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Customer Service Information |
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Customer First Customer Service
The world of customer service is rapidly changing. Thirty years ago, telephones and mail services were the norm for most companies. Now, faxes, email and web sites offer more options to customers than they've ever had before. It takes a dedicated team to keep loyal customers coming back and new clients coming in. Customer Service is about that ultimate contact between people. It's about a potential or existing customer/client walking away with the intent of buying your product either for the first time or again. Employees make countless decisions every day that directly or indirectly affect customers and strengthen or weaken your company's reputation and bottom line. Forging lasting relationships with customers leads to long-term loyalty and referrals. The bottom line is that excellent customer service may be the most important factor in improving a company's bottom line. Customer Service is about offering solutions that are best for each customer. As a company, you need to offer every option available---addressing everything that's important to each customer. Focus on each customer as if he were the only customer. Everyone at your company can work together to turn customer responses into key performance indicators by: ? Giving the customer confidence. When they speak out about a concern, you address it within a reasonable amount of time (call back before the end of the day or tomorrow with their answer). ? Giving the customer specifics. Tell them exactly what you are doing or going to do and when (I'm going to research the invoice and will call you back within an hour). ? Fulfill your promise. Fulfill it within the period given at your initial customer contact. ? Be reliable. Deliver what the customer ordered, when they want it (ask the customer to be sure!) and make sure it's delivered at the price agreed to. Every employee plays an important role in fulfilling each customer's needs: 1. Buyers/Purchasing Agents --- maintain and replenish the inventory at the best prices possible, making sure you have in stock what all your customers want/need. 2. Distribution Center/Warehouse Personnel --- receive the product, verify quantity and condition and put the product away in the right location so the pickers/pullers/stockers can easily and accurately find the product and package/load the product for delivery? in some cases placing the right stops in the right order on a delivery truck. 3. Drivers/Delivery Personnel --- delivers the product, with little to no damage, finds the correct items for each customer easily and efficiently. They also resolve any customer issues at the time of delivery (calling the center/home office/plant to resolve any billing issues or product issues, or replace damaged items at no additional cost to the customer). 4. Sales Support/Customer Service --- takes the customer orders, ensure the prices are correct and deliveries are scheduled for the correct days and times. 5. Sales Consultant/Team/Person --- works one-on-one with the customer, taking their orders, making sure they are offered new items, resolving issues and adding new customer accounts. 6. Management Team/Owner(s) ---- provide any and all support to their employees to ensure the customers needs are met as promised. They provide a working environment that stimulates employees to be proactive, productive and pro-company?these all lead to happy customers both internal and external. What will make your company stand out? over and above?other companies?How responsible, responsive and timely are you meeting your customers needs? The customer doesn't want to know what it took to get his product there and he doesn't want to hear excuses why his product and/or delivery were delayed. He ordered and expects delivery as promised, so he can go about his business without enduring any inconvenience whatsoever. The customer understands the importance of measuring their own performance, so they are going to require that the people servicing them---YOU---understand their needs at a much higher level. Partner with your customers, to provide not only products but also knowledge, expertise, follow-up and execution. For these and other reasons, all company employees---including management and owners---must have good manners?publicly, on the phone or through email, letters or notes. You must also be accurate and neat and willing to 'go the extra mile'. It's important that the customer 'feels good'. Sometimes a simple gesture?being friendly or simply smiling both in person and over the phone does the trick. Friendliness costs nothing and requires little effort but is worth millions when it comes to building long-term lasting relationships with customers that lead to ongoing loyalty and endless referrals. Friendliness is, by far, the most important factor in improving a company's bottom line. Besides---it's contagious! What it boils down to is this:What a customer likes the most about any company/distributor isn't their computers?it's their employees! Not only do the employees represent the company, when they contact prospective and current customers/clients, they are the company. How each employee performs reflects directly on what people think of your company overall. In summary, satisfy your customer and you satisfy your bottom line. F. McDuffee has been specially trained by one of the masters of copy--- Michael Masterson ---through The American Writers & Artists Institute. As The Words TurnŠ will provide creative copy that will entice new and rebuild established relationships---leading to repeat business. Hire an experienced writer... one who will eliminate the wastebasket potential of your marketing materials. Visit As The Words TurnŠ for more information on services available.
MORE RESOURCES: Pricing, AI, DPA, Customer Service Tools; Bill Emerson Interview; Training This Week; STRATMOR CD Workshop Mortgage News Daily AI Chatbots Are Ready to Talk to Customers. Sort of. The Wall Street Journal Samsung Electronics Canada Customer Service Wins Bronze in âBest Use of Omni Channel' at International CX Awards 2024 Yahoo Finance Qme secures $3M funding to streamline customer service across Africa Techpoint Africa Building Competitive Advantage in Customer Care Through AI The Business of Fashion 311 Customer Service Center City and County of San Francisco FTC Finalizes Order with H&R Block Requiring Them to Pay $7 Million and Overhaul Advertising and Customer Service Practices for 2025 and 2026 Tax Seasons Federal Trade Commission News Ikea expands integration with assembly services platform Chain Store Age JEA is inviting bids for 19-story downtown tower that used to be its headquarters The Florida Times-Union Consumers Demand Enterprises Modernize to Improve Ailing Customer Experience, Says Research Business Wire American Lamprecht Enhances Visibility for Air and Ocean Shipments Using Descartes Solution Supply Chain Dive Women in Fintech: A Conversation About Loyalty Ecosystems in Financial Services with Becky Hill Finovate Neterra Enhances Its Customer Service Monitoring System Total Telecom Gladly Named a Leader in Constellation ShortList⢠for Digital Customer Service and Support PR Newswire QueueKioskâ˘: Saving Thousands of Active-Duty Man Hours & Improving Customer Service at the MPF Office Kiosk Marketplace Finally, hard data on a real-world AI business use case: Itâs huge for customer service Sherwood News Liverpool reinvents customer service through digital platform ComputerWeekly.com CSPI & Nutrition Action Customer Service CSPI Newsroom Firm to expand customer service in Yorkshire with new service centre Golf Business News Textron Aviation to Open New Service Facility at Essendon Fields Airport, Expanding Capabilities in Australia Pittsburg Morning Sun Help Department of Taxation and Finance Six Game-Changing AI Customer Service and CX Strategies Hospitality Net Consumer Directed Personal Assistance Program (CDPAP) New York State Department of Health Cigna's customer-centric strategy could ripple across the sector Modern Healthcare Major AI Success Story: Giftify Achieves 40% Faster Customer Response Times with Enterprise AI StockTitan Customer Service Center apps.tampagov.net 311 - Birminghamâs Customer Service Center City of Birmingham (.gov) Palm Coast Utility Department Celebrated for Enhanced Customer Service City of Palm Coast DESCO's meeting held to enhance customer service and power reliability The Business Standard 70% of customer service to rely on AI by 2028: Gartner Outsource Accelerator Customer Service & Support Hillsborough County (.gov) My experience as a Customer Service and Sales Intern Toby Shapiro's Experience at A.D. Sutton and Sons Chapman University 3 Ways To Quickly Make $50 GOBankingRates Deltaâs annual profit-sharing day spotlights âpeople firstâ strategy The Atlanta Journal Constitution Welcome to Riverside Public Utilities City of Riverside (.gov) Celebrate Customer Service Week City of Riverside (.gov) Which companies have the best customer service? Amazon, Shein, Costco among top-rated brands USA TODAY Con Edison Proposes Investments to Meet Growing Demand for Clean Energy, Enhance Customer Support T&D World Fulton County Recognized as a 2024 National Customer Service All Star Fulton County Government Contact Reverb Support Reverb Charter Names Robyn Tolva Senior Vice President, Customer Service Reliability | Charter Charter Communications Clem Allen named 2024 Barbara Lezczynski Customer Service Award winner! Milwaukee Public Schools Corporate Job Areas - Service Centers & Business Enablement Target Corporate America's Best Customer Service 2025 Newsweek 8 strategies for using AI for customer service in 2025 Sprout Social Attorney General Bonta Demands Better Customer Service for Californians California Department of Justice AI for Customer Service Market worth $47.82 Billion by 2030 - Exclusive Report by MarketsandMarkets⢠PR Newswire Can artificial intelligence rescue customer service? The Economist Permitsâcustomer services King County Lifeline Support for Affordable Communications Federal Communications Commission Department of Transportation Governor Tom Wolf President Biden Announces New Customer Service Actions, Targets Subscriptions and âDoom Loopsâ CX Today 11 key elements of excellent customer service Business.com Launch of New Districtwide Customer Service Platform The School District of Philadelphia How to balance speed and quality customer service Sprout Social |
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