customer needs

Elements of a Service Culture

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Elements of a Service Culture

A positive service culture is crucial for organizations that want to remain competitive and build brand and customer loyalty.

Many elements define a successful service organization. Some of the more common are:

Service philosophy or mission: The direction or vision of an organization that supports day-to-day interactions with the customer.

Employee roles and expectations: The specific communications or measures that indicate what is expected of employees in customer interactions and that define how employee service performance will be evaluated.

Delivery systems: The way an organization delivers its products and services.

Policies and procedures: The guidelines that establish how various situations or transactions will be handled.

Products and services: The materials, products, and services that are state of the art, are competitively priced, and meet the needs of customers.

Management support: The availability of management to answer questions and assist frontline employees in customer interactions when necessary. Also, the level of management involvement and enthusiasm in coaching and mentoring professional development of employees is crucial in creating a positive service culture.Elements of a Service Culture

Motivators and rewards: Monetary rewards, material items, or feedback that prompts employees to continue to deliver service and perform at a high level of effectiveness and efficiency.

Training: Instruction or information provided through a variety of techniques that teach knowledge or skills, or attempt to influence employee attitude toward excellent service delivery.

Source: Customer Service Skills for Success by Robert W. Lucas

About Robert C. Lucas

Bob Lucas has been a trainer, presenter, customer service expert, and adult educator for over four decades. He has written hundreds of articles on training, writing, self-publishing, and workplace learning skills and issues. He is also an award-winning author who has written thirty-seven books on topics such as, writing, relationships, customer service, brain-based learning, and creative training strategies, interpersonal communication, diversity, and supervisory skills. Additionally, he has contributed articles, chapters, and activities to eighteen compilation books. Bob retired from the U.S. Marine Corps in 1991 after twenty-two years of active and reserve service.

Make Money Writing Books: Proven Profit Making Strategies for Authors by Robert W. Lucas at Amazon.com.

The key to successfully making money as an author and/or self-publisher is to brand yourself and your company and to make yourself and your book(s) a household name. Part of this is face-to-face interaction with people at trade shows, library events, book readings, book store signings, blogging or guest blogging on a topic related to their book(s). Another strategy involves writing articles and other materials that show up online and are found when people search for a given topic related to a topic about which the author has written.

If you need help building an author platform, branding yourself and your book(s) or generating recognition for what you do, Make Money Writing Books will help. Bob’s popular book addresses a multitude of ideas and strategies that you can use to help sell more books and create residual and passive income streams. The tips outlined in the book are focused to help authors but apply to virtually any professional trying to increase personal and product recognition and visibility.

Characteristics of Organizations with Strong Customer Service Cultures

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Characteristics of Organizations with Strong Customer Service Cultures

Many organizations struggle to gain and maintain strong customer and brand loyalty. However, what they often fail to do right is to create a service culture that nurtures and supports customers.Characteristics of Organizations with Strong Customer Service Cultures

The following are some common characteristics for leading-edge customer-focused organizations that you might use to help create a positive customer service culture in your own organization.

  • They have and support internal customers (for example, peers, co-workers, bosses, subordinates, people from other areas of their organization) and/or external customers (for example, vendors, suppliers, various telephone callers, walk-in customers, other organizations, others not from within the organization).
  • Their focus is on determining and meeting the needs, wants and expectations of customers while treating everyone with respect and as if he or she is special.
  • Information, products, and services are easily accessible by customers.
  • Policies are in place to allow employees to make decisions in order to better serve customers.
  • Management and systems support and appropriately reward employee efforts to serve customers.
  • Reevaluation and quantitative measurement of the way business is conducted is ongoing and results in necessary changes and upgrades to deliver timely quality service to the customer.
  • Continual benchmarking or comparison with competitors and related organizations helps maintain an acute awareness and implementation of best service practices by the organization.
  • The latest technology is used to connect with and provide service to customers, vendors, or suppliers and to support business operations.
  • They build relationships through customer relationship management (CRM) programs.

For additional ideas and strategies for building a strong service culture, get a copy of Customer Service Skills for Success.

About Robert C. Lucas

Bob Lucas has been a trainer, presenter, customer service expert, and adult educator for over four decades. He has written hundreds of articles on training, writing, self-publishing, and workplace learning skills and issues. He is also an award-winning author who has written thirty-seven books on topics such as, writing, relationships, customer service, brain-based learning, and creative training strategies, interpersonal communication, diversity, and supervisory skills. Additionally, he has contributed articles, chapters, and activities to eighteen compilation books. Bob retired from the U.S. Marine Corps in 1991 after twenty-two years of active and reserve service.

Make Money Writing Books: Proven Profit Making Strategies for Authors by Robert W. Lucas at Amazon.com.

The key to successfully making money as an author and/or self-publisher is to brand yourself and your company and to make yourself and your book(s) a household name. Part of this is face-to-face interaction with people at trade shows, library events, book readings, book store signings, blogging or guest blogging on a topic related to their book(s). Another strategy involves writing articles and other materials that show up online and are found when people search for a given topic related to a topic about which the author has written.

If you need help building an author platform, branding yourself and your book(s) or generating recognition for what you do, Make Money Writing Books will help. Bob’s popular book addresses a multitude of ideas and strategies that you can use to help sell more books and create residual and passive income streams. The tips outlined in the book are focused to help authors but apply to virtually any professional trying to increase personal and product recognition and visibility.

The Customer Service Representative’s Role in Organizational Culture

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The Customer Service Representative’s Role in Organizational Culture

Put simply, organizational culture is what your customer experiences. This culture is made up of a collection of subcomponents, each of which contributes to the overall service environment.

The Customer Service Representative's Role in Organizational Culture

Organizational cultures are developed to some degree by everyone within the organization and are driven from the top down in most organizations. Without the mechanisms and atmosphere to support frontline service, the other components of the business environment cannot succeed. When leaders fail to recognize this point and do not lead by example from a service perspective, the organization is doomed to experience poor quality of service and lose customers.

Typically, culture portrays the dynamic nature of the organization and encompasses the values and beliefs that are important to the organization and its employees and managers. The experiences, attitudes, and norms cherished and upheld by employees and teams within the organization set the tone for the manner in which service is delivered and how service providers interact with both internal and external customers.

The type and quality of products and services also contribute to your organizational culture. If customers perceive that you offer reputable products and services in a professional manner and at a competitive price, your organization will likely reap the rewards of customer loyalty and positive “press.” On the other hand, if products and services do not live up to expectations or promises, or if your ability to correct problems in products and services is deficient, you and the organization could suffer adversely.

As a service provider, you play a crucial role in making sure that your culture is positive and projected to each person with whom you have contact. Customers do not care about your policy, your physical or mental condition, whether you are having issues with co-workers or managers, or any other element that might potentially inhibit your delivering quality customer service. What they do care about is receiving quality, timely and professional services and products. Anything else will likely have them headed for the door or to the next Internet site to have their needs, wants and expectations met.

Make it your goal that each day you come to work, that you will strive to make it the best possible day for you and for your customers. For more information about customer service and organizational cultures get a copy of Customer Service Skills for Success.

About Robert C. Lucas

Bob Lucas has been a trainer, presenter, customer service expert, and adult educator for over four decades. He has written hundreds of articles on training, writing, self-publishing, and workplace learning skills and issues. He is also an award-winning author who has written thirty-seven books on topics such as, writing, relationships, customer service, brain-based learning, and creative training strategies, interpersonal communication, diversity, and supervisory skills. Additionally, he has contributed articles, chapters, and activities to eighteen compilation books. Bob retired from the U.S. Marine Corps in 1991 after twenty-two years of active and reserve service.

Make Money Writing Books: Proven Profit Making Strategies for Authors by Robert W. Lucas at Amazon.com.

The key to successfully making money as an author and/or self-publisher is to brand yourself and your company and to make yourself and your book(s) a household name. Part of this is face-to-face interaction with people at trade shows, library events, book readings, book store signings, blogging or guest blogging on a topic related to their book(s). Another strategy involves writing articles and other materials that show up online and are found when people search for a given topic related to a topic about which the author has written.

If you need help building an author platform, branding yourself and your book(s) or generating recognition for what you do, Make Money Writing Books will help. Bob’s popular book addresses a multitude of ideas and strategies that you can use to help sell more books and create residual and passive income streams. The tips outlined in the book are focused to help authors but apply to virtually any professional trying to increase personal and product recognition and visibility.

Customer Service Inspirational Quote – Sam Walton

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Customer Service Inspirational Quote – Sam Walton

“High Expectations are the key to everything.” – Sam Walton

Customer Service Inspirational Quote - Sam Walton

A key to being a successful customer service representative is gaining the knowledge and skills necessary to deal with a changing global business environment. In today’s world, it is not enough for service providers to simply be knowledgeable about their organization’s products and services. They must also have effective interpersonal skills (e.g. verbal, nonverbal and listening), knowledge of the needs, wants and expectations of different demographic groups (e.g. gender, cultural, ethnic, age and abilities), and solid customer service skills. These crucial skills can provide the tools to effectively communicate and handle the types of interactions that can occur daily in any customer-provider interaction (e.g. negotiation, conflict resolution, sales, and service recovery).

For additional information and ideas on how to deliver effective customer service in a diverse world, get copies of Please Every Customer: Delivering Stellar Customer Service Across Cultures and Customer Service Skills for Success.

Learn All About Robert C. ‘Bob’ Lucas Now

Understand Why He is an Authority in the Customer Service Skills Industry

Robert C. ‘Bob’ Lucas has been a trainer, presenter, customer service expert, and adult educator for over four decades. He has written hundreds of articles on training, writing, self-publishing, and workplace learning skills and issues. He is also an award-winning author who has written thirty-seven books on topics such as, writing, relationships, customer service, brain-based learning, and creative training strategies, interpersonal communication, diversity, and supervisory skills. Additionally, he has contributed articles, chapters, and activities to eighteen compilation books. Bob retired from the U.S. Marine Corps in 1991 after twenty-two years of active and reserve service.

Make Money Writing Books: Proven Profit Making Strategies for Authors by Robert W. Lucas at Amazon.com.

The key to successfully making money as an author and/or self-publisher is to brand yourself and your company and to make yourself and your book(s) a household name. Part of this is face-to-face interaction with people at trade shows, library events, book readings, book store signings, blogging or guest blogging on a topic related to their book(s). Another strategy involves writing articles and other materials that show up online and are found when people search for a given topic related to a topic about which the author has written.

If you need help building an author platform, branding yourself and your book(s) or generating recognition for what you do, Make Money Writing Books will help. Bob’s popular book addresses a multitude of ideas and strategies that you can use to help sell more books and create residual and passive income streams. The tips outlined in the book are focused to help authors but apply to virtually any professional trying to increase personal and product recognition and visibility.

In my book Customer Service Skills for Success, I define customer service as “the ability of knowledgeable, capable, and enthusiastic employees to deliver products and services to their internal and external customers in a manner that satisfies identified and unidentified needs and ultimately results in positive word-of-mouth publicity and return business.”

Customer Service Quote – Nelson Boswell

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Customer Service Quote – Nelson Boswell

“Here’s a simple, but powerful rule –

always give people more than what they expect to get.” Nelson Boswell

 

Customer Service Quote - Nelson Boswell

Learn All About Robert C. ‘Bob’ Lucas  

Understand Why He is an Authority in the Customer Service Skills Industry

Robert C. ‘Bob’ Lucas has been a trainer, presenter, customer service expert, and adult educator for over four decades. He has written hundreds of articles on training, writing, self-publishing, and workplace learning skills and issues. He is also an award-winning author who has written thirty-seven books on topics such as, writing, relationships, customer service, brain-based learning, and creative training strategies, interpersonal communication, diversity, and supervisory skills. Additionally, he has contributed articles, chapters, and activities to eighteen compilation books. Bob retired from the U.S. Marine Corps in 1991 after twenty-two years of active and reserve service.

Make Money Writing Books: Proven Profit Making Strategies for Authors by Robert W. Lucas at Amazon.com.

The key to successfully making money as an author and/or self-publisher is to brand yourself and your company and to make yourself and your book(s) a household name. Part of this is face-to-face interaction with people at trade shows, library events, book readings, book store signings, blogging or guest blogging on a topic related to their book(s). Another strategy involves writing articles and other materials that show up online and are found when people search for a given topic related to a topic about which the author has written.

If you need help building an author platform, branding yourself and your book(s) or generating recognition for what you do, Make Money Writing Books will help. Bob’s popular book addresses a multitude of ideas and strategies that you can use to help sell more books and create residual and passive income streams. The tips outlined in the book are focused to help authors but apply to virtually any professional trying to increase personal and product recognition and visibility.

In my book Customer Service Skills for Success, I define customer service as “the ability of knowledgeable, capable, and enthusiastic employees to deliver products and services to their internal and external customers in a manner that satisfies identified and unidentified needs and ultimately results in positive word-of-mouth publicity and return business.”

How to Improve Customer Satisfaction

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How to improve customer satisfaction

How to Improve Customer Satisfaction

Customer satisfaction is different from one person to the next. Thus, the answer to “How do I improve customer satisfaction?” is a complex one to answer. At the root of the solution is the acceptance by customer service representatives and others in an organization that all internal and external customers are unique and have different needs, wants and expectations. They must, therefore, be addressed as individuals and not as a group based on outward appearance (e.g. race, gender, age, ethnic or religious background and other factors typically used to label people).

Obviously, training and education to raise awareness about factors related to human behavior, diversity, customer service skills, interpersonal communication, and the organization’s products and services are crucial in providing quality service. Successful organizations and managers realize this and strive to provide quality information to everyone in their system on a regular basis.  Above that, it is the individual service provider’s responsibility to adopt an attitude focused on customer-centric behavior and actively take opportunities to discover customer needs, wants and expectations and then apply their knowledge and skills to satisfy them.

While there is no one solution to the issue of customer satisfaction, there are many roads to success if service providers take the effort to act in a professional manner and work with customers to partner on successful outcomes for both the customer and the organization.

To get a better understanding of factors related to different customer groups and potential strategies for identifying and addressing their needs, wants and expectations, get copies of Please Every Customer: Providing Stellar Customer Service Across Cultures, Customer Service Skills for Success and How to Be a Great Call Center Representative.

Generating Positive Customer and Brand Loyalty

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Generating Positive Customer and Brand Loyalty

Customers are your reason for existing as an employee. They are also the key element in your organization’s success. For that reason, customer service representatives must consciously go out of your way to identify and anticipate their needs, then address them in an expedient and professional manner.

Just because someone is a customer today, does not mean that they will remain so in the future. Unfortunately, consumer opinions in many parts of the world have shifted related to customer and brand loyalty. In the past, people often exhibited brand loyalty for cars, laundry detergent, restaurants, airlines, and many other items and services. With the advent of technology, global trade and easy access to alternative and comparable products and services, it is not unusual for someone to move to a new product, service or provider to meet their needs based strictly on factors like price, service or availability. The result is that many well-known major organizations and products have changed dramatically, evolved or disappeared in the past decades. Examples are Montgomery Ward, Pontiac and Plymouth automobiles, Eastern Airlines, and Steak and Ale and Bennigan’s restaurants. In instances where manufacturers have recognized the need for product modifications to address customer needs, wants and expectations, they have modified or added additional varieties to their product lines (e.g. Coca Cola and Pepsi, Tide detergent, Cheerios cereal, and Crest toothpaste).

In order to help ensure customer loyalty, you must place your customer first in all dealings and know your products, services, policies, procedures, and competition well. You must also continually seek to enhance your knowledge and skills while staying attuned to current consumer behaviors and trends. Ultimately, your goal is to be the “go-to” person and organization for whatever products or services you offer. You want to deliver the best customer service possible.

For strategies and ideas on how to create customer loyalty, get copies of Customer Service Skills for Success and Please Every Customer: Delivering Stellar Customer Service Across Cultures.

Robert C. Lucas

About Robert C. Lucas

Bob Lucas has been a trainer, presenter, customer service expert, and adult educator for over four decades. He has written hundreds of articles on training, writing, self-publishing, and workplace learning skills and issues. He is also an award-winning author who has written thirty-seven books on topics such as, writing, relationships, customer service, brain-based learning, and creative training strategies, interpersonal communication, diversity, and supervisory skills. Additionally, he has contributed articles, chapters, and activities to eighteen compilation books. Bob retired from the U.S. Marine Corps in 1991 after twenty-two years of active and reserve service.

Make Money Writing Books: Proven Profit Making Strategies for Authors by Robert W. Lucas at Amazon.com.

The key to successfully making money as an author and/or self-publisher is to brand yourself and your company and to make yourself and your book(s) a household name. Part of this is face-to-face interaction with people at trade shows, library events, book readings, book store signings, blogging or guest blogging on a topic related to their book(s). Another strategy involves writing articles and other materials that show up online and are found when people search for a given topic related to a topic about which the author has written.

If you need help building an author platform, branding yourself and your book(s) or generating recognition for what you do, Make Money Writing Books will help. Bob’s popular book addresses a multitude of ideas and strategies that you can use to help sell more books and create residual and passive income streams. The tips outlined in the book are focused to help authors but apply to virtually any professional trying to increase personal and product recognition and visibility.

Customer Service Quote – Robert W. Lucas

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Customer Service Quote – Robert W. Lucas

 

“Customers do not care whether you are a large or small organization.

What they care about is whether you deliver what you promise,

when and how you promise it, and if you meet

their needs, wants, and expectations.”

– Robert C. Lucas,

Customer Service Thought Leader & Expert

Customer Service Quote - Robert W. Lucas

Learn All About Robert C. ‘Bob’ Lucas Now and

Understand Why He is an Authority in the Customer Service Skills Industry

Robert C. ‘Bob’ Lucas has been a trainer, presenter, customer service expert, and adult educator for over four decades. He has written hundreds of articles on training, writing, self-publishing, and workplace learning skills and issues. He is also an award-winning author who has written thirty-seven books on topics such as, writing, relationships, customer service, brain-based learning, and creative training strategies, interpersonal communication, diversity, and supervisory skills. Additionally, he has contributed articles, chapters, and activities to eighteen compilation books. Bob retired from the U.S. Marine Corps in 1991 after twenty-two years of active and reserve service.

Make Money Writing Books: Proven Profit Making Strategies for Authors by Robert W. Lucas at Amazon.com.

The key to successfully making money as an author and/or self-publisher is to brand yourself and your company and to make yourself and your book(s) a household name. Part of this is face-to-face interaction with people at trade shows, library events, book readings, book store signings, blogging or guest blogging on a topic related to their book(s). Another strategy involves writing articles and other materials that show up online and are found when people search for a given topic related to a topic about which the author has written.

If you need help building an author platform, branding yourself and your book(s) or generating recognition for what you do, Make Money Writing Books will help. Bob’s popular book addresses a multitude of ideas and strategies that you can use to help sell more books and create residual and passive income streams. The tips outlined in the book are focused to help authors but apply to virtually any professional trying to increase personal and product recognition and visibility.

In my book Customer Service Skills for Success, I define customer service as “the ability of knowledgeable, capable, and enthusiastic employees to deliver products and services to their internal and external customers in a manner that satisfies identified and unidentified needs and ultimately results in positive word-of-mouth publicity and return business.”

Customer Service Quotes – George S. Patton

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Customer Service Quotes – George S. Patton

Delivering excellent customer service requires more than just going through the mechanical process of performing the requirements of your job as a customer service representative. To truly excel as a service professional, you must be willing to build a strong interpersonal relationship with your customers. This includes identifying and meeting the needs, wants and expectations of each individual customer rather than treating all customers in a similar manner. By effectively interacting with every customer with whom you come into contact, you strengthen your image and that of your organization.

A statement by General George S. Patton sums up an approach for you to take in dealing with customers in the future:

Customer Service Quotes - George S. PattonFor additional ideas on how to better serve your customers, get a copy of Customer Service Skills for Success and How to Be a Great Call Center Representative.

Learn All About Robert C. ‘Bob’ Lucas Now

Understand Why He is an Authority in the Customer Service Skills Industry

Robert C. ‘Bob’ Lucas has been a trainer, presenter, customer service expert, and adult educator for over four decades. He has written hundreds of articles on training, writing, self-publishing, and workplace learning skills and issues. He is also an award-winning author who has written thirty-seven books on topics such as, writing, relationships, customer service, brain-based learning, and creative training strategies, interpersonal communication, diversity, and supervisory skills. Additionally, he has contributed articles, chapters, and activities to eighteen compilation books. Bob retired from the U.S. Marine Corps in 1991 after twenty-two years of active and reserve service.

Make Money Writing Books: Proven Profit Making Strategies for Authors by Robert W. Lucas at Amazon.com.

The key to successfully making money as an author and/or self-publisher is to brand yourself and your company and to make yourself and your book(s) a household name. Part of this is face-to-face interaction with people at trade shows, library events, book readings, book store signings, blogging or guest blogging on a topic related to their book(s). Another strategy involves writing articles and other materials that show up online and are found when people search for a given topic related to a topic about which the author has written.

If you need help building an author platform, branding yourself and your book(s) or generating recognition for what you do, Make Money Writing Books will help. Bob’s popular book addresses a multitude of ideas and strategies that you can use to help sell more books and create residual and passive income streams. The tips outlined in the book are focused to help authors but apply to virtually any professional trying to increase personal and product recognition and visibility.

In my book Customer Service Skills for Success, I define customer service as “the ability of knowledgeable, capable, and enthusiastic employees to deliver products and services to their internal and external customers in a manner that satisfies identified and unidentified needs and ultimately results in positive word-of-mouth publicity and return business.”

The Worst Industries for Customer Service

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The Worst Industries for Customer Service

Anyone in the service professionals will tell you that customer satisfaction can be a hit or miss proposition depending on many variables. Obviously, most customer service representatives and organizations strive to provide not just good customer service, but the best customer service possible. In an ideal world, they will meet and exceed customer needs, wants and expectations in order to retain customers and generate positive word-of-mouth publicity.

The Worst Industries for Customer Service

If you have wondered how your overall industry stacks up from a satisfaction standpoint, check out the linked article below. It outlines the results from a quarterly study customer satisfaction survey done by Zendesk, a company that supplies businesses with customer service software. The article points out the five industries with the worst customer satisfaction ratings for the second quarter of 2013.

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/worst-industries-customer-103023218.html

For information and strategies on how you and your organization can build enhanced customer service skills and create a more customer-centric environment, check out these books by Robert W. Lucas –  Customer Service Skills for  Success; How to Be a Great Call Center Representative, and Please Every Customer: Delivering Stellar Customer Service Across Cultures.

About Robert C. Lucas

Bob Lucas has been a trainer, presenter, customer service expert, and adult educator for over four decades. He has written hundreds of articles on training, writing, self-publishing, and workplace learning skills and issues. He is also an award-winning author who has written thirty-seven books on topics such as, writing, relationships, customer service, brain-based learning, and creative training strategies, interpersonal communication, diversity, and supervisory skills. Additionally, he has contributed articles, chapters, and activities to eighteen compilation books. Bob retired from the U.S. Marine Corps in 1991 after twenty-two years of active and reserve service.

Make Money Writing Books: Proven Profit Making Strategies for Authors by Robert W. Lucas at Amazon.com.

The key to successfully making money as an author and/or self-publisher is to brand yourself and your company and to make yourself and your book(s) a household name. Part of this is face-to-face interaction with people at trade shows, library events, book readings, book store signings, blogging or guest blogging on a topic related to their book(s). Another strategy involves writing articles and other materials that show up online and are found when people search for a given topic related to a topic about which the author has written.

If you need help building an author platform, branding yourself and your book(s) or generating recognition for what you do, Make Money Writing Books will help. Bob’s popular book addresses a multitude of ideas and strategies that you can use to help sell more books and create residual and passive income streams. The tips outlined in the book are focused to help authors but apply to virtually any professional trying to increase personal and product recognition and visibility.

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