5 Communication Practices to Revolutionize Customer Service

These two recent customer service experiences are all too common:

Scenario 1—Failure to Follow-Through: To ask a question about my life insurance policy, I called the two agents who sold it to me. (Their names are listed on the statement the company mails to me quarterly.) I discovered that Joe retired 8 years ago; Helen, 5 years ago. The person taking my call promises “my” new agent will call back. He doesn’t.

I call again 2 days later. This time I get connected to a regional director, wh...