Sound Wisdom Blog
How to Handle Difficult Customers by Shep Hyken
Not long ago I covered six ways to handle angry customers. Often an angry customer and a difficult customer are the same. But that’s not always true. Sometimes difficult customers aren’t angry. They are just tough and demanding. That said, the techniques I cover in both of these posts can work, with a little tweak or variation depending on the situation. So, after you read this, I urge you to go back and read the original article. This is a follow-up with another half dozen techniques to manage angry and/or difficult customers.
Customer Service versus Customer Experience…What’s the Difference? by Shep Hyken
“Customer service is not a department that deals with problems and complaints. It’s a philosophy to be embraced by every employee.”
Some say that customer service is what happens when the customer experience goes wrong.
That’s part of it, but it’s not the whole picture. If you’ve followed my work, you know that customer service is not a department that deals with problems and complaints. It’s a philosophy to be embraced by every employee, from the CEO or owner to the most recently hired. It’s how you interact with people, both your internal and external customers.
Companies’ Responses to COVID Provide Insights into Handling a Crisis by Shep Hyken
During tough times of any type, certain businesses struggle. The first reaction of many is to tighten expenses and reduce employees. Some go out of business. Then there are certain industries that may not be impacted. For example, during the pandemic, grocery stores flourished. Certain online retailers, like Amazon, had a banner year. And there are companies that you think would have been impacted, but somehow they did well—and continue to do so.
The Most Important Measurement in Business by Shep Hyken
It’s important to know how customers feel about the experience they just had. We should always be looking at those experiences and finding ways to make them better. Feedback and ratings will help drive that effort. But in the end, knowing what percentage of customers come back, how often they come back, and how much they buy when they do come back, is a metric to pay close attention to.
Here’s How to Get Customers to Say, “I’ll Be Back!” by Shep Hyken
Many companies think they have to compare themselves to their competition. They want to know what the competition is doing that they are not. And when they figure it out, you know what they do? They copy them.
It’s not a bad idea to do that, but it’s not the best idea either. If all you do is compare yourself to your competitors, you may be missing your best opportunities to create the best experience for your customers.
Always Do Your Best by Shep Hyken
Our mantra at Shepard Presentations is to Always Be Amazing. Those three words are very important. They are totally consistent with what we stand for, what I write about in my books and articles, and how we conduct ourselves at work every day.