achieve a higher level of customer experience in this article are spot on. For those companies that are already good, and just want to get better, think of the first phase (repair) as an opportunity to adjust. Great info!
“I Have a Dream”: The Power of a Vision for your Organization by BruceJones
(Disney Institute) “I have a dream” remain four of the most recognized and powerful words to this day. Why has this phrase stood out for so many years?
My Comment: Following on MLK day, this is a great reminder that a company must have a dream – also known as a vision. But even more important is to make sure all employees know it and are willing to live it. That’s alignment. That’s what the best companies do. They communicate their dream/vision to the point that all employees know it, believe it and deliver it.
If great customer service is your competitive differentiator then you’d better be ready to go above and beyond by Mitchell Osak
(Financial Post) Creating great customer experiences — what leaders like Disney, Zappos and Nordstrom do on a consistent basis — is one of the few areas left for companies to differentiate and generate good margins. Making it happen, however, is easier said than done; fundamentally, it is a people issue. How do you get employees to go beyond the call of duty to regularly exceed customer expectations? By empowering them to develop emotional connections with each customer.
My Comment: The title of this article says it all. You know that customer service is a differentiator. So, are you prepared, ready and able to deliver it? Great article with tips to remind us the basics in delivering a customer service experience that will turn satisfied customers into customer evangelists.
Set your business apart with personalized customer service by Melissa Zavala
(The American Genius) As business people, we continuously need to be reinventing ourselves, refreshing our image, our marketing techniques, and our product in order to address the changing needs of the consumer.
My Comment: One of the strongest customer service strategies/tactics is to make it personal. It can be as simple as using a customer’s name. Even an automated email that confirms a person’s order can help personalize the experience. It’s the personal touch that people remember. Here are some reminders that just about any business can use to personalize their service.
10 Things Customer Service Needs to Know About Customers [INFOGRAPHIC] by Flavio Martins
(WinTheCustomer!) The easiest way to make sure that you deliver exceptional customer service is to know exactly what your customers want.
My Comment: Some companies think they know what their customers want. Others actually know. In this article/infographic you will find some great reminders, ideas and tweaks you can make to enhance your service. And, most of these work for the internal customer too!
Shep Hyken is a customer service expert, professional speaker and New York Times bestselling business author. For information contact (314)692-2200 or www.hyken.com. For information on The Customer Focus™ customer service training programs go to http://www.thecustomerfocus.com. Follow on Twitter: @Hyken
(Copyright ©MMXIV, Shep Hyken)
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January 24, 2014
Guest Post: The Big Customer Service Disconnect [Infographic]
This week on our Friends on Friday guest blog post, my colleague Wes Hayden reveals some interesting statistics gathered from a survey conducted by Virtual Hold Technology. Along with some surprising results he shares a great infographic. – Shep Hyken
A Survey conducted by Virtual Hold Technology reveals a startling customer service disconnect: while organizations increasingly say customer service is a top priority, consumers are not seeing improvements even at the most basic levels.
Everyone agrees customer service is important. But just how important is it?
The team at Virtual Hold Technology conducted a survey of 500 people over the age of 18, with an equal age and gender distribution across the respondents. 90% of survey respondents said that a positive customer experience would increase their loyalty. Reminder: retaining loyal customers is much easier than acquiring new ones.
So where does traditional customer service fall short? The results may surprise you:
96% of those surveyed report they have to repeat information (account details, explanation of issue, etc.) to call center agents. Whatever happened to intelligent and contextual call routing?
Customers increasingly demand that businesses be more proactive about customer service. 53.8% of those surveyed do not want to wait on hold or call back if a customer service rep isn’t available right away; in fact, these folks prefer a callback from the company. Despite this, how many companies do you know that offer callback options?
While phone remains the most popular form of support, this preference is gradually shifting to other channels, e.g., social media, mobile. Everybody’s talking about multi-channel support yet as consumers, we know multichannel implementation remains a rarity.
Why is there such a big disconnect between what businesses say about prioritizing customer service and their inability to deliver on even the most fundamental best practices?
Consider the following:
Companies are paying lip service to customer service yet not delivering
Deployments are currently happening but not complete
Companies are making the customer service overhaul too complicated and not focusing on basics like intelligent routing/contextual transfers and cutting down on hold times.
Regardless of the causes, if companies don’t take immediate action to eradicate the disconnect, they risk causing significant and potentially irrevocable damage to the most valuable asset they have — their customers.
Wes Hayden is the CEO of Virtual Hold Technology. VHT’s Conversation Bridge is a simple solution with huge impact that provides customers a consistent experience no matter how they try to contact you. Follow Wes on Twitter @WesHayden. For more articles from Shep Hyken and his guest contributors go to customerserviceblog.com
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January 22, 2014
Five Ways to Lose Your Customers
Bad Customer ServiceWant to lose your customer? Deliver a bad customer service experience. And it doesn’t really have to be that bad. Sure, if it’s flat out abysmally terrible customer service you’ll most likely lose the customer, but sometimes it’s much less obvious. It can be an attitude of indifference. So, let’s get specific. Here are five ways that are guaranteed to make your customers question if they made a good decision to do business with you.
Don’t acknowledge the customer. Ever walk into a store and see employees standing around. They are paying attention to everyone except for you, the customer. I remember checking into a hotel years ago. I walked up to the front desk with a heavy suitcase in tow, and the clerk was typing away on his computer. After about 30 seconds, which by the way seemed like much longer, the clerk looked up at me and said, “I’ll be right with you.” About a minute or so later he looked up at me and asked, “Are you here to check in?” I was nice, but I wanted to say, “What do you think?”
Don’t care about the customer. There’s an expression that is attributed to John Maxwell that says, “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.” If there is one important part of customer service, it is that you care – and the customer knows it. Apathy kills the relationship and true caring and concern for the customer trumps all.
Don’t listen to the customer. Customers want to be heard, and equally as important, understood. It’s one thing to make an error on an invoice. It may irritate the customer a bit to have to call and spend time getting it resolved. But if you have a problem that is due to a breakdown in communication, well that is the worst Moment of Misery you can have with your customer. The customer will say, “I don’t like doing business with them. They just don’t listen and understand me.”
Don’t respond to the customer. It is so frustrating to leave a message on the phone, send an email or a Tweet, and get no response. A bad customer service situation gets worse when the company doesn’t respond to the complaint or problem.
Don’t appreciate the customer. A fundamental need of most, if not all people is to feel appreciated. Customers want to be appreciated for spending their hard-earned money at your place of business. So say, “Thank you!” Send a thank you note or an email. Let your customers know you appreciate them.
So, now I’ve given you five. How about sharing what you would add to this list.
Shep Hyken is a customer service expert, professional speaker and New York Times bestselling business author. For information contact (314)692-2200 or www.hyken.com. For information on The Customer Focus™ customer service training programs go to http://www.thecustomerfocus.com. Follow on Twitter: @Hyken
(Copyright ©MMXIV, Shep Hyken)
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January 20, 2014
5 Top Customer Service Articles For the Week of January 20, 2014
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.
Employees Who Feel Love Perform Better by Sigal Barsade and Olivia (Mandy) O’Neill
(Harvard Business Review) “Love” is a not word you often hear uttered in office hallways or conference rooms. And yet, it has a strong influence on workplace outcomes. The more love co-workers feel at work, the more engaged they are.
My Comment: Many articles and books have been written about creating an engaged workforce. Just about all of them stay away from the L word: LOVE. However, fulfilled employees typically “love” their company, their boss, their job, etc. Get employees to feel the love and your customers will as well.
Customer Experience Secrets Of Brick-And-Mortar Superstars By Jim Roddy
(Integrated Solutions for Retailers) “If you’re in the brick-and-mortar business,” said shopping center developer Rick Caruso, “you need to be in the hospitality business. Consider the human needs you meet every day.”
My Comment: It doesn’t matter if you are in a retail business (or not), the big “secret” in this article applies to just about any business. The secret word is… hospitality. If you are in a business to serve customers, you are in the hospitality business.
The importance of a great customer service experience: Statistics & trends [infographic] by Invesp Blog
(Alltop) When the life of a company depends on the goodwill of its customers, the importance of a positive customer service experience can’t be emphasized enough.
My Comment: Every once in a while it is important to remember the impact good and bad customer service has on a business. This infographic has many stats and facts worth considering. Depending on which surveys you read, and in which industries they come from, the numbers may differ – but the concepts are still valid. This is some excellent information.
Richard Branson on Growing Your Business by Building a Community by Richard Branson
(Entrepreneur) When you’re launching a startup, one of your first tasks is to identify potential customers and learn about their needs.
My Comment: Richard Branson is one of my favorite business people. I love his way of thinking. One of his core values is to give back to the community. While he truly gives back, he also reaps the benefits of the “Law of Reciprocity;” The more you give, the more you get. While I think that Sir Richard’s community focused mindset is more altruistic than that, you can’t avoid the benefit of helping others. It just happens. We should all pay attention to how Richard Branson runs his empire. More than a rock star, he is a role model.
Running a Business: Customer Service Is Key by Allie Lewis
(Tailwind) Customer service is necessary, but it doesn’t need to be hard. Here are simple things that you can do to improve your customer service.
My Comment: I love articles that are quick to read and have advice that is direct and simple. The four ideas in this article are things we already know and hopefully do. If not, they are a reminder. My spin on the fourth idea, which is to “go above and beyond,” is that above and beyond is easy to attain, if you think of it in terms of just being a little better than average – all of the time. True “above and beyond” moments are opportunities that pop up along the way; hero moments, if you will, when something goes wrong. The best companies that are “above and beyond,” if you look at them closely, are simply better than average all of the time. Thinking of it like that puts “above and beyond” within the grasp of just about everyone and every organization.
Shep Hyken is a customer service expert, professional speaker and New York Times bestselling business author. For information contact (314)692-2200 or www.hyken.com. For information on The Customer Focus™ customer service training programs go to http://www.thecustomerfocus.com. Follow on Twitter: @Hyken
(Copyright ©MMXIV, Shep Hyken)
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