Heroic Customer Service Ensures
Lifelong Loyalty
By Steve Singleton
The
key to good customer service is meeting your clients'
expectations the first time, every time. But if you want
to move beyond good customer service, you have to exceed
those expectations, maybe not always, but often enough
for them to be impressed that you are committed to their
needs as much or more than they are themselves. That
kind of customer service is what makes them loyal.
You can’t
be at our company very long without hearing some of the
heroics our employees have done to ensure customer
satisfaction; such things happen frequently. This kind
of "extra-mile" service is characteristic of what
superior companies do.
Carl
Sewell's book, Customers for Life: How to Turn That
One-Time Buyer into a Lifetime Customer (New York:
Doubleday, 1990), lays out ten principles he has
hammered out to ensure his automobile dealerships
maintain the outstanding customer service for which they
are famous. Let's focus on rule #4: "When the customer
asks, the answer is always yes." Sewell explains that
his company encourages its employees to do anything
possible for their customers:
We're
probably not going to paint your house or wash your
windows. We sell automobiles. However, if the request
relates to our business, we're going to try to do it.
Whenever possible we want to help our customers.
My company
does the same thing, except we go a step farther as
illustrated by the following story I received last week
from a coworker in a big, midwestern city:
One of
our clients was working later at our office. He
mentioned to our salesperson it was the day of his
wedding anniversary, and he had not had time to pick
up a gift for his wife. He said he was sure to be in
hot water because he was going home empty-handed and
was also going to be late.
Without
the client knowing about it, the sales rep asked the
receptionist to order long-stemmed, peach roses in a
box. (He knew peach was her favorite color.) Since it
was already late, between 8 and 8:30 P.M., finding a
florist at that hour seemed like it might be a
monumental task.
She
called several mall florists, but didn't have enough
of a window to get a courier there before closing at 9
p.m. Then she remembered that there was a florist near
downtown that closed at 9. Sure enough, the florist
was near enough to our office that the receptionist
was able to order the flowers and have our driver pick
them up by closing time.
The
client was ecstatic! He couldn't believe that just by
mentioning his predicament, it was instantly solved.
He also was doubly pleased that she was able to find
peach-colored roses, since it is an unusual color to
have in stock.
What do
you think will happen the next time this customer's
company is considering who to do business with? Such
experiences make customers extremely loyal. Of course,
this will only work if our "ordinary" customer service
delivered with courtesy and professionalism, meets or
exceeds their expectations.
Sewell
says, "Our job is to take care of the customer so well
that he keeps coming back to us for the rest of his
life." His company's policy is: "If it's something that
a friend would do for another friend, don't charge.
Don't worry, you'll more than make up the money in
future business."
Copyright
© 2005 Steve Singleton.
Steve
Singleton has written and edited several books and
numerous articles on subjects of interest to Bible
students. He has also been a book editor, newspaper
reporter, news editor, and public relations consultant.
He has taught Greek, Bible, and religious studies
courses Bible college, university, and adult education
programs. He has taught seminars and workshops in 11
states and the Caribbean.
Go to
his
DeeperStudy.com for Bible study resources, no matter
what your level of expertise. Explore "The Shallows,"
plumb "The Depths," or use the well-organized "Study
Links" for original sources in English translation. Sign
up for Steve's free "DeeperStudy Newsletter."
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