Here's a customer service-related story that is somewhat out of the ordinary. Jeremy Nedelka of The 1to1 Blog relays a story about how Comcast's rep on Twitter, Frank Eliason, wouldn't be available to help customers one day. However, those who followed Frank on Twitter stepped up to the plate and offered help to those customers who had any issues during his absence. In essence it became a "customers helping customers" scenario.
The way I see it, this is an excellent example of what can happen when your company uses social media to connect with customers online.
I am very surprised that a big-dog cable company like Comcast is involved with social networking. But then, I did miss the news that the company promised to improve and that they hired more than 6,000 customer service agents and technicians. It's definitely great news, but an even bigger question remains:
Are these agents being trained properly on how to interact with customers? If you're a current Comcast customer I'd love to hear your thoughts!
Now that the holidays are over, retail analysts and the media are saying that sales were low. I personally haven't seen any reports yet, but Greg Bean shares some stats in his article, Customer Service: A Truly Radical Approach To Sales.
Greg shares his shopping experience in Sears (NASDAQ: SHLD) this past holiday season - an experience that may even rival a Nordstrom experience. Salespeople everywhere ready and willing to help... Carrying his purchase to the car... Every customer getting personalized service... The type of service that is unheard of in 99% of department stores.
Many retail establishments are cutting costs by laying off personnel because of the economic slowdown, but Sears proved that ramping up its sales staff and offering extraordinary service can actually weather any economic climate. If you're a Sears customer, you may also be excited to learn that the company is now offering year-round layaway.
I personally haven't been in a Sears for a long, long time, but Greg's story has aroused my curiosity. I just might have to drop by my local Sears and see for myself if things have changed!
Welcome to the Inauguration Edition of the Carnivale of Customer Service! I call it the "Inaugural Edition" because we have a few new contributors to the carnivale. They have been inaugurated into the "People to People" realm. Besides that, we're celebrating a new president this week in the U.S.!
Customer Service Stories
To kick off this edition, we have a great customer service story about Dish Network! Yes, a cable company gave great service - fancy that! Read the story that Praveen Puri shares: Joy of the Downsell.
Have you ever wondered what a day in the life of a banquet manager is like? Check out this story: My Lunch With the Blue Haired Ladies.
Jim reminds us why we love Disney in his story, Disney Matched An Offer It Didn’t Need To!
John Crickett shares some interesting thoughts (read the comments too!) in Selling A Business: Don’t Waste Your Money On Business Transfer Agents. John says "When you've decided to exit and you're selling your business, don't let poor customer service by business transfer agents put potential buyers off."
I love, love, love, love this story: Long, Black Gloves.
Wally Bock shares a great story about Lufthansa Airlines in Performance Culture. Wally says, "Customer service is not about slogans. Customer service is about actions."
Customer Service Tips
Service Untitled offers a simple, but very, very important customer service tip: Communicate Your Goals.
Bill Hogg shares a story about a recent hotel stay and offers some great tips for people in the hospitality management industry. Start by reading OMNI Charlottesville: Part 1 posted at Customer Service That Astonishes (It's a 3-part story).
Sharing your service philosophy with customers is important. This is the lesson learned in How To Make Your Day Care Stand Out And Be More Profitable!
Raymond offers an excellent, thorough Review Of EverBank Savings and Checking. Which reminds me...Are you checking the internet for reviews of your company's product or services?
Darry Kimball shares some lessons learned in My MLM Experience Part II- Working The Business. When you have your own business, you have to truly believe in your product or service to really be successful. Your customers can tell if you're passionate or not.
Thanks to everyone for sharing your stories and tips! If you submitted an article and you don't see it here, it's because I either had trouble accessing your site or I didn't believe the article was relevant to this carnivale.
Submit your blog article to the next edition of customer service carnivale using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
The Zappos experience started when my friend and I were picked up at the Cancun Resort in the Zappos shuttle...
The front desk crew was so nice and welcoming...We were offered a bottle of water as soon as we got into the shuttle. Then when we arrived at the office, they invited us to check out the cafeteria that was full of food. Yes, Zappos employees get free lunch and snacks! There was even a popcorn machine and espresso machine at the front desk that didn't quite make it into the picture...
I was aware that part of the Zappos culture was to "create fun and a little weirdness", but I had no idea the extent of that fun and weirdness. The first thing I noticed was the office decor. Every single cubicle was decorated and there seemed to be all kinds of stuff hanging from the ceiling. This picture is actually pretty mild compared to some of the other cubicles we walked by...
Here are Zappos employees having a little fun. They swear that they get work done too!
My favorite part of the tour was sitting at the throne in the VIP room with a crown on my head! Polaroid pictures of all the royalty who had sat at the throne before me lined the walls of the room...
If you're ever in Las Vegas, I highly recommend going on a Zappos tour! It's an unforgettable experience that will inspire you to add a little fun to your workplace.
Something happened with the template of my blog, so if you happened to visit this blog in the past day, I apologize if this blog turned into a big purple blob if you tried to load the page.
I believe it had something do with the blog template because the other blogs that I own with the same template had the same issue while my other blogs were ok.
So I'll be recreating this blog between today and tomorrow before I head out for a mini-vacation! I'll be in Las Vegas, so if you happen to be there from Jan 11-13, shoot me an email and maybe we can meet for coffee or tea ;) My email: maria [at] salondemaria [dot] info
During my mini-vacation I'm going to tour the headquarters of Zappos.com, the shoe company with phenomenal service! Stay tuned next Thursday or Friday for pictures and possibly a video.
If you're a business owner or someone who has an interest in what customers think about your services or products, I highly advise searching the internet for reviews. To a certain extent, it's good to hire companies to help you with feedback surveys or to conduct focus groups and mystery shops, however, if you just want an overview of how satisfied your customers are, you'd be amazed by all the free feedback you can get on the internet.
If you're looking for feedback about your products or services, here are three places you can check:
- Yelp.com - Awhile back I wrote about using Yelp for free feedback, but it wasn't until the other day that I actually created an account to write my own reviews. Yelp is real popular now and has been featured in Time, Business Week, and Forbes magazines. Not only is Yelp a place for people to write reviews about businesses, but it has social networking features where they can connect with other users by adding them as friends (think Myspace or Facebook). If you're on Yelp, I invite you to connect with me! Click here to visit my profile.
- Get Satisfaction - This resource is not just a place to get customer feedback, this is also a place where you can answer people's questions and offer help with any issues they have about your product or service. Find out more about Get Satisfaction by reading this Fast Company interview with the company's CEO, Thor Muller.
- Twitter search - Twitter is the *hot* social networking site where people share their thoughts in 140 words or less. Call it "micro-blogging" if you wish. At the Twitter search page, just enter your company name and see all the people "tweeting" about your business. You can subscribe to the RSS feed for a query and get updated on any mentions of your company name in Twitterville. Sarah Perez wrote a great article about how to get customer service via Twitter. Sarah advises that every company should get on Twitter and I agree.
Photo Credit: ZabriskiePoint
Welcome to the first edition of the customer service carnivale for 2009! I'm very excited about sharing customer service tips, news, and information with you. This is going to be the year that you attract more business because you realize that customer service is the key to success!
This edition is going to be short and sweet. I realize that many of you were on vacation because of the holidays. However, mark your calender for the next edition which will take place in two weeks! I would love to share your knowledge about customer service with the world ;)
Customer Service News
How do you feel about restaurants who charge customers for food they don't eat. Share your thoughts at "Don't Finish Your Plate...Pay 3% More" posted at So You Want To Be a Banquet Manager....
Customer Service Tips
When it comes to your customers and your business, it's good to know what to focus on. GP presents "Mayonnaise and Two Cuppa Joes" posted at Manely Montana.
Scott Mahler has a great post for all you "techies" that offer a technology-based services: "How to Provide Quality Customer Service in a Technology World" posted at Datex Media, saying, "Technology has opened up our world, especially with regards to my industry, website development. But it has also opened up a brand new challenge, with regards to customer service. It can be difficult for a programmer to explain what goes into designing a website to a business person who has no knowledge of how the technology works."
If you become involved with a network marketing company, I think it's important to know what it is exactly that you're selling. There is nothing like selling a bogus product to people. That's why you should read this article "MonaVie Acai Berry Juice Scam" posted at Money Blue Book.
There are many ways to reach new customers and American Entrepreneurship shares "Advertising for Small Business" posted at American Entrepreneurship. Do remember that when you do acquire those new customers, take care of them!
Customer Service Stories
If you're thinking about investing in an online venture, I recommend reading Darryl Kimball's story: "The Internet Gold Rush, More Business Lessons Learned" posted at Just Give Me a Home Based Business That Makes Money. Lesson to learn: Make sure a company's customer service is up to par before giving them your money! Darryl also offers another customer service lesson in "My next great Home Based Business Venture".That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of customer service carnivale using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
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