Ninety-Five Percent

A few weeks ago, I took my mom out for a birthday dinner. It was nice to take her out for a nice meal and catch up. We arrived, they seated us immediately, and the friendly server came over to take our drink order and tell us about the specials. We pursued the menu and ordered our meal.

Our food arrived and that’s when the evening went downhill. Mine was cold; mom’s was overdone; it was an epic fail. I called our server over and told her that our meals weren’t good and she immediately offered a refund and a free replacement meal for each of us. But we decided to skip the whole thing and I took mom home with the promise of a rain check at a different restaurant.

Order Up

Our dinner was a disaster but the restaurant handled it well. They offered to remove the original order from my bill and give us a free dinner right then and there. It was our choice to leave and we may never return. But the point is they tried to fix it right away. Their apologies were sincere; no one got flustered; they handled it well.

That’s the 95%. That’s the majority of what your company is and it has nothing to do with what you do or sell. It’s your people, your customer service, your ability to handle conflict, your capacity to deal with change and potential conflict.

They Did It Right

I may try this restaurant again, but that’s not the point. The real take away was how they dealt with it and treated us with care and respect. We didn’t make a fuss, we didn’t storm out, and we did demand to see the manager or yell and scream. We simply decided our meals weren’t good and we didn’t want to order anything else. But they did try and make it right.

Conflict and communication breakdown happens. It’s what we do about it that really matters. You will mess up with customer and clients, so will I. You will make mistakes, so will I. It’s called being human. But it’s how we deal with it in the heat of any moment that counts most. It’s that connective tissue within your company and relationships with those who engage with your services or buy your products that is critical. And it’s how we take care of things when things don't go well.

That’s the 95% which will separate you from everyone else.
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Now That's Customer Service!

No Running on the Pool Deck

A couple of weeks ago, I came home to a delightful little lake in my dark hardwood floored kitchen. Fun times. After spending about 10 seconds in disbelief, I immediately turned off the water valve. Two hours and many towels later, I dried the surface water off the floor.


Did Somebody Call a Plumber?

The next day I bought a new facet and had it installed by a professional plumber who searched the house for more culprits. This plumber was recommended by a friend and was at my house within 12 hours.

I thought the problem was solved.
The slight warping would dry out, right?

Wrong

A week later, I called my insurance broker to report the claim. An hour after our call, a local agent called to arrange things. Two hours – yes, hours – after my original call, a local restoration company was in my kitchen assessing the damage. It’s been three days of noisy fans and plastic mats but they are on the case.

Free Cable and Internet

If this doesn’t work – and most have their doubts – the entire first floor of the house will be repaired, sanded and refinished. This will require what resembles a full move. Everything must be moved out, the floor takes at least a week to repair and redo and it might mean hotel livin’ for a while. Like I haven’t seen enough of those things! But they are all over it.

Surprise 'em All!

It’s not done yet and I know this post is premature but from the broker to the insurance company to the restoration guys – it’s been an amazing string of excellent customer service.

USP: Step One

If you want a unique selling proposition – treat your customers well. You are not at their beck and call, you are there to solve a problem, fix the pain, better their lives, enhance their experiences. Be all over that.

The cynic in me is alive and well and will only rest when this is all over. Something else you should keep in mind when dealing with clients. If you don't think they know, you're sunk.

Are you all over it with your customers?

@knealemann
knealemann at gmail dot com

Let’s create experiences, not campaigns.