Policy
Every organisation, business and even person lives by “policies”. For organisations, they’re usually written down and given to employees to read when they join. For individuals, their “policy” is the personal code by which they live.
I was recently at a store at which I heard an employee explaining to a customer that they couldn't take back goods because it was “policy”. The usual expectation in circumstances when one returns goods is that if one brings them back to the point of purchase along with the sales receipt, one will obtain either a refund or be allowed to exchange (say), faulty goods for ones that work.
In this case, the customer wanted to exchange an item that was more than one week old (but still in its packaging, so therefore untouched) for one of a different colour. They didn't want their money back, just a simple exchange. This particular item had been bought as a gift. The sales staff was explaining that the store couldn't accept returned items after more than 2 days because it was “policy”.
The staff concerned was in a difficult situation. Their job was to follow policy, even though in this case it was unfair on the customer and was clearly resulting in ill will towards the business. Whatever the legal position vis-à-vis the return of goods, two people were in a situation not of their own making.
Whilst the employee at times seemed to be almost “hiding” behind the phrase “It’s our policy” (they couldn't do anything else), they weren’t in a position which gave them any choice. They also hadn’t been trained to put things in such a way as to explain why the policy existed (I suspect that they themselves didn’t know).
“Policy” is intended to keep an organisation running smoothly. At times, however, it interferes with good staff relations and/or good customer service and relations. In the case above, a strict returns policy should have been explained to the customer when they bought the item. Equally, a degree of flexibility could have been possible as the goods were still in “mint” condition.
If our policies stop us from providing great service to our customers, shouldn't we be changing them? If, for whatever reason, we can't, should we be explaining the impact they have to customers when they buy goods?
Communication is key, as with most customer interactions. If we communicate well, we may be able to avoid a lot of unpleasantness.
I have spent more than half my life delivering change in different world markets from the most developed to “emerging” economies. With more than 20 years in international financial services around the world running different operations and lending businesses, I started my own Consultancy to provide solutions for improving performance, productivity and risk management. I work with individuals, small businesses, charities, quoted companies and academic institutions across the world. An international speaker, trainer, author and fund-raiser, I can be contacted by email. My websiteprovides a full picture of my portfolio of services. For strategic questions that you should be asking yourself, follow me at @wkm610.
Labels: Customer Care, Selling, Strategy
Simple Language is Key
I recently received a message on LinkedIn that started, I am [name removed] from [name of company removed”, an FnB company in the B2B SaaS space helping restaurants retain better and build their brand online.”.
By this time, many would have deleted the message. What I think the gentleman meant to say was “My name is … and I am [title] for [name of company]. We specialise in providing Software as a Service to restaurants to help them retain customers and build awareness of their services online.”
Whilst this may not appear much of a change, it removes the jargon. When we're selling to someone we don't know, we need to know who they are and what signals they understand. If we’re face to face with them, we can see whether they’re male or female, younger or older, and may even be able to hazard a highly subjective guess at their wealth, sophistication, educational level, economic success and PC literacy. The next part of the interaction is to check whether these guesses are right.
When we’re contacting them over the phone or (in this case) LinkedIn, we only have a name.
We could do some research on LinkedIn, Facebook, Google or others to see if they have a profile and picture. If there’s little/nothing, there may be something available about their business.
Whatever happens, an introduction in simple language is best. My own reaction if someone approaches me with nothing but jargon is, “If I can't understand you, can I trust you?” More to the point, I will probably (as I did) just ignore the message and spend my time on things I do understand. The product on offer may be just what’s needed, but if a busy business owner can't understand the message quickly without having to look up “SaaS” or similar, they're unlikely to respond.
“Plain English“ is becoming the standard in certain UK businesses, mainly due to customers complaining that they can’t understand terms and conditions or other aspects of their relationship. One of my banks has gone as far as re-heading the columns we know as “Debits” and “Credits” to “Money Out” and “Money In”.
Jargon doesn't impress. When talking with peers in the same industry, it’s fine. When talking to customers, simple language works best. If they understand it, they're more likely to trust the seller.
I have spent more than half my life delivering change in different world markets from the most developed to “emerging” economies. With more than 20 years in international financial services around the world running different operations and lending businesses, I started my own Consultancy to provide solutions for improving performance, productivity and risk management. I work with individuals, small businesses, charities, quoted companies and academic institutions across the world. An international speaker, trainer, author and fund-raiser, I can be contacted by email. My websiteprovides a full picture of my portfolio of services. For strategic questions that you should be asking yourself, follow me at @wkm610.
Labels: Customer Care, Selling, Strategy
Technology: Pain or Pleasure?
I saw an amazing infographic that justified the use of technology in disrupting what one might think of as “traditional” industries or services. It went like this:
Netflix did not kill Blockbuster.
Ridiculous late fees did.
Uber did not kill the taxi business.
Limited access and fare control did.
Apple did not kill the music industry.
Being forced to buy full-length albums did.
Amazon did not kill other retailers.
Poor customer service and experience did.
Airbnb isn’t killing the hotel industry.
Limited availability and pricing options are.
Technology by itself isn’t the disruptor. Not being customer-centric is the biggest threat to any business.
Whether one agrees with all the above is moot. What the message is though is clear: if you don't look after your customers, technology has evolved to the extent that it can take business away from any organisation that can’t provide a great experience.
There are some things I won’t buy online (however great Amazon’s refund policy and process are – and by the way, they’re terrific!). I suspect that all of us have certain things that we like to see and feel/hold/touch/test before committing to parting with large sums of money. However, there are certain things we will buy “sight unseen” (except for a picture) based on what we see on a website and any comments from previous buyers.
I have also come across instances where “technology” itself can’t provide a “customer-centric” service. Most often, this manifests itself is so-called “help desks” not responding to email queries, or sending standardised answers. Apple, in my opinion, are particularly prone to this as they tend to answer requests for support by sending links to articles on their customer forums. The problem with this is that some of those answers either seem to assume a level of computer awareness approaching genius level, or are written in a language few can understand.
So yes, even “technology” can get it wrong. If the technology and its developers aren’t sufficiently customer-centric, the service will suffer the same fate as the industries above. Technology isn’t the answer in itself, it’s simply another means to an end – great customer experience. The problem is that too many forget this…
I have spent more than half my life delivering change in different world markets from the most developed to “emerging” economies. After more than 20 years in the global financial services industry running different service, operations and lending businesses, I started my own Performance Management Consultancy to offer solutions for improving performance, productivity and risk management. I work with individuals, small businesses, charities, quoted companies and academic institutions. An international speaker, trainer, author and fund-raiser, I can be contacted by email. My websiteprovides a full picture of my portfolio of services. For strategic questions that you should be asking yourself, follow me at @wkm610.
Labels: Customer Care, Leadership, Productivity, Selling, Strategy, Teamwork
