Too Legit?

Your reputation is always visible.We are in a new age of customer service.  Things are changing.  I may not go so far as to say we're at a "zero tolerance" level, but businesses now have to live to a higher standard.

The online standard.

Yelp is a smartphone app/website review tool for restaurants. Edmunds.com? Same thing for cars. Rottentomatoes.com is this for movies. Consumers are armed with a wide array of options with which they can review, complement or bash your business.  Just about everyone has a Facebook account, many have LinkedIn and a growing number use Twitter.  Some have set up partnering between the three social tools so one posted message goes to multiple social media sites. And once they do any of the above, it sticks, it gains traction and it gets noticed. It becomes searchable on that system and also on the web with Google, Bing and Yahoo. Gone are the days of a person leaving disappointed and silent about a poor experience. People can access their apps and the web via smartphones to issue a product or service review instantly! Uh oh...

If your service isn't A+, be prepared to hear it. If your products aren't high quality, fasten your seatbelts.  The costs to your business in "acquiring"a dissapointed customer just went up. You know the truth, so many people do their homework with the Internet before making a purchase. Imagine someone finds your business online due to your shiny and polished website, your SEO efforts and your pay-per-click expenditures. Then they see a Better Business Bureau posting with a customer complaint or rant. How likely is it that they'll use your business with that information staring them in the face? Studies used to claim that one bad customer would tell 11 or so other people about your businesses' ineptitude.  That's changed. Today, many more than just a dozen word of mouthers will discover an online complaint about your service.  And think of this - because its online, the issue in question will remain long after the bad taste leaves the customer's tongue. Almost like it happened yesterday, everyday, for years to come.  Franchisees need to realize this and go double-scoop on all customer service issues effective immediately. When we deal with customer complaints here at our office on behalf of hundreds of franchisees wearing our brand names, we see both sides. The franchisee has a business to run and need to be profitable.  The customer expects service, quality and a fair price. Thankfully we don't get too many that aren't handled at the store/franchisee level. Those that do make it to our office are usually disagreements where both parties have already taken a shot at a resolution and they look for us to be the deciding voice. Conflicts are best handled where they started however, between the two parties directly involved, each with a stake in the outcome. 

If you can't avoid a service-related disagreement, then what? Before we look at the options and the possible outcomes, some questions to ponder. How much do you pay to get a customer, to begin a business relationship? How much do you pay to get just a sales lead? What does your advertising and marketing cost? Knowing these answers and considering them prior to resolving issues is important. Here's why.  If you pay $50, $75, $100 to get a customer, do you choose to argue about a job that's value is $35?  It sounds crazy, but I've seen people do this! They can justify bickering with a customer over a logo charge, which was $35 (and cost the store $15-20!).  The customer, after this experience, is not only less likely to come back, he or she is very likely to spread the word about their dealings to others. And trust me, their assessment of the incident will be 101% one-sided. How do you stand to fare in this situation? Having paid more to earn the customer than the issue at hand is worth, it is CLEARLY beneficial to please the customer, bow on the charges you'll incur, and most importantly, keep and satisfy the customer.  You have options. You can do nothing and allow the customer to rail on your business online. You can compromise and come to an "in the middle" solution.  This may work. There is some risk that charging the customer more money for the resolution could prompt he or she to post negative comments anyway, soured on his or her experience.  In general, customers will wait longer for a suitable remedy and pay you with their time, but they are less likely to pay you more money for a perceived "mistake."  Here's where excellent customer service practices should surface.  Number one is being accountable and owning the issue. You may not (in your mind) be wrong, but swallowing hard and making things right is imperative.  Recommit to a new deadline. Offer delivery, a discount on the next purchase, or something free that will sweeten the customer's experience as you mend a torn relationship.  Raised voices and bravado will not help, nor will washing your hands of the issue and sending the customer out among the masses dissatisfied.  You exist because customers choose to give you their choice, their loyalty and their money.  Don't let this "business basic" elude your consciousness!

Not everything on the Internet is true.  Another "Uh-oh" moment.  What if you're wrongly represented online as being unfair, uncaring and poor in service standards? If every consumer has a button that can launch an online barrage at your business post-sale, what to do?  Prepare beforehand for this possibility by bolstering your online presence with positive, satisfied customer reviews. Your best clients keep coming back for a reason - do you know the reason? Let them review and represent how you've helped them on your Facebook business site, post as many testimonials on your websiteas you can, link to their online assets that may positively mention your contributon to their success. Have customers give you LinkedIn recommendations, the new digital "thank you" card.  In doing this, you're preloading the online scene with good, sincere and truthful information that speaks well of your efforts.  If a maligned review appears, it will now reside among many good experiences shared by your advocates. No company has 100% satisfaction across the board, as a result it is not uncommon to read of instances where a customer would not be contented. Look to keep this to a minimum, especially online.  Do not be tempted to arguing online and offering rebuttle after rebuttle for the world to see.  These discussions are best held in person and offline.  Remember that it's easier for someone to be courageous in their attitude and demands online, a bit tougher on the phone (where a voice gives clues as to intents) and still more difficult in person, body language being what it is. Look to always employ the method that can best solve the problem. 

The online spectrum allows for so many new ways for a business to promote its high points. Customer reviews are a big part of succeeding now that everyone's voice can be heard.  Do your very best to build a culture in your business that is customer service centric and online aware. Everyone knows of amazing stories of how businesses redouble their efforts to keep and enamour their clients. You have to adopt that mentality towards the customers in your business. Your team has to become better than just "good" at surpassing customer expectations through their attitudes and their deeds. The "great" make it to the top of the list when it comes to online reputation management. To be great, you have to be uncommonly prepared to give when you may not feel like it, sometimes admit fault when you're not wrong, and send your customers away with an experience so dazzling they'll stop and tell others about you.  Years ago it would be enough just to be good at this.  It was sufficient to be simply legitimate. Now the game has changed. It's time to be "too legit" in your customer service efforts. Get started.

Re-entry...

World Expo 2010I've been missing from these parts - concentrating more on Facebook and Twitter posts and updates. I am overdue for commenting on what I see happening and how I feel about events.  We succeeded in throwing the conference we call Expo 2010 Orlando, producing a great show, working with suppliers and adding kinship to an admittedly smaller group than I'm used to seeing.  I feel those that attended the show came back to their businesses with an advantage. They said,"Yes", paid to attend, did flights, hotels, travel, and put themselves in the right spot to grow. The feedback I've received about the event was very positive. You'd expect me to say that, right? I thought that the "best of the best" believed enough of what we had said about the importance of the event to show up and build. The franchisees that are less "in tune" and "in touch" usually don't come to the event - not a surprise. They have a problem being fed more of what they heard at training, which they most likely didn't follow, so our Expo is like salt - sprinkled delicately into the wound. The cash-strapped (which is a taller number than in previous years) couldn't make the decision to spend more. We made phone calls trying to persuade them to come and help find resources and the remedies, but it's easier to not chance it and say, "Next year." I hope they make good on that statement!

I didn't spearhead the Expo this year, which felt peculiar. I knew what was going on, what should be happening, but didn't have the "keys to the building" as in years past. I thought it would be easier, attending, participating, having more time to be involved with our franchisees, all that.  I was correct until about a month before the event - that's when the Expo committee saw potential holes in the itinerary and needed help. The common theme of,"Dave's not running the conference this year, he can do that" rang through their heads. I had so many diverse things to do that all required different skills, what a crush this became as the Expo grew closer.  For example, I was responsible for the Saturday Roundtable Sessions, from getting the best topics to matching franchisees and Corporate staff with their proper tables and scheduling. I was responsible for the technology and A/V equipment that we brought to Orlando - cyber cafe, registration printers, laptops, projectors, computers and things all over the trade show.  Find a guest speaker? How about Dana M. Nelson, that was a bunch of fun for me, but time consuming, too.  Do a General Session technology update, as usual. Emcee the event with Brenda? Yup, got that one, too. I had to be very organized  and aware of what was happening at all times - for fear I'd miss something I was supposed to be doing! 

I'm glad I was a part of Expo 2010, this year from a different vantage point. To those franchisees that attended, I've already heard from so many of you thanking us and saying what a good event it was. I always enjoy the down time with friends from around the world - we do that well, don't we? (You know who you are people!) If you didn't attend, we have plenty of the materials on out new UFGtv site, downloadable through OSCAR, pictures on Flickr, all that. Expo was a whirlwind of planning and executing as always.  I have never missed one, Europe, Australia, USA, all notched off!  It's good to be back, even if in a different role.