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Top 5 Customer Service Articles of the Week 1-16-2023

Each week, I read many customer service and customer experience articles from various 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.

10 Ways to Boost Customer Satisfaction by G. Tomas M. Hult and Forrest Morgeson

(Harvard Business Publishing) Customer satisfaction is at its lowest point in the past two decades. Companies must focus on 10 areas of the customer experience to improve satisfaction without sacrificing revenue. The authors base their findings on research at the ACSI — analyzing millions of customer data points — and research that we conducted for The Reign of the Customer: Customer-Centric Approaches to Improving Customer Satisfaction. For three decades, the ACSI has been a leading satisfaction index (cause-and-effect metric) connected to the quality of brands sold by companies with significant market share in the United States.

My Comment: According to the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI), customer satisfaction is at its lowest level in the last 20 years. The authors are closely involved with the ACSI research and share ten strategies and ideas that answer this question: What customer satisfaction areas should companies tackle strategically to create great profit at lower risk?

9 Effective Ways To Be Proactive About Customer Service by Forbes

(Forbes) It only takes one unhappy customer leaving a negative review to damage a company’s reputation and drive away future business. That makes it imperative that customer service teams immediately resolve any customer complaints before they can snowball and turn into bigger problems for a company.

My Comment: If you want to create trust and confidence with your customers, practice “proactive customer service.” That means you take care of the customer’s problem – sometimes even before the customer even knows about it. Another angle is to be proactive about finding the problem, which means you’re reaching out to a customer for feedback and commentary before they make the complaint. You’ll get nine ideas from nine different members of the Forbes AllBusiness Contributor Group.

Top Customer Experience Trends You Should Watch in 2023 by Scott Clark

(CMSWire) Customer-facing brands have placed a renewed interest in customer experience as a top priority over the past two years. Customers today have higher expectations that the brands they do business with will provide an exceptional, personalized experience across all of the brand’s channels, that they lead with an omnichannel philosophy and that the customer service they provide will be available 24/7. Customers are also demanding that brands enable them to control their own narrative throughout the customer journey. Here’s a look at the top CX trends that brands should be aware of in 2023.

My Comment: We’re still in January, which means people are still publishing their predictions and trends for 2023. Here’s a good list that predicts personalization will continue to drive customer loyalty. Customers love it when you know and understand them. The other trend I pulled from this makes me very happy: Customer service becomes a top priority. (I thought it already was!)

The ‘Shocking’ Shift in Brand Loyalty Drivers, Per New Brand Keys Report by Webb Wright

(The Drum) Brand Keys’ latest Customer Loyalty Engagement Index, which assessed nearly 1,000 brands, highlights the primacy of emotion-based purchases in the post-pandemic marketplace.

My Comment: This is an interesting report that lists the brands companies are most loyal to. If you had to guess, you’d get a few right, but you would be surprised at others that are on this list. What brings customers back? If you meet their expectations and create an emotional attachment. Customers want to feel good about the brands they do business with. They also expect (as in expectations) to be treated the right way.

Putting the Human at the Center of Digital Experience by Shridhar Iyengar Raman

(Retail Customer Experience) While digital interaction is preferred by both consumers and providers, they have very different takes on it. In its 2021 edition, an annual global customer experience benchmarking study reported that only 35% of consumers are satisfied with digital experience, versus 75% of the companies offering those experiences. A leading analyst firm reported that for most customers (58%), their digital experiences do not necessarily influence the buying decision; this is something to think about for businesses, 90% of whom prioritized digital customer experiences last year.

My Comment: Even digital customer support can create a human experience. Consider that a “human-centric” digital experience includes elements that are typical in human-to-human [in person experiences. That’s what the best companies and brands do – and you can, too. You just need to put some thought into the process.

[image error]Shep Hyken is a customer service expert, professional speaker, and New York Times bestselling business author. Go to The Customer Focus to learn more about our customer service training programs. Follow on Twitter: @Hyken

The post Top 5 Customer Service Articles of the Week 1-16-2023 appeared first on Shep Hyken.

5 Top Customer Service Articles of the Week 1-16-2023

Each week, I read many customer service and customer experience articles from various 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.

10 Ways to Boost Customer Satisfaction by G. Tomas M. Hult and Forrest Morgeson

(Harvard Business Publishing) Customer satisfaction is at its lowest point in the past two decades. Companies must focus on 10 areas of the customer experience to improve satisfaction without sacrificing revenue. The authors base their findings on research at the ACSI — analyzing millions of customer data points — and research that we conducted for The Reign of the Customer: Customer-Centric Approaches to Improving Customer Satisfaction. For three decades, the ACSI has been a leading satisfaction index (cause-and-effect metric) connected to the quality of brands sold by companies with significant market share in the United States.

My Comment: According to the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI), customer satisfaction is at its lowest level in the last 20 years. The authors are closely involved with the ACSI research and share ten strategies and ideas that answer this question: What customer satisfaction areas should companies tackle strategically to create great profit at lower risk?

9 Effective Ways To Be Proactive About Customer Service by Forbes

(Forbes) It only takes one unhappy customer leaving a negative review to damage a company’s reputation and drive away future business. That makes it imperative that customer service teams immediately resolve any customer complaints before they can snowball and turn into bigger problems for a company.

My Comment: If you want to create trust and confidence with your customers, practice “proactive customer service.” That means you take care of the customer’s problem – sometimes even before the customer even knows about it. Another angle is to be proactive about finding the problem, which means you’re reaching out to a customer for feedback and commentary before they make the complaint. You’ll get nine ideas from nine different members of the Forbes AllBusiness Contributor Group.

Top Customer Experience Trends You Should Watch in 2023 by Scott Clark

(CMSWire) Customer-facing brands have placed a renewed interest in customer experience as a top priority over the past two years. Customers today have higher expectations that the brands they do business with will provide an exceptional, personalized experience across all of the brand’s channels, that they lead with an omnichannel philosophy and that the customer service they provide will be available 24/7. Customers are also demanding that brands enable them to control their own narrative throughout the customer journey. Here’s a look at the top CX trends that brands should be aware of in 2023.

My Comment: We’re still in January, which means people are still publishing their predictions and trends for 2023. Here’s a good list that predicts personalization will continue to drive customer loyalty. Customers love it when you know and understand them. The other trend I pulled from this makes me very happy: Customer service becomes a top priority. (I thought it already was!)

The ‘Shocking’ Shift in Brand Loyalty Drivers, Per New Brand Keys Report by Webb Wright

(The Drum) Brand Keys’ latest Customer Loyalty Engagement Index, which assessed nearly 1,000 brands, highlights the primacy of emotion-based purchases in the post-pandemic marketplace.

My Comment: This is an interesting report that lists the brands companies are most loyal to. If you had to guess, you’d get a few right, but you would be surprised at others that are on this list. What brings customers back? If you meet their expectations and create an emotional attachment. Customers want to feel good about the brands they do business with. They also expect (as in expectations) to be treated the right way.

Putting the Human at the Center of Digital Experience by Shridhar Iyengar Raman

(Retail Customer Experience) While digital interaction is preferred by both consumers and providers, they have very different takes on it. In its 2021 edition, an annual global customer experience benchmarking study reported that only 35% of consumers are satisfied with digital experience, versus 75% of the companies offering those experiences. A leading analyst firm reported that for most customers (58%), their digital experiences do not necessarily influence the buying decision; this is something to think about for businesses, 90% of whom prioritized digital customer experiences last year.

My Comment: Even digital customer support can create a human experience. Consider that a “human-centric” digital experience includes elements that are typical in human-to-human [in person experiences. That’s what the best companies and brands do – and you can, too. You just need to put some thought into the process.

[image error]Shep Hyken is a customer service expert, professional speaker, and New York Times bestselling business author. Go to The Customer Focus to learn more about our customer service training programs. Follow on Twitter: @Hyken

The post 5 Top Customer Service Articles of the Week 1-16-2023 appeared first on Shep Hyken.

Top 5 Customer Service Articles of the Week 1-16-2023

Each week, I read many customer service and customer experience articles from various 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.10 Ways to Boost Customer Satisfaction by G. Tomas M. Hult and Forrest Morgeson(Harvard Business Publishing) Customer satisfaction is at its lowest point in the past two decades. Companies must focus on 10 areas of the customer experience to improve satisfaction without sacrificing revenue. The authors base their findings on research at the ACSI — analyzing millions of customer data points — and research that we conducted for The Reign of the Customer: Customer-Centric Approaches to Improving Customer Satisfaction. For three decades, the ACSI has been a leading satisfaction index (cause-and-effect metric) connected to the quality of brands sold by companies with significant market share in the United States.My Comment: According to the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI), customer satisfaction is at its lowest level in the last 20 years. The authors are closely involved with the ACSI research and share ten strategies and ideas that answer this question: What customer satisfaction areas should companies tackle strategically to create great profit at lower risk?9 Effective Ways To Be Proactive About Customer Service by Forbes(Forbes) It only takes one unhappy customer leaving a negative review to damage a company’s reputation and drive away future business. That makes it imperative that customer service teams immediately resolve any customer complaints before they can snowball and turn into bigger problems for a company.My Comment: If you want to create trust and confidence with your customers, practice “proactive customer service.” That means you take care of the customer’s problem – sometimes even before the customer even knows about it. Another angle is to be proactive about finding the problem, which means you’re reaching out to a customer for feedback and commentary before they make the complaint. You’ll get nine ideas from nine different members of the Forbes AllBusiness Contributor Group.Top Customer Experience Trends You Should Watch in 2023 by Scott Clark(CMSWire) Customer-facing brands have placed a renewed interest in customer experience as a top priority over the past two years. Customers today have higher expectations that the brands they do business with will provide an exceptional, personalized experience across all of the brand’s channels, that they lead with an omnichannel philosophy and that the customer service they provide will be available 24/7. Customers are also demanding that brands enable them to control their own narrative throughout the customer journey. Here’s a look at the top CX trends that brands should be aware of in 2023.My Comment: We’re still in January, which means people are still publishing their predictions and trends for 2023. Here’s a good list that predicts personalization will continue to drive customer loyalty. Customers love it when you know and understand them. The other trend I pulled from this makes me very happy: Customer service becomes a top priority. (I thought it already was!)The ‘Shocking’ Shift in Brand Loyalty Drivers, Per New Brand Keys Report by Webb Wright(The Drum) Brand Keys’ latest Customer Loyalty Engagement Index, which assessed nearly 1,000 brands, highlights the primacy of emotion-based purchases in the post-pandemic marketplace.My Comment: This is an interesting report that lists the brands companies are most loyal to. If you had to guess, you’d get a few right, but you would be surprised at others that are on this list. What brings customers back? If you meet their expectations and create an emotional attachment. Customers want to feel good about the brands they do business with. They also expect (as in expectations) to be treated the right way.Putting the Human at the Center of Digital Experience by Shridhar Iyengar Raman(Retail Customer Experience) While digital interaction is preferred by both consumers and providers, they have very different takes on it. In its 2021 edition, an annual global customer experience benchmarking study reported that only 35% of consumers are satisfied with digital experience, versus 75% of the companies offering those experiences. A leading analyst firm reported that for most customers (58%), their digital experiences do not necessarily influence the buying decision; this is something to think about for businesses, 90% of whom prioritized digital customer experiences last year.My Comment: Even digital customer support can create a human experience. Consider that a “human-centric” digital experience includes elements that are typical in human-to-human [in person experiences. That’s what the best companies and brands do – and you can, too. You just need to put some thought into the process.[image error]Shep Hyken is a customer service expert, professional speaker, and New York Times bestselling business author. Go to The Customer Focus™ to learn more about our customer service training programs. Follow on Twitter: @Hyken

Guest Post: How Can You Make Sure That Your Customers Feel Heard?

This week, we feature an article by Kathleen White, an independent business analyst for several small businesses. She writes about letting your customers know that they are important to you and your business by making sure that they feel heard.

Running your own business can be amazing – you can control your own working hours and make all of the important decisions, but ultimately you are responsible for the success of the business. A business can’t exist without customers of some kind, and whether you provide services or sell products, it’s really important to ensure that your customers feel heard. Not only will they feel more valued, but their feedback can help the business to grow.

Ask for feedback

One of the easiest things you can do is to send out customer satisfaction surveys. You could do this after a purchase or after they’ve reached out to you. There are plenty of tools you can use to automatically send out a survey via email, even allowing you to choose your own questions and receive feedback as soon as the customer completes it.

This feedback, whether positive or negative, is extremely valuable. As a business, there are always ways to improve the experience for your customers, so learning where any gaps lie gives you an opportunity to fix them. Not only could it generate more business in the future, but any customers who brought up the issue will feel heard if they see their feedback implemented, which in turn can build up a greater sense of brand loyalty.

Thank your customers

This one might sound simple, but a ‘thank you’ can really go a long way. As a customer, if you buy something and don’t hear anything from the business after, they’re not likely to stay on your mind. Whereas if you received an email, text or even a call to say thank you for your custom, you might be more likely to recommend the business to others. A small gesture can really go a long way in building the reputation of your company.

Resolve complaints effectively

When an issue does arise, how it’s dealt with can make or break for the customer. If something has gone wrong with their purchase, make sure that it’s easy for them to get in touch with someone who can help. It can also help to have processes in place for specific issues, detailing any compensation or discount options available. 

Receiving some money back can show the customer that their issue is understood and is an additional form of apology. Offering something like a 10% discount may not make a huge impact on the business, but it could help to retain a customer that you otherwise would’ve lost.

Invest in staff training

It’s not just about the monetary incentives when complaints occur – the customer service representatives are equally as important. Depending on the size of your business, it could be just you responding to customers or maybe you have a whole team. Either way, invest in some training to properly equip your staff to deal with complaints. A friendly, professional person that listens patiently can sometimes be all that the customer needs. 

You might find it beneficial to implement some KPIs and metrics in order to track customer satisfaction. Setting KPIs or metrics for the business to work towards can help to provide some direction by having achievable, measurable goals in place. It can be really rewarding to see the improvements these changes can make to your typical statistics.

A great example of a KPI to start you off is “Achieve a customer satisfaction score of X%.” You can customize the percentage to be manageable for your business, perhaps setting it 5% higher than it previously has been. This is measurable through feedback survey results, further reinforcing the importance of collecting regular feedback. If you and your staff start to see a difference in your numbers by implementing any of these strategies, it can be motivating to see that all of the hard work wasn’t for nothing.

Kathleen White works as an independent business analyst for several small businesses. She enjoys writing in her spare time to share what she has learned in hopes of benefiting other businesses.

For more articles from Shep Hyken and his guest contributors, go to customerserviceblog.com.

Read Shep’s latest Forbes article: Today’s Customer Has A Need For Speed

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Three Ways to Create an Employee Experience that Creates a Better Customer Experience

Most everyone in the business world is familiar with the idea of customer experience (CX). And as popular as CX is, there’s a somewhat new concept that has been coming on strong for the past five years, and that’s the employee experience (EX). With the employment issues of the past two years, EX is as important, maybe even more so, than CX. You can’t have a consistent and predictable CX without an EX to support it. 

 Most businesses today use technology to meet their customers’ needs. This comes in the form of streamlining processes, self-service customer support solutions and more. But what about the employees’ needs? Do we make that same effort for our employees? Do we invest in technology and processes that make it easy for employees?  

I had a chance to learn from one of my clients, Mitel, about this very topic. Mitel provides a sophisticated, custom communications network that helps businesses connect, collaborate and take care of customers. The big takeaway is that the employee experience is a big contributor to the customer experience. Employees must be empowered, they need the right customer information, and the company should invest in processes and tools to make their jobs easier and more effective. Here are three concepts from Mitel, followed by my commentary:   

Customers want to work with empowered employees who know them – For employees to best take care of customers, they must know their customers. Giving them data and information about the customer will help them make good decisions. Make it easy. Provide more than general information. To make the customer feel known, the employee needs to know what the customer bought in the past and how often, if they previously called for support, and more.  

Customers don’t care if the customer support agent is working in an office or from home, but employees do – Creating a seamless call center experience is important to customers. They don’t need to know or really care where they are calling (an agent working from home or in a support center), as long as they get the answers they need and have their problems resolved. But employees do care. To do their job, they must also have a seamless experience. With so many employees working remotely from home, it’s essential for them to feel like they are still a part of the organization. Whether they work from home or in the office, they must feel like they are a part of a team. If they don’t feel connected, all they are doing is working for a paycheck, not the company.   

Invest in the right technology to make employees’ jobs easier – A contact center equipped with AI technology can help reduce unnecessary work. A digital solution, such as an AI-powered chatbot, can support the customer and take care of time-wasting processes, allowing employees to help customers with more complicated issues. This makes everyone – both customers and employees – happier. 

The behind-the-scenes way we support customers is far different from the recent past, and even though we use technology, it’s really about the EX. What are we doing to make it easy for employees to do their jobs? Take care of them, and they will better engage with and take of your customers. If you’ve followed my work, then this line should be familiar: What’s happening on the inside with employees is felt on the outside by the customer. 

Shep Hyken is a customer service expert, keynote speaker, and New York Times, bestselling business author. For information on The Customer Focus customer service training programs, go to www.thecustomerfocus.com. Follow on Twitter: @Hyken

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Amazing Business Radio: Carla Guzzetti

B2B or B2C…CX is CX                                          

Putting the Human Experience First as a Business Strategy

Shep Hyken interviews Carla Guzzetti, Senior Vice President for Experience and Product Messaging at Extreme Networks. She shares how companies can design a better experience, in B2B and B2C industries, by focusing on the individual needs of their customers and employees.

Top Takeaways:Diversity is key to delivering a quality customer experience. Your customers come from various backgrounds, cultures, and pain points. The companies’ responsibility is to match the differences by building localization (understanding what their customers need) into their strategy, communication, and overall experience.Whether you are in the B2B or B2C space, think of the end consumer. The customers using the products must have an experience that feels customized, localized, and meaningful.When investing in new technology, the top consideration for businesses must be to make customers feel like they are being cared for. Innovation doesn’t need to be sexy. It needs to address a need. Often, simple innovations such as making billing more scalable or the capability to understand your customers’ needs based on their previous purchases and interactions can be more impactful to their overall experience.Employees and customers are the same people. A business can only be successful if their needs are addressed appropriately. Employees must be empowered, and customers should feel like they are being cared for.The product that you have should make your customers’ lives better. But the experience you deliver should make doing business with you better than your competition.There is no B2B in CX. No matter what industry your company is in, in the end, you are still dealing with human beings and should have the human experience in mind. Your B2B clients will still compare you to the best experience they have had with their favorite brands from any industry.Plus, Shep and Carla talk about how innovation can sometimes cause difficulties for employees and how businesses can support them when taking on new technology. Tune in!Quotes:

“Are we innovating technology just for the sake of innovation? Or are we innovating technology to create a better human condition? Brands should focus on innovation that improves customer experience and enhances their ability to connect.”

“Employee experience is just as vital as customer experience because they are actually both customers of the business.”

“Gen Z is the first digital-native generation. They will have different expectations of technology, innovation, and customer experience than the generations before them. They will expect these things to be easy, intuitive, and mobile-friendly.”

“We are a species that requires community and want to feel cared for. It doesn’t matter if you are dealing with an employee, a consumer, or a business partner. It is all about the individual. If you want a successful business strategy, you have to put the human at the heart of it all.”

About:

Carla Guzzetti leads the in-product design, user research, user enablement, and product marketing for Extreme Networks as the Senior Vice President, Experience and Product Messaging. She believes in creating meaningful experiences for Extreme Networks’ buyers and end users.

Shep Hyken is a customer service and experience expert, New York Times bestselling author, award-winning keynote speaker, and host of Amazing Business Radio.

This episode of Amazing Business Radio with Shep Hyken answers the following questions and more:

How does diversity impact customer experience?How does innovation create value?What is experiential diversity?What is the difference between a B2B customer and a B2C customer?What do Gen Z customers want?

The post Amazing Business Radio: Carla Guzzetti appeared first on Shep Hyken.

Top 5 Customer Service Articles of the Week 1-9-2023

Each week, I read many customer service and customer experience articles from various 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.

Customer Experience Predictions for 2023 by Dan Gingiss

(Dan Gingiss) It’s a new year, so why not start it off right with some powerful customer experience predictions from the world’s foremost experts?

My Comment: This week’s Top Five roundup will include articles with LOTS of content in the form of lists. If I did my addition correctly, there should be 115 ideas, trends, predictions, and more in these articles. We start with my friend and fellow CX expert Dan Gingiss, who shares a list of 45 items, including the best books to buy and podcasts to listen to.

23 Things Every Contact Centre Manager Needs to STOP Doing in 2023 by Call Centre Helper

(Call Centre Helper) Are you guilty of doing things the way they’ve always been done? Looking to make some positive changes, but don’t know where to start? Look no further! We asked our panel of consultants for the things contact centre managers really need to stop doing – as soon as possible – to help rejuvenate their customer service operations.

My Comment: Here are 23 things NOT TO DO! How many of these are we guilty of? As you read what not to do, change the words just a bit (get rid of the negative implications), and you’ll come up with a list of what you can and should do.

11 Customer Experience Themes for 2023 by John DiJulius

(Franchise Update Media) Now is the best time to create your Customer Experience theme for the new year, one that you can rally your entire organization around. Here are some excellent and actionable insights to kick off brainstorming for making 2023 your best year ever:

My Comment: My buddy John DiJulius, another global CX guru, shares 11 “themes” related to customer service and CX. I like his positive twist on some of the negative themes that we’ve experienced. For example, he turns “The Great Resignation” into “The Great Retention.”

Seven Ways to Improve Customer Service in Hotel Industry by TravelDailyNews

(TravelDailyNews) Excellent customer service is crucial in the hospitality industry, where customers often play an active role. Travelers usually stay at hotels to indulge in self-care or mark special occasions. Providing nothing less than the best in such a situation is imperative. In the hotel industry, providing excellent customer service is crucial to enriching brand recognition and attracting repeat business. Here are seven suggestions for improving customer service in the hotel sector.

My Comment: There are some good predictions in this article. I’m especially intrigued with the first two, which are about hyper-personalization and a new measurement focused on trust. Our CX research finds that 83% of customers trust a company or brand more if they deliver a great customer experience. Want your trust scores to go up? Focus on providing excellent customer service.

6 Keys To Ramping Up Your Customer Service From Average to Exceptional by Martin Zwilling

(Inc. Magazine) Customer service has traditionally been focused on the resolution of complaints, primarily after a transaction. With the advent of social media, and instant communication via the Internet, that definition has been expanded to include all aspects of the customer experience, from finding you and what they need, to the ease of completing the transaction, as well as all follow-on support.

My Comment: Who wants to do business with a company that is average – or just okay? Here’s a list of ideas to move you from average to exceptional. What I like is that these ideas (and most in all of the articles shared today) don’t take a lot of financial investment. It’s really about how you think about what you already do and have.

BONUS23 Ways to Create an Amazing Experience In 2023 by Shep Hyken

(Shep Hyken) I’m not one for New Year’s resolutions, which are often broken. Instead, I like setting and resetting my goals for the year, and in my world, those goals focus on delivering an amazing customer service experience. So, I’ve created a list of simple ways to deliver the experience that everyone wants. Here are 23 ways to help you and your teams provide an amazing customer experience in 2023.

My Comment: As long as we’re sharing lists, here’s mine… A list of 23 ideas that will help you create the experience your customers want. Many of these are common sense, but as I say often, they are (unfortunately) not so common.

[image error]Shep Hyken is a customer service expert, professional speaker, and New York Times bestselling business author. Go to The Customer Focus to learn more about our customer service training programs. Follow on Twitter: @Hyken

The post Top 5 Customer Service Articles of the Week 1-9-2023 appeared first on Shep Hyken.

5 Top Customer Service Articles of the Week 1-9-2023

Each week, I read many customer service and customer experience articles from various 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.

Customer Experience Predictions for 2023 by Dan Gingiss

(Dan Gingiss) It’s a new year, so why not start it off right with some powerful customer experience predictions from the world’s foremost experts?

My Comment: This week’s Top Five roundup will include articles with LOTS of content in the form of lists. If I did my addition correctly, there should be 115 ideas, trends, predictions, and more in these articles. We start with my friend and fellow CX expert Dan Gingiss, who shares a list of 45 items, including the best books to buy and podcasts to listen to.

23 Things Every Contact Centre Manager Needs to STOP Doing in 2023 by Call Centre Helper

(Call Centre Helper) Are you guilty of doing things the way they’ve always been done? Looking to make some positive changes, but don’t know where to start? Look no further! We asked our panel of consultants for the things contact centre managers really need to stop doing – as soon as possible – to help rejuvenate their customer service operations.

My Comment: Here are 23 things NOT TO DO! How many of these are we guilty of? As you read what not to do, change the words just a bit (get rid of the negative implications), and you’ll come up with a list of what you can and should do.

11 Customer Experience Themes for 2023 by John DiJulius

(Franchise Update Media) Now is the best time to create your Customer Experience theme for the new year, one that you can rally your entire organization around. Here are some excellent and actionable insights to kick off brainstorming for making 2023 your best year ever:

My Comment: My buddy John DiJulius, another global CX guru, shares 11 “themes” related to customer service and CX. I like his positive twist on some of the negative themes that we’ve experienced. For example, he turns “The Great Resignation” into “The Great Retention.”

Seven Ways to Improve Customer Service in Hotel Industry by TravelDailyNews

(TravelDailyNews) Excellent customer service is crucial in the hospitality industry, where customers often play an active role. Travelers usually stay at hotels to indulge in self-care or mark special occasions. Providing nothing less than the best in such a situation is imperative. In the hotel industry, providing excellent customer service is crucial to enriching brand recognition and attracting repeat business. Here are seven suggestions for improving customer service in the hotel sector.

My Comment: There are some good predictions in this article. I’m especially intrigued with the first two, which are about hyper-personalization and a new measurement focused on trust. Our CX research finds that 83% of customers trust a company or brand more if they deliver a great customer experience. Want your trust scores to go up? Focus on providing excellent customer service.

6 Keys To Ramping Up Your Customer Service From Average to Exceptional by Martin Zwilling

(Inc. Magazine) Customer service has traditionally been focused on the resolution of complaints, primarily after a transaction. With the advent of social media, and instant communication via the Internet, that definition has been expanded to include all aspects of the customer experience, from finding you and what they need, to the ease of completing the transaction, as well as all follow-on support.

My Comment: Who wants to do business with a company that is average – or just okay? Here’s a list of ideas to move you from average to exceptional. What I like is that these ideas (and most in all of the articles shared today) don’t take a lot of financial investment. It’s really about how you think about what you already do and have.

BONUS23 Ways to Create an Amazing Experience In 2023 by Shep Hyken

(Shep Hyken) I’m not one for New Year’s resolutions, which are often broken. Instead, I like setting and resetting my goals for the year, and in my world, those goals focus on delivering an amazing customer service experience. So, I’ve created a list of simple ways to deliver the experience that everyone wants. Here are 23 ways to help you and your teams provide an amazing customer experience in 2023.

My Comment: As long as we’re sharing lists, here’s mine… A list of 23 ideas that will help you create the experience your customers want. Many of these are common sense, but as I say often, they are (unfortunately) not so common.

[image error]Shep Hyken is a customer service expert, professional speaker, and New York Times bestselling business author. Go to The Customer Focus to learn more about our customer service training programs. Follow on Twitter: @Hyken

The post 5 Top Customer Service Articles of the Week 1-9-2023 appeared first on Shep Hyken.

Top Ten Customer Service and Customer Experience Predictions for 2023

Happy New Year! We have an exciting year ahead of us. So much has changed in just the past three years. And in the world of customer service and CX, there is much to be excited about. Last month I released my annual Top Ten Customer Experience Predictions in my weekly Forbes column. I don’t often repeat content, but I’m going to share those predictions and trends here, in a revised and shorter format. Here we go: 

Customers Will Be Smarter and More Demanding Than Ever – I may sound like a broken record as I start each year with this prediction. Regardless of the type of business you’re in (B2B, B2C, B2B2C), everyone is a consumer. Certain B2C rockstar brands are teaching our customers what good service is like, and they now have higher expectations.     Companies Will Focus as Much – Maybe More – on Employees as They Do on Customers – With the employment issues that many companies are experiencing, we must do as much for our employees, if not more, than we do for our customers. Just as we want our customers to come back, we want our employees to stay.    Customers’ Expectations of the “Basics” Continue to Rise – The basics are about friendly, helpful, convenient service. Our customer service research (sponsored by Amazon) found that year over year, customers’ expectations of these basics increased. The basics are simple to understand and not all that hard to implement.   Personalization Gets More Personal – Today’s customers are experiencing hyper-personalization. A better word for personalization might be individualization. So, what are you doing to create a truly individualized experience for your customers?  Some Companies Will Cut Expenses In the Wrong Places – With supply chain issues, employee issues and a rocky economy, many companies will have to make cuts. Some companies will make the mistake of cutting in areas their customers might notice – and that’s a mistake you want to avoid.   Customer Support Over the Phone Is Not Dead – The phone is still the most popular way for customers to contact a company with questions or problems. Our customer service research revealed that 87% of Baby Boomers, who make up over 21% of the U.S. population, prefer the phone any other channel. Keep those phones open for your customers!  Self-Service Is More Popular than Ever – While the phone still rules as the most popular way for people to contact a company, more and more customers are willing to use self-service options, such as a robust FAQ page on a website, chatbots, video tutorials and more. And just as Boomers are driving the traditional phone channels, Gen-Z and Millennials are moving the needle on these self-service options.  More Companies and Brands Will Stand for Something Important – Forty-five percent of your customers believe it’s important that a company supports a social cause. That’s almost half of your customers, and that number will grow. This is especially important to the younger generations, so if that’s your market, find ways to “give back” to support the issues that are important to your customers.   Customers Want to Do Business With Companies and Brands They Trust – This concept has become more important in the past few years. Trust is an emotional connection that drives repeat business and loyalty. One way to earn trust is to create a predictable, consistent experience. Eighty-one percent of consumers we surveyed said a great customer experience increases trust.   The Customer Support Department Becomes the Revenue Generation Department – In the past, customer support has been seen as a cost. Smart leaders are now realizing that customer service and a focus on CX pays. If you’ve been following me, you know I’m a fan of referring to customer support as the Revenue Generation Department or the Customer Retention Center. Done right, customer support makes you money. 

Shep Hyken is a customer service expert, keynote speaker, and New York Times, bestselling business author. For information on The Customer Focus customer service training programs, go to www.thecustomerfocus.com. Follow on Twitter: @Hyken

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Amazing Business Radio: Janelle Barlow

A Complaint is a Gift                                             

Moving Customer Complaints from Frustration to Satisfaction

Shep Hyken interviews Janelle Barlow, award-winning customer service and experience speaker, consultant, and author of A Complaint Is a Gift: How to Learn from Critical Feedback and Recover Customer Loyalty. She shares how to empathetically transform a customer’s complaint into a positive and memorable experience.

 

 

Top Takeaways:Janelle shares these findings from the 2020 National Customer Rage Study (followed by our commentary):2/3 of people have a product or a service failure across their lifetime. Most customers who have had a negative experience do not tell the company directly. They either internalize it, affecting their decision to do more business with the brand, or they broadcast it to their friends across social media channels. You don’t just want to resolve a complaint. You want to find out the reasons behind the complaint and operationalize around it, so it does not happen again.58% of customers feel they were dissatisfied with how their complaint was handled. It’s not just about fixing the problem. It is how you fixed the problem. You have to create that feeling of engagement and connection that nurtures customer loyalty.65% of customers who are complaining left filled with rage. When customers have feelings of rage, they often express it by yelling, swearing, or saying, “I’m never going to come back to you again.”47% of customers with a negative experience with a company post reviews online. Negative reviews, posted out of anger, is a customer seeking revenge. They don’t always post it on review sites. Most of the time, they post it on social media sites.Handling complaints is a mindset. Leaders and managers must understand that people do not naturally know how to handle complaints. Most of us learn how to handle complaints from our families (for example, fighting with our siblings or complaining to our parents) and develop “go-to responses” or defense mechanisms that we then use when dealing with customers.If you have the mindset that a complaint is a gift, you begin with a statement of gratitude. One of the most common communication chains is the “thank you – you’re welcome” exchange. When you thank the customer for letting you know there is a problem, you can mitigate the anger and start the resolution from a better place.When employees feel supported by companies in terms of complaint resolution, they are happier and more effective. They don’t have to feel defensive or argue with customers. They know that all they have to do is ensure that customers walk away feeling happy and satisfied.Plus, Janelle shares some guidelines to follow when responding to online feedback, both positive and negative. Tune in!Quotes:

“Handling a customer’s emotional satisfaction is as important as resolving the complaint. You can handle the customer’s problem, but if they feel that they were treated poorly in the process, they still walk away feeling dissatisfied.”

“Engage with the customers in such a way that they don’t only have their complaints resolved, but they walk away feeling connected to you because you took care of them.”

“When you have the mindset that a complaint, or any kind of feedback, is a gift, you let go of the feelings of hostility and move into a space where customers feel more connected.”

“What customers really want is to be heard. When customers know they are being listened to, they will feel more satisfied and move from frustration to satisfaction.”

About:

Janelle Barlow is a customer service and experience expert, trainer, consultant, and best-selling author. The latest edition of her book, A Complaint Is a Gift: How to Learn from Critical Feedback and Recover Customer Loyalty, is available now.

Shep Hyken is a customer service and experience expert, New York Times bestselling author, award-winning keynote speaker, and host of Amazing Business Radio.

This episode of Amazing Business Radio with Shep Hyken answers the following questions and more:

What is the most used channel for customer service?How do you handle customer complaints?What is customer satisfaction, and why is it important?How is emotional intelligence used in customer service?What are customer interaction channels?

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