First, I had reason to contact CrystalTech (my host) and had another great experience. In spite of being acquired over the years (twice, I think) tech support has always been fabulous. The reps spend as much time as necessary on the phone with me until this tech dummy understands.
Second, I came across an old video that, along with being hilarious, is a graphic answer to what customer service is NOT.
Today’s Odd Bits are kind of a hodgepodge, but in the twisty corridors of my mind they do fit together.
First the potatoes.
Do you believe all the experts, academicians, pundits and just-plain-people who keep talking about how the so-called Great Recession is permanently changing America’s stuff fixation? I don’t, I just think people will find a way to do the same thing covertly—call it inconspicuous consumption.
On the other side, have high-end retailers really changed their attitude towards customer service? An exec from Saks Fifth Avenue said, “Every customer is valuable and they’re even more valuable today because there are fewer of them.” Does that mean they will revert to form when there are more of them? Another little gem buried in this article shows that consumers haven’t changed all that much, after all, who really needs an $18 bottle of nail polish?
Microsoft, the company people love or hate. Since I’m in the latter camp I was delighted to see that they lost on appeal and the $290 million judgment for violating a patent stands. Their reaction is typical of today’s worst corporate MAP, since “…new versions [of Word], with the computer code in question removed, would be ready for sale when the injunction begins Jan. 11.” They stole, but that’s OK because getting caught won’t interfere with business and apparently the money is no big deal. Still more intriguing is an article at CNN wondering if Steve Ballmer will be out in 2010, “Ballmer has shepherded Microsoft to vanishing mobile market share (now just 7.9 percent of the market), a hesitant tiptoe into software as a service, and a general sense of retreat in emerging markets.” (Be sure to check the two links at the end of the story.)
And then there is Facebook, which is one of the top two time-wasters since time began (the other is Twitter). Besides providing you with a whole new set of virus to worry about, it’s obsessive (in case you hadn’t noticed) and the best defense seems to be defriending.
Enough with the potatoes, you need meat to balance your last meal here. And for that kind of substance you can’t beat Harvard.
Specifically, you can’t beat Michael C. Jensen, the Jesse Isidor Straus Professor of Business Administration, Emeritus’ fascinating paper on integrity.
“Integrity in our model is honoring your word. As such integrity is a purely positive phenomenon. It has nothing to do with good vs. bad, right vs. wrong behavior.”
Therefore the worst villain has the same integrity as your favorite saint. Interesting premise, well worth reading.
Amidst all the doomsayers and layoffs stands 34 year-old Tony Hsieh, CEO of billion dollar Zappos and as far from an imperial CEO as it’s possible to get. (I wrote about Zappos last spring with a link to an excellent interview.)
Hsieh sold LinkExchange, his first company, in 1999 to Microsoft for $265 million and then founded Zappos, a company known for its astronomically high quality customer experience and some of the happiest employees on Earth.
And the downturn isn’t changing that.
From the start, he chose to spend the marketing and advertising money on the customer experience, fostering repeat business and word of mouth advertising.
For his customers:
“Unconventional for an online retailer, Zappos offers free shipping both ways and a 365-day return policy. Customers can order 10 pairs of shoes, try them on, and send nine back. Or 10. Free.
Where other companies duck customers and hide their contact information…Zappos’ 800 telephone number is prominently displayed at the top of its Web page. At the Zappos call center, representatives work without scripts and are under no pressure to quickly dispatch with customers. … Shipping is promised in five to six days. But the company’s little secret is that most orders are automatically upgraded to free overnight shipping. The warehouse operates 24/7… The goal is building a lifelong relationship.”
For employees:
Hsieh says, “The number one focus and priority for the company, even though we want the brand to be about customer service, is company culture … Our belief is that if you get the culture right, most of the other stuff, like great customer service, will just happen naturally.”
When asked why more companies don’t do as Zappos does, Hsieh says. “Patience. Most corporations don’t want to put in the time to build customer service and a company culture. … Chase the vision, not the money. The money will follow.”
Don’t miss Robert Reiss’ interview with Zappos.com CEO Tony Hsieh.
Hsieh believes that Zappos incredible customer service is the number one driver for sales growth that skyrocketed from $1.6 million in 2000 to more than $1 billion in eight short years, while powering straight through the dot com bust.
Hsieh believes that to be successful you “need to be truly passionate about whatever you’re in the business of doing—it should not just be about making money.”
Zappos.com’s incredible customer service is embedded in its culture and Hsieh explains in depth that the culture is protected by a unique “two-step” hiring process that in its second-step concentrates on Zappos’ corporate culture and its core values. Hsieh says, “We make sure the people we hire have similar values. We won’t hire them if they are not a “culture-fit even if they are technically strong.”
The company focus is obvious—listening to its customers to hear their requests and understand their needs.
Hsieh’s says, “We place a lot of value on the interaction with customers. We want and take the time to talk to our customers.”
The man’s on to something. In an age when most customers are left with the feeling that the company is doing them a favor by taking their money for the product/service and their desire for decent (not even great) customer service is at best an annoyance listening to Hsieh is not only refreshing, but offers tangible proof that a focus on company culture and superb customer service pays.
You tell me—it great customer service common sense or rocket science?
When the economy slows, Wall Street tends focus on cutting costs (of course, they do that in good times, too), but cutting is rarely enough put a company on a strong financial footing—only sales can do that.
And no matter what you’re selling or to whom, sales are far more cost effective when you focus on relationship, because at some point all customers are new. While acquiring a new customer can cost thousands, selling to those you already know or to whom you’re referred costs far less.
This, of course, assumes that your product did what it was supposed to do and your customer service solved any difficulties that arose.
As your sales people start mining your client lists they need to stay hyper-aware for any dissatisfaction, whether overt or covert and address it. In today’s world an unhappy customer is a far different animal than in the last downturn and can sink your sales efforts with a few clicks of his mouse. By the same token, a customer who appreciates your products and services is a far more powerful advocate than ever before.
The relationships you have with your customers are one of your most powerful shields when it comes to the whims of the market.
Entrepreneurs face difficulties that are hard for most people to imagine, let alone understand. You can find anonymous help and connections that do understand at 7 cups of tea.
Crises never end.
$10 really does make a difference and you’ll never miss it,
Don’t miss Robert Reiss’ 
When the economy slows, Wall Street tends focus on cutting costs (of course, they do that in good times, too), but cutting is rarely enough put a company on a strong financial footing—only sales can do that.
