A case for customer service scripts? I’ve been thinking a lot about words lately. The topic seems to be coming up everywhere for me. The power of not just what you say, your general message, but also the specific words you use to say it. This has very powerful implications in all areas of life. Power I’m only beginning to delve into the implications of. But for this email, I’ll stick to customer service. The Read more…
Because people still think they’re necessary… And because they’re a pain in the ass, for everyone involved. Customer service employees, customers, and everyone else in the business. As a customer, the last thing you ever want to do is call customer service at a company. When you’re looking for a job, call center NPC is rarely at the top of your list. And when you’re running a business, you also don’t want to spend your Read more…
And what you can do instead… Yesterday was July 4th. Independence day in the US, and just like the song, my mom’s birthday. We went to their house to celebrate, eat grilled meats, and have a good time. And as we were getting ready to leave, I noticed something. They have a calendar on the wall with all their appointments and similar things written on it. Since they retired, it has been a lot less Read more…
It’s about expectations… What does good customer service look like? What does it mean? There are as many answers to this as there are people thinking about it. Same with bad customer service, if you want to think about it that way. Some things are obvious. I’ll categorize these as “don’t be blatantly terrible.” Ignoring customers, being distracted, being incompetent, being rude, not doing what you said you’d do… That’s about all the time I’m Read more…
At least when things go wrong… Today was a busy day. I had a lot of work to do this morning for a client who launched several new membership tiers. I woke up to over 70 emails in an inbox that usually has 3 or 4. Constant chat notifications on multiple platforms. And information in short supply. I’m a big fan of the Ready, Fire, Aim approach, but this was still a shock. I got Read more…
Yes, like dogs… Customer service people love to complain about bad customers. I’ve been guilty of it myself. And sure, it can be fun to share bizarre battle stories. Like the guy who left a voicemail of himself having sex with someone. Or the guy who called from jail, guilty of cutting his wife’s head off. And these are obviously crazy one off scenarios. But there are also the more mundane ones. The ones you Read more…
It’s about the money… I used to be… not the biggest fan of live chat popups. I saw them a lot of places, and they were usually very poorly done. Intrusive, annoying, and if you actually used them, totally ineffective. They are often run by some kind of “AI” chatbot (not real AI), or almost as bad, an outsourced NPC in a huge factory farm somewhere with no knowledge of the product or customer service Read more…
Because. I did some work from Starbucks today after my haircut. There was a guy in the corner with a large coffee and small can of Coke. The whole time I was there, he alternated between sleeping and SCREAMING into his phone at someone in what sounded like Italian. Ahh, the general population. Still, I find it useful sometimes to work from a different location. If not to avoid distractions, then at least to have Read more…
Problems you caused, by taking shortcuts… A few years ago, the apartment complex I live in was sold. It was, at the time, one of the highest prices ever paid for an apartment complex. The place is huge, even has its own lake in the middle. My balcony looks out on a decent sized open field with trees towards the back leading up to the lake. I regularly see deer and coyotes out there, along Read more…
Time to take out the trash… Today’s email is inspired by a question I answered on Quora. The person asked how they should respond to a customer who accused them of “false advertising” for not including an end date on a promotional email. First of all, the premise here is silly. The lifespan of any email, especially a promotion is naturally SHORT. If it doesn’t get read, deleted, or ignored within the first day or Read more…