Is your customer service swamping your boat?

Carolyn DicksonPosted by Carolyn Dickson on May 26th, 2010 | 0 Comments

A few days ago I went to buy a canoe. Last year our old canoe went to a new home, and now that summer’s on its way, it’s time to seek its replacement. My research on the Web showed me that a particular model (14 ft, padded seats with cup holders, bright red) was available at a sporting goods store nearby. This national chain’s website promises, “the finest quality products at competitive prices, backed by the best service anywhere.”

So off I went to see the canoe—–admire it—sit in it—rub my hand gently over the red paint. Unfortunately, my arrival at the store went unheralded. The store wasn’t crowded; a woman wandered through the aisles with a basket of running clothes over her arm. A white haired man examined fishing rods. But no employees were in evidence. In the outdoor department, suspended 15 feet above my head, the canoes hung from wires like giant cucumbers (not a red one in the bunch). All I could see was the bottom of each boat with the price of each in big letters pasted on the bow.

Finally, a young man wearing store colors walked by. I smiled. He didn’t. He walked on. I looked around but couldn’t see anyone else who could help me, so I kept my gaze focused on the bottoms of the canoes. Eventually, finding this futile, I walked to the front of the store where another employee was studying a computer screen.

“Can you help me, over in canoes?” I asked.

“In a minute,” he said, without looking up.

So back I went to the outdoor department. By the time I had looked at the tents, checked out all the camping gear, and examined the kayaks one by one, I realized no one was coming to assist me. I was on my own. So after one last, longing glance at the canoes floating overhead, I left the store.

Back home, I checked the store’s website one more time. Yes, there it was, just as I had read it. “…the finest quality products at competitive prices, backed by the best service anywhere.”

What’s the point of my story? It’s not the importance of good customer service; that goes without saying. No matter what our situation, sooner or later we are all consumers. Even the heads of national sporting goods chains will, at some time in their lives, find themselves buying tires, or lawn mowers, or washing machines. And they will be judging the service they get, weighing the quality from one enterprise against that of another. The rudiments of point-of-service behavior hardly need to be taught: smile, ask if you can help, know the product so you can answer questions, don’t chew gum. No, the importance of good customer service isn’t the issue here. What continues to bother me about my experience is the discrepancy between what goes into print and what actually occurs on the sales floor.

The heart of our business at VoicePro® is the relationships we form with our clients, and we know first hand how difficult it is to serve them consistently and unconditionally. One key to client satisfaction, we’ve learned is this: Set clear expectations and do your best to exceed them. We’re also careful to not promise more than we can deliver.

When outstanding service is touted as a competitive advantage, customers will anticipate white glove treatment, so the business must absolutely live up to its claims. Unmet expectations are worse than no expectations at all. This means the idea of good customer service must be more than words on a page or a bullet point in a mission statement. It means training, training, training. And a customer-oriented culture that is communicated to and embraced by everyone, from the leadership of the organization to the guys on the floor in the canoe department.

Perhaps I hit the store on a bad day. Perhaps they were short-handed because of illness. Perhaps a tie-up on the freeway caused half the staff to be late, while I just happed to be there early. Perhaps on another day I would have had an entirely different experience. Perhaps I will go back and find out. And perhaps not.

Eventually I’ll get my canoe. And when I paddle it across the lake, it will sometimes remind me of VoicePro®’s mission, our commitment to client service and the challenges it presents. It’s worth pondering on a quiet summer morning.

Image by Bill Gracey
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Do you have the communication skills for managing change? (Change Management Part 1)

Leslie DicksonPosted by Leslie Dickson on May 24th, 2010 | 1 Comment

Change is good, right?  That’s what all the personal growth gurus tell us.  Maybe that’s the natural response in our personal lives, when we’re choosing to lose weight, move to a new neighborhood, or learn a foreign language.  But in the workplace the natural response is often fear, distrust, anger and anxiety.  This doesn’t apply only to the tough changes, the kind that have dogged us during this economic downturn.  Even the “neutral” changes – a new boss, a change in computer systems, a shift in product lines – can put sand in the gears of a workplace. 

VoicePro has been called in by numerous clients to help manage change initiatives.  A mistake I see over and over again is that communication is an afterthought. 

Sometimes the call to VoicePro comes when there’s been a breakdown in the system – reduced productivity, high turnover or other problems.  In response to my question about a communications plan, I often hear, “We had a meeting and sent out a memo.”  That’s simply not enough.

People need more than that for change to be truly understood and accepted, and for the change to have the full positive force you intend.  It’s so important that I’m going to devote a couple of these posts to the issues you’ll face and how to prepare for them.

Let’s start with an example to illustrate my point. I participated in a training exercise a few years ago in which the participants were broken into one of two groups – the “employers” and the “employees.” I was an employee.  Unbeknownst to us employees, part of the exercise for the employers was to NOT communicate with us, but only to let us have access to their public news releases.  Even in a small group of pretend employees, complete strangers together for a 3-hour “game” on a Tuesday morning, we became suspicious and confrontational, doubting our employers wisdom and motives.  Amazing – and eye opening.  

Think of change management as facilitative leadership. How can you help assure the change you’re undertaking is going to achieve the hoped-for results?  Here are some things to keep in mind in your communications plan.

  • Over-communicate.  Create a message calendar to cover 3-6 months of the change process.  Start early to let people know what’s coming.  Include a kick-off communication at the start of the change.  Then follow through with regular updates. 
  • Explain why.  People respond more positively when they know why a change is happening.  Even if it’s bad news generated by difficulty, trust your team to take on a challenge when they know what the stakes are and how they can make a difference.  And don’t assume that the need for a “simple” or “good” change is obvious. Change always brings some discomfort or inconvenience. Help people understand how learning a new sales and marketing system will help them better serve customers and grow the business.
  • Listen.  You can’t possibly predict all the questions and concerns your team will have – that’s the nature of the human spirit.  You need to offer frequent opportunities for people to ask questions.  Take those questions seriously and provide serious answers.  Be sure to plan for Q&A throughout the process; issues are certain to arise as you go along.
  • Use different communication methods.  Kick-off meetings, newsletters, video, focus groups, training sessions.  Each one reaches people in different ways and invites different (and important) feedback opportunities.
  • Reach out to key groups.  You know which groups are most affected and where the fulcrum points are.  Losing these key people can hobble your organization for months. Use change as a team building exercise.
  • Involve the whole organization.  Even when a change targets a small group, you may want to widen the communications audience.  Why?  First, there’s a ripple effect to change.  Something new in the accounting department can cause headaches or concerns to anyone who interacts with them.  Plus, organization-wide communication can help control gossip and the fear that goes with it.

Change isn’t just about systems or organization charts, payroll numbers or business plans.  It’s about the people who will implement it, live with it, work with it.  If your want your change to be a positive one, remember make people a part of it.  And communication is the key.

Image by Veri’s kleiner Winkel
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Forget the Messenger; Think for Yourself

Carolyn DicksonPosted by Carolyn Dickson on May 20th, 2010 | 0 Comments

It’s blazed across the headlines: Tiger Woods returns to golf! Sports commentators hold forth by the hour on the importance of Woods’ comeback to the PGA. And how that will affect their advertisers. “Will he or will he not retain his most important endorsements?” they ask, as if that makes a difference in the overall scheme of things.

Actually, it does make a difference, as advertisers well know and we, the public, have long forgotten (if we ever paid attention in the first place). Big names sell—regardless of the product and regardless of the price. Whether it’s a political candidate, a ten-million-dollar home on a private golf course, or an athletic shoe, if our favorite celebrity recommends it, we fall right in line and pony up our money to the cause. You’d think we’d know better. But we don’t.

It all has to do with likeability. Research shows that the more we like someone, the more we’re willing to accept what he or she says as the truth. Here’s how it works.

You can like someone and accept the message. This is where Tiger makes a difference to Nike, who at the time of this writing has reiterated its commitment to Woods as one of its main spokespersons. He’s a terrific golfer, we’re supposed to think. He’s good looking, I like him. Therefore, these must be great shoes. It seems ridiculous when we listen critically to the message and analyze how we’re processing the information. But it means big bucks to Nike.

You can dislike someone and disagree with the message. This is the stuff of smear political campaigns. The rationale goes like this: If one side can vilify a candidate from the other side, the sheep-like voters will drum him out of office. It’s so easy to fall into this trap. Even though I understand how this concept works, if I find myself appalled at the behavior of a public figure, it’s difficult for me to listen through my disgust to his or her ideas and judge them on their own merit.

The Greeks were well aware of this when news came of battles lost and they put the messengers to death. Kill the messenger! has become the battle cry of anyone who doesn’t want his or her ideas held up to the harsh light of day.

You can see how this plays out at work as well. If you’re in conflict with someone, or if you actively dislike one of your colleagues, notice how you almost always respond negatively to what that person says. It’s practically automatic.

You can like someone and disagree with the message. When like minds get together and hash out the pros and cons of a subject without getting personal, magic can happen. Ideas flow, and they can be turned inside out and examined thoroughly without anyone getting mad. It would be wonderful if all our interactions took place under such ideal circumstances. But unfortunately, this cannot always be.

You can dislike someone and still find value in the message. Yes, it can be done, but it’s not easy. It requires tremendous communication skills, especially the ability to listen analytically and separate ideas from personal biases.

If you think of this as a matrix with four quadrants, you’ll note that you’ll find yourself in one of these quadrants whenever you interact with someone else. It’s joyous to be around people you like and pretty much agree with all the time. High fives all around. And you will occasionally come in contact with a detestable someone whose ideas you abhor.

The trick is to be aware of where you are at any given time, and move yourself to one of the other, more constructive quadrants—like/disagree or dislike/agree—when it’s appropriate to do so. It’s the mark of an open-minded leader to be able to separate the message from the messenger and weigh ideas based on their own merit.

So check yourself. Have you joined the herd and are buying shoes, shampoo, or strategic ideas because Tiger Woods, a TV guru, or some other bigshot tells you to? Or are you listening carefully, thinking critically, and making your own informed judgments about what you hear?

Let me know what you think.

Image by _Blancinegre
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