Looking for some suggestions on how to improve your customer service and the overall customer experience?
We know that delivering a great customer experience is critical to the success of a business. Without customers, what’s the point?
Customer service is one component of that customer experience, albeit a major customer touchpoint.
In honor of Customer Service Week last week, OneReach asked 63 industry influencers to weigh in on the #1 way that companies can improve customer service. I was excited to be asked for my thoughts, and my response probably won’t surprise anyone: fix the employee experience first. What I loved seeing is that this was the top theme among the group. The chart below shows how the recommendations broke down.
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| Source: OneReach The Influencers: Customer Service Report 2015 |
By the way, I love that the second most-frequently mentioned suggestion is to walk in the customer’s shoes. That would be #2 on my list of things to do, as well.
To get the specific recommendations made by each influencer, download the report.
By treating employees well, you end up with a first-class workforce that will, in turn, demonstrate a good work ethic and great customer service. -Gary Kelly, Southwest Airlines CEO
I just read a great book called Rules to Break and Laws to Follow by Don Peppers. He makes the point that customers have to trust the company they are doing business with and that trust is really hard to come by if employees don't trust the company either
I guess that backs up your point.
That's a great point, James. It's another example of how the employee experience drives the customer experience.