Service | 2012 Service Excellence Tips

Overview  |   Service: Strategic Advantage  |  Take Action  |  Helpful Resources - Reading List

1.7.12 - Part 1

It's that most wonderful time of the year!

Welcome to 2012!  Everything is new and possible at the beginning of the year! And, it’s going to be an exciting year of change and possibility!

I asked myself, “How can I seize that opportunity for the benefit of our clients and our business?”  Lots of things came to mind that we’ll be talking about over the year.  Top of mind was how to we make service a strategic business advantage. 

Service: A Strategic Advantage

Service Changed My Purchasing Behavior

I was on a road trip over the Holidays.  We were ahead of schedule, so we needed to stop for the night in an area that had only a few hotel options.  We selected the Fairfield Inn, a chain that I had never used before.  I was welcomed with a smile and genuine warmth, in a manner that made me feel like they had been expecting and looking forward to my arrival.  We were checked in promptly to a clean room with everything we could need, and then some.  The bed was comfortable, the towels were good and the free internet actually worked.  All of which I worried about in a lower cost hotel.  In the morning when I went to the free breakfast to get my morning yogurt, I was looking around for ice.  The woman stocking the cereals noticed me looking around and asked if she could help me find something.  I said that I was looking for ice for my water.  She said that unfortunately the ice was on the second floor.  I said, “That’s ok, I’m in a hurry.  I’ll just eat.”  Several minutes later as I was eating my fruit and yogurt, she came over to me and handed me a large glass of ice with a big smile. 

I was so struck with the service being better than I had expected, I stopped and told the manager about my experience.   The next night we had made such good progress, I again found myself in an area without a Marriott or Hilton. So, I looked for a Fairfield Inn for our last night’s stop.  I realized I had become a fan of a brand because 2 people took a couple extra seconds or minutes to make me feel special.  I wondered, "How can I make my clients feel like this?"

At a time when automated phone systems, rude clerks and painfully slow results pervades most service experiences, we have an opportunity to stand out from the crowd by making service a strategic advantage.

Why Is Service A Strategic Advantage?

Throughout 2012, we’ll be exploring how to make service a strategic advantage in our business, to gain the 3 R’s of service:

Raving fan clients create:

         Retention

         Repeat business (cross-sell & up-sell) and

         Referrals (new business)

         And more!

 

Take Action | Tips

As Independent Agents, we all say that service is what distinguishes us. But, is it really true? Do we really deliver superior service?

Pick one simple thing that you could do today to make a huge service difference, such as:

-  Answer the phone with a genuine "Welcome, I'm glad you called!" tone.

-  Run a contest to see who can get the most compliments on their phone handling.

-  Greet people who come in with "Thanks for stopping in. I'm ___. How can i help you?" and
   genuinely mean it!

-  Offer people coffee when they come into the office.

Read to make your customer service improvement plan for the year? Use this Checklist.

 

Helpful Resources

Customer Service Goals Checklist:
Enter your goals and action items. Track them using this spreadsheet.

Recommended Reading:
Raving Fans: A Revolutionary Approach To Customer Service, by Ken Blanchard

Free consultation:
Call us at 877.772.4677 x2 to schedule a free 20 minute consultation about your agency's need and solutions tailored to your needs.

 

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Service | Finding Time for Great Service

Part 2 - Coming Soon!