Multi-Unit Franchisee Magazine Issue III, 2016 | Page 74
CustomerService BY JOHN D I J U L I U S
Speed Thrills
Today’s customers expect instant response
T
ime and speed of service are critical to the customer experience.
Everyone in the organization has
to understand how valuable time
is to the customer. In today’s busy world,
it is vital for businesses to demonstrate
to their customers that their time is always regarded as a critical resource. It
doesn’t matter what industry you are in
today. Companies like Google, Zappos,
and Amazon have changed your business
because they have affected the expectations of your customers.
It’s all about time
The world of the Internet has made everything instantaneous, from information and answers to questions to getting
products into people’s hands. Today a
friend can recommend a book for you
to read, and within 30 seconds it can be
in your hands on your iPad, Kindle, or
other e-reader. Companies like Zappos and other great retailers can have a
product at your door the next morning if
you order it by 6 p.m. This has not only
changed customers’ expectations for everyone they do business with, it also has
changed their level of patience.
Today, like never before, we expect
information instantaneously. If you have
a question about something, you google
it, press a button, and it’s there. With the
world of information at their fingertips,
people hate not knowing things almost
as soon as they think them. If a company
offers a certain product, what’s the price?
Can they get a better price, faster delivery, or free delivery with another couple
of clicks on their keyboard or swipes
on their smartphone? What does the
product contain? Is it gluten-free?
Where is it from?
In the business that I own, John
Robert’s Spa, we had a client email
us inquiring if we could do her
wedding party of 12 people, which
was seven months away. By the time
our bridal party coordinator called
her back—the next day!—she had
72
booked with another spa. Her wedding
wasn’t for seven months, but the anxiety
of not knowing, for even 24 hours, drove
her crazy. Customers expect phone calls
and emails returned the same day, even
the same hour, as well as immediate sup-
The world of
the Internet has
made everything
instantaneous,
from information
and answers to
questions to getting
products into
people’s hands.
port and resolution to their issues.
Rapid response
When dealing with a customer challenge
today, this is even more urgent. If a customer complains in any channel (email,
voicemail, your social media page), with
every hour that passes and they don’t
hear back from you, they think you are
ducking them, or providing poor customer service (justified or not).
What is your company’s guideline
when it comes to responding to customer
email inquiries? Most companies I have
worked with or visited typically require
a 24-hour turnaround time to respond.
This has been the standard for quite
some time, but does it still hold true?
On a recent trip I was disappointed in
my Uber driver and expressed this when
the instant survey to rate my driver came
up. Within 5 minutes I received an email
response sent to me from a real person
at Uber referencing my specific issue.
The employee stated that I was a valued customer, that he had already processed a refund for $15 on my last trip,
and would be giving me a $15 credit to
use on my next one. My issue had been
acknowledged, reviewed, and
resolved—all within 5 minutes.
Everyone industry today
has its Uber
People have said that Uber
will have some type of affect
on just about every industry,
whether you realize it or not.
In my opinion, this is an example
of just that: Uber making an impact on the expectations customers
have when emailing or contacting
any organization. If your guideline is
responding within 24 hours, it might be
time to ask yourself if that is still acceptable in today’s world.
John R. DiJulius III, author
of The Customer Service
Revolution, is president of
The DiJulius Group, a customer service consulting firm
that works with companies
including Starbucks, Chickfil-A, Ritz-Carlton, Nestle, PwC, Lexus, and
many more. Call him at 216-839-1430 or
email [email protected].
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