Secret Service: Hidden Systems That Deliver Unforgettable Customer Service
208
Secret Service: Hidden Systems That Deliver Unforgettable Customer Service
208eBookFirst Edition (First Edition)
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Overview
All businesses have customers, but how many of them deliver unforgettably good customer service?
Customer experience expert and author John R. DiJulius reveals the hidden systems of the few exceptional companies that do: what actions they take behind the scenes to consistently surpass customer expectations. These organizations reap the benefits of greater customer loyalty, exponentially expanded referral networks, lower employee turnover, and stronger bottom-line results.
Packed with examples applicable to a wide range of industries, Secret Service provides practical, realistic ways to:
- Turn customer complaints into positive experiences,
- Use marketing to go deeper with existing customers,
- Increase customer and employee retention,
- and turn bland customer service into truly memorable customer experiences.
By quantifying and examining each phase of the "Customer Experience Cycle," Secret Service reveals clever, practical ideas that can be transformed into repeatable best practices in any organization and at every level.
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9780814426975 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | AMACOM |
| Publication date: | 01/28/2003 |
| Sold by: | HarperCollins Publishing |
| Format: | eBook |
| Pages: | 208 |
| File size: | 788 KB |
About the Author
Read an Excerpt
CHAPTER 1
Secret Service Systems: Creating Behind-the-Scenes Systems
In the new world of fanatical customer service, even small companies never sleep and no request is too ridiculous. That intensity is evident among cutting-edge companies.
— Inc. Magazine, April 2001
"Service in America today has never been worse." This is a quotation from a book on customer service written more than 25 year ago, and this feeling has been expressed in dozens of books published since then. Regardless of whether it is true that service continues to decline or our mindset is that customer service in America has reached its lowest point, there can be definite advantages to the public having a poor perception of customer service. The most important of these is that consumers are willing to pay a premium to have their needs met and that there is no limit to what they will spend if their expectations are consistently exceeded.
Secret Service
Secret Service is the implementation of hidden systems that enable our staff consistently to exceed the client's expectations and to make the client feel welcome, comfortable, important, and understood. These systems help companies create a solidly loyal customer base by implementing simple ideas that provide customer service that will be remembered. By managing these systems, companies turn most customer encounters into a surprisingly pleasant experience for the customer. The result is that repeat business is ensured, more dollars are spent, and many referrals are gained.
When we first opened John Robert's in 1993, we wanted to make our mark not only in the beauty industry but also in the business community. We didn't want to be another business with good intentions but poor execution that could not keep its promises.
A noticeable quality sets the Nordstroms, Ritz Carltons, and the Walt Disney Worlds apart from other companies that offer the same types of goods and services. Our goal was to be in their category, not a company with occasional great flashes, or one in which a percentage of employees merely walk the talk, but a company that exceeds customer expectations on a routine basis.
We started off in typical fashion, with an impressive philosophy and written mission statement, with the hopes that our staff would automatically observe them every day, every time. But as our employee numbers grew from 2 to 15 to 30 to 50 and then to 130, we found it very difficult if not impossible to provide a high level of service on a regular basis. It became obvious that we would eventually become an ordinary business that couldn't execute what it preached if we didn't find a way to create and manage systems that employees could consistently deliver. There could be no allowance for deviation. By creating Secret Service systems, we reduced the inconsistencies and gray areas that lead employees to rely on their personal interpretations.
Establish Non-Negotiable Systems
Secret Service systems are non-negotiable in two ways. First, if created and managed in the right way, customer service becomes non-negotiable for employees, who must deliver it. Second, if we implement Secret Service consistently, then we become a non-negotiable entity in our customers' lives.
In a slower economy, people start to look for things they can cut out or cut back. When you deliver exceptional customer service regularly, you go from being a discretionary entity to a necessity. People put you on the list of things they cannot do without, along with food, rent, and utilities. We don't want to be considered discretionary, so it is vital that we deliver non-negotiable customer service.
When I started in the salon industry, one of the first things I learned was the dismal client retention rate throughout the business. How hard could it be for a salon to get a new client to return for a second visit? It turns out to be extremely difficult. The national average retention rate for salons is about 35 percent, which means that more than 6 out of 10 new clients do not return to that salon for a second visit. Given this statistic, how could salons keep their doors open? I learned that's exactly why a large number of salons go out of business every year.
At that time, in 1994, we had been open about a year. Like most salon owners, I assumed our retention rate was much higher, closer to 80 or 90 percent. We provided very good services and all our operators had been very well trained. We purchased a software system to track client retention, and the numbers weren't impressive: Our average retention rate was about 50 percent. I was sure something was wrong. After cross-checking the numbers, I realized that the computer data were true.
The trade magazines considered 50 percent acceptable and anything above 60 percent excellent. I couldn't accept 50 percent, however. At that time we were attracting 150 new clients a month, 1,800 a year (today we get about 1,000 new clients a month). A 50 percent retention rate meant we were turning off 900 people a year. Even more worrisome, if we were turning off 900 people, what were they saying about us? Furthermore, the cost of acquiring a new customer is estimated to be at least six times greater than that of retaining an existing one. And to think, our numbers were considered good in our industry.
The Customer Experience Cycle
Clients want either the best or the least expensive; there is no in-between.
— David Wagner
At this point I realized that the service is about much more than a haircut. It is about an experience, especially at our prices. Even in those days, we were one of the more expensive salons. We provided great haircuts, but so did many other salons.
So we pondered, "What would make clients feel that our services were such a great value that previous salon and spa experiences would pale by comparison? How could we make everyone feel like a regular client?"
Our answer was to create and implement Secret Service systems that would become the foundation of our training program for all employees and would be just as important as their technical training. Plain and simple, we were creating a client-retention game plan that would help us get more clients to return to our salons on a regular basis. A major portion of our Secret Service systems is what we call the Customer Experience Cycle. This is the total experience, starting when the client first contacts us, continuing through the visit, and ending with our follow-up phone call a few days later.
Our entire team, 15 at that time, got together and started to brainstorm answers to some very specific questions: In a perfect world, what would we want clients to experience when they call us? What would we want clients to experience when they walk in the door? And so on.
That brainstorming led to our Secret Service systems. It is of key importance that everyone participates in its development. Not only do you get excellent ideas that you may not have thought of on your own, but you also gain employee buy-in. If we had walked in one day and told our staff, "This is the way everyone is going to start answering the phone and greeting our clients from now on," they would not have been open to it. Because their own ideas were implemented, our staff owned them and wanted to prove they were excellent concepts.
The foundation for the Customer Experience Cycle came out of this initial brainstorming event and we have used it ever since. We borrowed many ideas from our experiences with businesses in other industries, especially restaurants, hotels, and distributors. Every year we add new features to the Customer Experience Cycle to improve it. We identified the stages of every possible situation a client could encounter, and we brainstormed what we ideally want to happen at each stage of the cycle.
By looking closely at each stage, a company begins to develop perfect scenarios that it wants each customer to encounter and each staff member to execute. In the process of developing the Customer Experience Cycle, it's important to include seemingly wild ideas. Some of them will prove impractical, but many can be modified and implemented. The key is to have a realistic game plan that every team member can be expected to follow on a consistent basis.
The Customer Experience Cycle varies from business to business. In many businesses, the customer makes the first contact; in others, the company makes the first contact. The length of the cycle can be as brief as a few minutes or can extend over several months. Regardless of these differences, every business can identify the clear impression it wants to make at each stage of the customer's encounter. What do you want to happen the first time a client does business with you? Every business can develop its own Customer Experience Cycle. Develop an outline of your customer service cycle that will be expanded later. Here's an outline to get you started:
Initial contact (preliminary, probably by phone)
* Act in a professional and courteous manner.
* Reduce any anxiety and uncertainty caller may feel.
* Educate and inform the caller.
* Book the appointment (or close the sale).
* Provide an opportunity to schedule additional services.
Delivery of first product or service
* Act in a professional and courteous manner.
* Reduce any anxiety and uncertainty the client may feel.
* Create a truly friendly atmosphere.
* Provide a great experience.
* Exceed the client's expectations.
* Provide an opportunity to schedule another service.
* Give an impressive send off.
Follow-up
* Phone call
* Postcard
* Birthday card
* Newsletter
If a client does not return (unretained client)
* After 4 months: Send "We Miss You" card reminding that it's time for next appointment.
* After 8 months: Send an incentive to return, such as a 25 percent discount.
* After 12 months: Call to survey why the client never returned.
If a client does return (retained client)
* Recognize that client as a repeat customer.
* Repeat all steps of the initial contact stage.
It is easy and extremely beneficial to develop your Customer Experience Cycle. Include your staff in breaking down each interaction of your customers' contact with your company. Not only will your staff provide valuable insight and ideas, they will also take ownership of the new Customer Experience Cycle. Very few models will look the same; a retail store's model will be drastically different than a manufacturer's or auto mechanic's. Regardless, each will have the basic foundation, such as initial contact, activity of purchase/service, completion of the experience, follow-up, and hopefully repeat business.
Putting the Customer Experience Cycle on paper is the point at which many businesses stop. After creating a general model, they simply hope their staff will use good judgment and common sense. Common sense is, unfortunately, sometimes uncommon, and employees often find it easier to take the path of least resistance. Exceptional customer service is never easy.
Don't rely on the generalities of the model. Simply saying "Be professional and courteous," or "Reduce their anxiety" doesn't mean every employee will automatically know how to do this, or ensure that he or she will do it every time. So after you develop your outline for each stage of the customer encounter, break each stage down into smaller parts and identify specific objectives.
This removes personal interpretation, but it does not stifle creativity on the part of your employees, because you emphasize that the Customer Experience Cycle is the minimum you want each client to experience at each stage, not the maximum. If an employee wants to add to it or improve on it, that should be encouraged. The Customer Experience Cycle is meant to be a game plan to be followed consistently.
Here is a brief example of a Restaurant's Customer Experience Cycle.
Pre-Experience: Reservation
* Fact finding information
* Find out what the occasion is, for example, promotion, anniversary, birthday.
* Schedule reservations.
Start of the Experience
Educate shift on this evening's event — who's coming in, VIPs, regulars, celebrations, and so forth, as well as their names and where these people will be located.
Greet and acknowledge by every department — valet, hostess, and so forth.
* Utilize database if guest is a return customer — favorite drinks, appetizers, and so forth.
* If customers need to wait in the bar, have their favorite drinks ready for them.
Experience
* Warm and professional, customer is greeted by everyone who comes to the table
* Thorough and detailed presentation by the staff
* Additional acknowledgment by other staff members on guest's occasion, for example, several staff wishing them a happy anniversary
Post-Experience
* Smooth checkout
* Coat and valet ready for guest
* Cheerful sendoff
* Card sent out congratulating them on their occasion and thanking them for including ABC restaurant in their big night
As another example, here's a Customer Experience Cycle for one of John Robert's services. It identifies our intentions of what every client should experience when receiving a haircut at John Robert's.
Pre-experience: provided by guest care personnel
* Answer the phone enthusiastically, saying, "Thank you for calling John Robert's Mayfield (salon location). This is Kelly. How can I help you?"
* Allow plenty of time to answer all of the client's questions concerning services, the designers' credentials, availability, and so on.
* Give each client an opportunity to book appointments for additional services.
* Use the client's name at least four times during the call.
* Offer directions to the salon.
* Confirm the service, operator, time, and date.
* As the last thing before hanging up, say, "Is there anything else I can do for you?"
* Make a confirmation call to the client 24 hours before the appointment.
Start of the experience: provided by hostess
* Greet the client enthusiastically within 8 to 10 seconds.
* Confirm the client's appointment.
* Ask the client to fill out the information card.
* Immediately notify the operator of the client's arrival.
* Offer to hang up the client's coat and to provide a refreshment.
* Inform the client of any delays.
* Offer a tour of the entire facility.
* Show the client where the changing rooms are.
* Monitor the client's wait, and notify the operator again if the client is not taken within 10 minutes of the scheduled appointment.
* Use the client's name at least four times during the check-in.
Pre-service: provided by designer
* Provide consultation every time with every client.
* Show portfolio, analyze client's needs, and discuss client's expectations.
* Provide stress-relieving scalp massage.
* For men, provide a minifacial.
Provide shampoo and conditioner.
* Use a white cape for new clients.
Service: provided by designer
* Give an excellent haircut.
* Massage hands and arms.
* Clean client's jewelry during massage.
* Keep the conversation on a professional level.
* Give lesson on blow-dry styling.
* Explain products used.
Post-service: provided by designer
* Touch up makeup for all female clients.
* Make client aware of additional services that salon/spa offers.
* Give complimentary bang trim.
* Inform client of complimentary blow-dry lesson in the future, to help the client duplicate it on her own.
* Offer men complimentary neck and sideburn trimmings between visits.
* Offer referral incentives: $5 gift certificate for every referral and contest with prizes for the clients who refer the most new clients during the year.
Conclusion of experience: provided by various staff
* Assistant, operator, and receptionist: Give client a friendly and enthusiastic sendoff.
* Designer and receptionist: Give an opportunity to purchase products used.
* Main operator: Give client a business card.
* Receptionist: Give client opportunity to schedule next appointment.
* Receptionist: New clients: Give client a new-client package that includes a menu of services, newsletter, business card, magnet, and five-question form. Inform client of 10 percent off next visit if she returns the completed form within six weeks.
* Receptionist: During check-out use client's name at least four times.
* Operator: Input personal information (such as name of spouse, children) in computer under client's name for use on future visits.
Post-experience: provided by support staff
* Client receives an enthusiastic phone call within 24 hours.
* Client receives a thank you postcard within 48 hours.
* Client receives a quarterly newsletter.
* Client receives a birthday card.
* If client has a challenge, handle it immediately on the spot. Make it right. Fill out customer challenge sheet and have management follow up.
* If client is not retained after 4 months: send out a reminder card that client is due for an appointment.
* If a client is not retained after 8 months: send out an incentive to return (such as 25 percent off for next visit).
(Continues…)
Excerpted from "Secret Service"
by .
Copyright © 2003 John R. DiJulius III.
Excerpted by permission of AMACOM.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.
Table of Contents
Foreword Bill Capodagli and Lynn Jackson, xi,
Preface: Impossible Dream versus Reality, xiii,
Acknowledgments, xvii,
Chapter 1 Secret Service Systems: Creating Behind-the-Scenes Systems, 1,
Chapter 2 Secret Service at Work: Implementing Secret Service Systems, 31,
Chapter 3 Your Front Line Is Your Bottom Line: The Value of Your Front Line People, 53,
Chapter 4 What Are We Really Selling? Making It an Experience, 65,
Chapter 5 Drilling for Oil in Your Own Backyard: Marketing to Go Deeper with Existing Customers, 85,
Chapter 6 Creating Passionate Team Members: Developing a Strong Corporate Culture, 111,
Chapter 7 An Opportunity to Be a Hero: Turning Customer Complaints into Positive Experiences, 135,
Chapter 8 Enhancing the Quality of Lives Around Us: Giving Back, 147,
Chapter 9 E-nough: Getting Back to Face-to-Face Relationships, 155,
Index, 167,
About the Author, 171,