Customer Service
The 2 Worst Customer Service Scripts for the Age of Social Media
I’m a long-term customer (soon to be ex!) of two vastly different firms.
Company A has a so-so service offering.
Company B has an unique and exceptional product.
However, both companies give stinky customer service. And here’s a key difference in their loathsome customer service approach:
Company A apologizes profusely and insincerely at every turn.
Company B apologizes for nothing, […]
Beware of the Frantically Busy
Many Midwesterners freak out about being busy.
“I’m so busy,” screeches a former colleague. “Busy! Oh, it’s crazy. So busy, busy, busy.”
Sure she’s busy.
She’s usually busy saying she’s busy!
Consequently, she’s not getting much of anything else done.
(She does, however, charge her clients for her hand-wringing over how busy she is worrying about how much she has […]
When The Customer is Wrong…
Consider the old chestnut, “The Customer is Always Right.”
Well, there’s an extreme value judgement for you! Morality, right and wrong, and eternity — what business maxim could possibly be more suspect?
If you’re a professional, you know that customers often have misconceptions. And as a pro, it’s your job to set them straight.
Embrace the misconceptions of […]
Drive and Dial is the new Drink and Dial
Drink and dial” defined:
when a guy (or gal) has to get liquored up to get enough nerve to call you.
“Drive and dial” defined:
when you notice that a friend only calls you when he (or she) is in his/her car.
Which is worse? The “drive & dial” phenomenon is only one-half step up from “drink & dial”. […]
Why do telemarketers drink and dial?
Most of the time, it seems that telemarketers “Drink and Dial.”
I pick up the phone, and somebody at the other end badly pronounces my last name. (It’s Bergells. Pronunciation guide: Brrr-gals. Two syllables. Not three.) Or they ask to speak to the Human Resources department. (I’m a sole proprietor.)
Two minutes at Google, and telemarketers could […]
Good-Bye Cell Phone. Hello Skype!
Windsor, Canada is only a 2 hour, 20 minute drive from my office in Grand Rapids, Michigan. And I go to Canada frequently. Business, pleasure — it’s all good in Canada.
Back in the 1999-2001 era, my Nextel cell phone let me stay in touch with state-side colleagues for my monthly package price. But for reasons […]
Where’s the Hand Snapped Michigan Asparagus?
Originally uploaded by G.Chris Clark.
Mmmmm….. I love West Michigan in May. One of the key reasons is that May is the month and West Michigan is the place — for the most delicious asparagus in the entire world.
No exaggeration!
From Mother’s Day to mid-June, you cannot beat West Michigan for hand-snapped asparagus. It is abundant, and […]
Leave me a voicemail: the winning 5-step formula!
If you leave me a voicemail and you want me to call you back, it is a great idea to leave me your phone number! Seriously!
Over the past year, I hear at least 10 voicemails from people who sound very nice — people I would probably love to work with — but they bobble the […]
Communists Have Seized Control of the Internet!
I know several web developers who poo-poo anything that is free.
Seriously!
They deeply suspect Open Source-anything, describing the whole phenomenon as some sort of communist plot.
One Windows programmer I know adamantly quoted an old cliche, “You get what you pay for. And if it is free, it cannot be good. And I am always willing to pay extra for […]
How customer service can impact your brand
Wow! I just enjoyed a great telephone customer service experience with tech support for a web hosting company!
I know! It sounds like a fairy tale! But it actually happened!
A client called and asked if I could pinch hit a web problem while his webmaster was out of town. The client gave me his web host’s name and toll-free tech […]
