One of the hallmarks of a great customer service rep is someone who knows his/her customers so well, s/he can understand what the customer may need, often before the customer does. This is not an easily taught skill. I learned some of what it took from various jobs....
Grow Your Key Talent Blog
Are your staff doing your customers a disservice?
No one wants to be pushy or smarmy. No one wants to irritate or alienate customers. However, nearly everyone likes to help others. So why do customer service reps -- who probably have the most frequent contact with your customers -- find it challenging to suggest...
You think you have some tough customers?
I was stunned at the stories -- all true -- of demanding, self-absorbed customers. The customers all had one thing in common -- they'd stayed at one of several elite hotels in a major European city. Regaling me with outrageous tales at dinner, a dozen concierges...
Huge customer service for giant apple
For the past 10 Christmas's, my sister and nieces have given me a 3-pound apple covered with carmel, chocolate and almonds. The yummy treat lasts a long time as I slice off a morsel or two for dessert. This year she gave me my gift early and I anxiously cut into it...
The magic of Turkish tea
Even if you don't understand the language being spoken, you can comprehend much of a conversation by the voice tone, facial expressions and gestures. So I watched carefully as my Turkish friend and owner of English Test School in Eskisehir, Tamer Ozdemir, navigated a...
Confessions of a leadership-training agnostic
Many of those delivering leadership training have an almost religious fervor in their conviction for it. These ardent fans can be staunch if they've grown up in organizational cultures that didn't allow or encourage any push back or critical thinking about the...
Are you coachable?
I do a lot of 1-on-1 executive and entrepreneurial coaching. Which means I have a lot of pre-engagement conversations with people who would like to create bigger results and think coaching could help. But some aren't coachable -- yet they don't know it. Why do I say...
Be someone’s angel
Nearly every day we have opportunities to help someone -- often strangers. Yet do you take this opening to make someone's day, even if it means delaying your own path a few minutes? Sometimes we're too busy scurrying to an appointment. But if you have the flexibility,...
How to alienate loyal customers
A favorite restaurant is an exemplar at using email and social media for customer retention. They send weekly customer appreciation 1/2-price deals to their email list and Facebook fans. For years, they've had a loyalty card where you'd get one punch for every $10...