Tag Archives: customer service

Mistakes Happen…

by on January 20, 2008 in Life

…it’s how we deal with mistakes that count. The universe must want me to learn something important because within 30 hours, two distinct situations occurred to illustrate this point. In one instance, I was on the mistake-maker side and in the second instance I was on the receiving end of someone else’s mistake. And in both cases, I’m not at all sure that I handled the mistakes well. Here’s another installment of my not-so-newly created series called I Screw Up So You Don’t Have To.

Mistake #1: Chris as Mistake-Maker
I’m working with a client on several different projects, each one different in its complexity, scale, and timeframe. It’s a client that I like and enjoy working with. And I feel that we have a good working relationship. We first discussed these projects back in November and I worked on them up through December. Then I took a two week holiday retreat and promptly neglected this client’s work when I returned. It wasn’t intentional and the work wasn’t entirely forgotten – it just took a back seat to other work that felt more pressing these past few weeks.

You’re probably thinking it’s not too surprising that I received rather curt and angry voicemail and email messages on Friday asking for an immediate update. My apology was met with, “That does me no good. What are you going to do? I expect a full accounting by Tuesday.” Now, I have a client who undoubtedly feels pissed and betrayed…and truly for good reason.

Mistake #2: Chris as Mistake-Receiver
The next day, I took the family to one of our favorite local pizza joints for dinner. We ordered a small cheese pizza for the girls and a medium meateaters for Carrie and me. Around 15 minutes later, our server showed up with the meateaters, but no cheese. We all thought that maybe he’d be right back to bring the cheese pizza. A couple of minutes passed and it becomes clear that a cheese pizza is not coming. So I visited the register and asked about the cheese pizza. I got blank, confused looks in return. There was no cheese pizza. Now, I’m starting to get pissed and insisted that they need to get moving on making the pizza that I paid for. Then, one of the folks from behind the counter came and asked me again whether I paid for a pizza and asked me to confirm the size, crust, toppings, political affiliation, next-of-kin, etc. He said, “We’re just trying to track down this order.” Okay, now I’m definitely pissed. He’s here trying to track down an order rather than make the actual damn pizza. I make my second trip to the counter and discover that apparently the cheese pizza was not included in the original order (but it should have been because the gal taking the order asked me what type of crust we wanted). The kick in the pants was the fact they still charged me $2.64 even though I argued that I should not be charged at all.

Roughly 13 minutes later, the gal who took our original order brought the pizza and apologized. She said, “I didn’t do it on purpose.” The thing was that she was right. She didn’t intentionally screw up and I told her so.

So, what’s the learning here?

Learning #1: Be more forgiving of mistakes. Rarely does someone screw up on purpose…that would be blatant and willful sabotage. Yeah, sometimes screw ups are due to incompetence or lack of care on the part of another person. But more often than not, mistakes are made for more innocent reasons. I guess at the root of how we view mistakes is whether we believe people are good or bad. And what I need to remember is that perfection is bullshit and I’m immensely capable of screwing things up at a moment’s notice. It’s the whole glass house thing.

Learning #2: Accept the mistake and move forward. Coming back to my intro, mistakes happen and it’s what we do after the mistake that matters most. If we screw up yet blow it off, then we’ve compounded the mistake by not taking ownership and figuring out how to make things right. Imagine my reaction if the pizza folks had – rather than try to make it into my problem – quickly said they would bring us a free cheese pizza and some breadsticks for the girls while they waited. For my client, I now have the job of determining what her “breadsticks” are.

Learning #3: Be more emotionally-aware. Being on the mistake-maker side, I understand my client’s emotions. She’s angry and frustrated because I’ve put her in a bad spot with her executives and board members. However, there’s a part of me that’s a bit embarrassed by my behavior as a mistake-receiver. There are times when I allow my emotions to get the better of me and raise more hell than I should to get what I want. Even those of us who coach and advise others on how to best navigate professional relationships are challenged to heed our own words. See learning #1 above.

Learning #4: Keep the focus on learning. This post is my example of learning from mistakes. It’s my way of reflecting on what I can do better in the future. Mistakes aren’t bad…they’re essential if we choose to grow. If we’re not making mistakes, we’re not trying hard enough. So, let’s keep learning.

Being A Good Customer Is Good For Your Own Work

by on November 18, 2007 in Business

Now that I’m out of the non-profit world and in the corporate world, I’m more conscious of public perception of companies. In particular, the perceptions of the bloggerati who can sometimes be unforgiving in their attitudes. As a customer, I will openly admit that I’ve grown less patient with companies over the years. If I feel screwed over just one time, that’s the end of that “relationship”. Is this what we’ve come to expect? Companies need to meet our own sense of perfection or else?

And then we wonder why our own work is a less-than-fantastic experience. It’s actually a vicious cycle. The customer demands their own personally perfect interaction which puts pressure on the company to respond. Then, those of us inside the company or non-profit have to work harder than ever to meet these ever-escalating customer expectations. All of this may indeed explain the long hours, intense competitive pressure, and lack of fulfillment that makes our work a joyless pursuit.

Want to change this dynamic? Good…it’s simple (I’ll leave whether it’s easy up to you).

First, stop being an overly demanding and unfair customer. Since when has the one strike you’re out rule applied in baseball or one foul you’re out in basketball? Never. So, if a company screws up don’t give up on them. Same thing applies to a restaurant, a shop, an online service. Talk to someone who can make things happen and let them know that you’ve been disappointed and then…

Second, start being a coaching customer. If that company screws up, let them know what they did and how they can make it better. If your restaurant server’s service isn’t up to your expectations, let them know…don’t just tell the manager after the meal is over.

Third, and finally, make each transaction about more than just money. Within that financial trade is the opportunity for greater value. Be the kind of customer you want to work with in your own work. Be respectful and reasonable and caring. Remember that you get what you give.

I know some companies aren’t going to get this. They may shrug off your attempts at being a good customer, but I’d argue that these companies are actually few in number. Trust me…within each company there is at least one person who gives a damn as to the organization succeeds or fails. Find them and help them. And in the process, you might just be coaching your next customer.

Creating You-Focused Value

by on January 11, 2007 in Business

When you get positive feedback from your customers, which would you rather hear (or read):

You are a rock star!
or
You are a rock star because you helped me figure out how to solve this problem that’s been a major pain in the ass for months!
or
I feel like a rock star because you helped me figure out how to solve this problem that’s been a major pain in the ass for months!

That third option tends to throw us for a loop. I mean, how are you supposed to take a compliment when the giver focuses on themselves and how they feel. They should be giving you all the credit, right?

If that’s your thinking, then consider a different view. It’s always gratifying to hear how great we are. We want to feel appreciated, particularly after working to help someone else. And if you’re in the services industry and managing relationships, it’s beneficial to know that the work you do is making a difference for the customer. It’s useful feedback. But consider the ultimate purpose behind your helping action. Did you do it for your own gain or to truly help someone else?

Kathy Sierra puts this into the context of a user product review. The juicy bit is toward the bottom of her post:

We don’t want our users talking about the company or the product. All that matters is how they feel about themselves as a result of interacting with our product. How they feel about us has little impact on whether they’ll become loyal (let alone passionate) users. All that matters is what we’ve helped them do or be (emphasis mine).

That last sentence makes a huge difference in our interactions and relationships with our customers. It takes the notion of providing service and begins the transformation toward delivering value. Service is about what we do for others (me-focused). Value is what they get out of the transaction (you-focused).

This idea can even extrapolated out into different areas. Even if you don’t work with customers, consider its ramifications for other individuals in your life. Aim to create you-focused value when helping your kids or volunteering at a local soup kitchen. Remember that it truly is all about them.

Finally, use this as a template when it’s time to pass on feedback to someone else. If you start off a compliment with “You’re a rock star,” finish it off with specifically why they rock. And if you’re feeling adventurous and think the recipient will fully grasp your meaning, tell them “I feel like a rock star because…”