Content about Customer experience management

SAN FRANCISCO — In our consulting practice, we field many questions, but the most common question has long been “How do I increase sales?”

When this question arises, we always encourage the person who is asking to modify it to “How do I increase profitable sales?”

How many of you have tried Groupon, delighted initially at the large number of respondents, but then evaluated the retention rate on those deeply discounted sales and vowed never to use it again? These promotional efforts can be used as a marketing introduction for a new service or new location, but resulting sustained sales are rare. They have the added disadvantage of training your customers to think that your service is not worth your normal price.

So what is the answer?

First, there is no silver bullet. Profitable sales require a multi-pronged, sustained effort. There is no passive path to increased profitable sales.

APPLETON, WIS. — Lately, I’ve heard the phrase “perception is reality” used in several different, unrelated conversations. Since she was the first person who I heard mention it, I called Diana Van Brunt of Westbank Cleaners, Austin, Texas, to ask her what she meant.

In essence, it’s how the customer interprets someone’s actions or words, she says. “If you ask someone to wash the dishes, they may choose to run the dishwasher, or wash them in the sink, or use disposable plates. It’s the perception of washing dishes.”

I’ve reviewed tens of thousands of mystery shop reports and have seen how a single experience can alter a customer’s perception.

EXPERIENCE 1A

Reality: The computers at the front counter aren’t working.

The National Cleaners Association (NCA) will present its Technical Training At Counter for Customer Service Reps course on Nov. 24 in Nanuet, N.Y.

For more information, call 212-967-3002 or e-mail ncaiclean@aol.com. 

LONG BEACH, Calif. — Providing good customer service was a common theme among the dry cleaning professionals presenting educational sessions during the recent Fabricare convention in Southern California. And Cleaner’s Supply’s Trudy Adams, the New York-based dry cleaning supplier’s director of customer service and sales, believes nothing is more integral to the health of a service-oriented business.

She opened her presentation by asking the dry cleaning store managers and customer service representatives in the audience to raise their hands. “That’s fantastic, because I’m one of you. I don’t own a business. I am a front-line employee. Front line determines your bottom line.

“You are going to decide whether your business is a success or a failure. You are the most important people in that business when you are at the front counter. You are the face of the business.”

HAYWARD, Calif. — A new book describes fabric restoration company FRSTeam as a franchise that “…Wows Its Customers the Apple Way.”

In The Apple Experience: The Secrets to Building Insanely Great Customer Loyalty, author Carmine Gallo explores the methods and practices used by Apple and other innovative service pioneers like FedEx, Disney, The Ritz Carlton and Zappos.

FRSTeam was honored to be in the company of these leaders and singled out for the brand culture that has created “goose bump” moments, FRSTeam’s internal name for its “wow” customer service experiences.

In the narrative on his first meeting with FRSTeam President Jim Nicholas, Gallo reveals a common misconception after learning that FRSTeam is a fabric restoration service brand that restores clothing and other items after a smoke, fire, or water loss.

“Don’t you just pick up the damaged goods, restore them, and return them?” Gallo asks Nicholas.

CHICAGO — When times are tough, we cut back. We cut everywhere we can. We cut where we should have cut before. We cut in places we shouldn’t cut for long-term viability, but the need for short-term cashflow forces us to do so.

When other businesses do the same thing, it’s easy to justify. Many large companies are cutting costs in customer service, and whether or not they could achieve better results for less money, we’ve been lulled into accepting poorer customer service.