Yesterday I arrived in Salt Lake City, after a three day trek from New Jersey with my son (Alex, 25) in a Penske Truck. During the trip, while my son was driving, I took care of some last minute housekeeping issues with accounts, changes in address and all the related matters of moving. One of the issues at hand, required me to speak with my branch manager to see if there was any way she could help with difficulties in making a wire transfer. I went on line to find the phone number for my branch. When I called the number, I was greeted by a call center agent. I explained that I had expected to get my branch and that I needed to speak with my branch manager. She kindly explained that customer calls were being taken by the general call center. In that case, I asked to be transferred to my branch manager, to which she replied she could not because all customer calls to the branch were being taken by the general call center. I explained, that I needed to speak to my manager to see if there was any way she could assist me in making a wire transfer, quickly. She explained that in order to do that I would need to go to the branch. I once again asked for my branch’s telephone number, and hen she said it “Sir your branch does not accept customer calls – I cannot give you their number, especially in this busy season”. I gave up. To some executive, who has not needed the help of a banker in the last 20 years, the process he/she has set in place is adequate, I’m sure. But how is it that anyone in the business of taking CARE of people’s financial needs thinks it is remotely ok to create a situation where, you cannot speak with the person immediately in charge of taking care of your financial needs. My funds and banking activity will also be moving.

I recently read a posting that solidified some forming thoughts. here.

We are all working quite hard to bring to the forefront a higher level of awareness to the issue of customer satisfaction. It is a good and necessary effort in our quest to improve P/Ls and quality of life in general. However, at what point do we begin to off load our responsibility on businesses in the name of good customer service?

Returning a plasma TV becuase we didn’t realize we couldn’t afford it until our spouse tried to pay the bills. Having a mattress replaced after sleeping on it a couple of weeks because we realized we needed a softer one. Expecting the florists to deliver an extra 7 dozen arrangements on time, because we ordered the wrong number, originally. I’m not saying that we shouldn’t ask, and that we shouldn’t be happy when such requests are granted, but, more often than not situations such as these is becoming the measure of customer satisfaction, anything less is simply not enough.

Like all power, the power we have as consumers can have a corrupting effect on our ethics. A good Customer/Vendor Relationship has to be built on a foundation of mutual respect. I think.

Sometime ago, I was fortunate to see Cirque de Soleil’s “LOVE” Show. For those of you who have not yet seen it, it is a montage of acrobatics, dance and fantasia-like acts choreographed to the newly mixed Beatles LOVE album. What I found fascinating about this show is how something we all know, like all those Beatles tunes many of us grew up with, can suddenly become new. The visual effects gave the songs a new dimension that caused me to listen in a different way, as if “hearing it again, for the first time”.

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One of the aspects of corporate culture that is hardest to shift are outdated policies. There are so many, especially in mature businesses. Easily, over 75% of all policies I have studied across companies and departments are designed to keep bad things from happening – they are the “You can’t do this, and you can’t do that – policies”.

I have no issue with them. If it’s bad, keeping it from happening may be an important thing. But , why not put as much emphasis on policies that will cause “good things” to happen? Why can’t we have policies that proactively guide us to do things that create conditions for a preferred future state? More sales, higher customer satisfaction, empowerment.

I think it’s just because coming up with the policies to create desired outcomes is not as easy as identifying those things we would like to outlaw. We are usually more sensitive to the stuff we don’t like.

“You should Policies”:

• Upper management should talk to at least one dissatisfied customer per month. That’s a policy I like.
• Customer Service agents are now empowered to do whatever they think is right for the customer. Scary, huh?
• One customer service team cannot transfer the customer to another team until they have solved the problem. But escalation is my only way out !

Admittedly, some proactive policies require careful assessment and good process to facilitate our preferred future. It’s not easy, but I have found that I am more successful when I concentrate on creating the desired output, instead of focusing on those things that keep me form it.

Which culture would you like to build?

Today, while driving I heard one of my favorite radio programs, NPRs “This American Life”. The story was about a long distance customer’s 7 month long odyssey trying to rectify a $900 billing mistake.

The customer tried her best to contact the appropriate department, and although everyone seemed to agree the problem was legitimate, she was promised help without results – FOR 7 MONTHS !

The final blow came in a collection agency notice which resulted in the radio show’s involvement.

As I listened it was clear the frustration was the result of a feeling of powerlessness. Time after time, as she followed the maze of transfers, customer support agents would reenforce that the proper procedures were being followed denying the customer’s request for other options.

It wasn’t until the radio show became involved that she received the attention of a higher “judge” who was empowered to fix things.

Such lengthy resolutions usually involve internally focused policies and procedures which forget the point of view of the customer.

We trust our policies and processes, but many of them, put our customers in endless loops without options, except one – give their business to our competitors and remember us as a source of grief and stress.

Things to consider:

1. Customers should never feel there is no other option to solve their problem, unless it is a customer you are willing to loose.

2. The best way to make a customer relax is to give them some semblance of control up front – your name and direct line is a good start.

3. By the 3rd customer attempt, your chances of satisfying them are less than 30%. If a customer has to reach out more than once, there is a problem. Make it yours.

4. For every customer that reaches upper management, there are 12 that simply give up.

5. The “higher judge” should always be an accesible option.

We need to proactively look for those policies and procedures that hurt our customers. The only way to find them is to look for hurt customers, not wait for the complaints. By the time they get escalated, its simply too late.

Most of us have seen the light with regard to the business benefits to being GREEN.

However, environmental conciousness is a small part of the value chain.

Some companies have wider reach across the entire value chain and as such have a larger opportunity and responsibility to positively affect more people/customers.

The ultimate customer satisfaction play affects all of us.

Take a look at http://www.storyofstuff.com/ and see if it gives you any ideas for mass differentiation of your brand.

I’d like to thank all my friends, gurus and supporters for not giving up on this blog idea. Thanks to all of you the blog is back with renewed energy and commitment to adding value to our customers, because its good for business and its the right thing to do.

The mission of the blog is to create discussion and awareness on the topic of Customer Satisfaction as a vehicle to creating loyalty and a WIN WIN relationships between customers and companies, citizens and governments, people and people.

We are choosing to ignore what we inherently feel to be true; that at the end of the day we are all customers to one another, that we are inextricably tied to eachother, depending one on the other for our general, social and economic well being.

It is possible, in fact, expected by our customers, that we do the right thing socially, environmentally and fiscally. Anything less is no longer accepted.

It is unnatural to think that the company and its customers are separate and distinct. Everyone depends and is attached to everyone else.

I am confident, business and government can remember that we are all here to build, to create value for the common good.