Ensuring quality customer service Online
Put yourself in the customers’ place. in ways that mystery shoppers can help you identify issues in your face-to-face sales experience, taking yourself through the full process online can reveal any gaps or problems with your ecommerce programs.
Exceptional Customer Service
Exceptional customer service has been proven to be the new competitive advantage in today’s economy.
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Monday 28 October 2013
UBA INTRODUCES NEW E-COMMERCE PLATFORM
Thursday 24 October 2013
WOW FACTORS THAT KEEP CUSTOMERS COMING BACK
The essential WOW factor is what separates great customer service from a mediocre one. And if you always wow your customers and prospects, they will be loyal customers for the long haul. Furthermore, they will turn into evangelists for your products/services, constantly referring prospective customers by raving about how you wow them. Find below the top 5 tips on how to wow your customers and keep them coming back:
Source www.e2wards.com
ACCESS BANK LAUNCHES CORPORATE INTERNET BANKING SOLUTION
Access Bank has introduced Nigeria’s first corporate internet banking solution with a variety of features optimised to address the traditional payment and cash management requirements of large corporate and other categories of businesses. Unveiled in Lagos Monday, the solution – Primus, is developed to address the complexity of daily business operations through effective management of payments, receivables, liquidity and supply chain.
Primus is an intelligent banking solution with interactive capacity to help businesses forecast cash flow, optimise trade services, management investment and support their internal reporting and reconciliation processes. The revolutionary internet corporate banking solution is specifically designed to enhance business efficiency by simplifying the complex dynamics of daily operations of businesses and their relationship with value chains.
Primus is one of the 200 industry defining initiatives scheduled for implementation by the bank in the coming months, Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede, Access Bank group managing director, said, while addressing a broad audience of chief executive officers and financial officers at the product launch. The introduction of Primus is Access Bank’s response to the growing need for an intelligent banking solution that supports the daily activities and operational success of businesses in Nigeria, Aig-Imoukhuede said.
Monday 21 October 2013
WHAT NEXT AFTER CUSTOMER SERVICE WEEK?
But how much more effective and engaged could we be if we paid attention to our customer service pros all 52 weeks of the year.
Customer service is not an easy job, speaking on the phone with customers can be very challenging and the people who do this for a career deserve our gratitude and appreciation. We need to recognize their contribution to our lives. Every day tens of thousands of product orders are processed thanks to a customer service agent being able to address a customer question of concern, inaccurate bills, invoice and outstanding charges are resolved and our economic engine is allowed to skip forward thanks to customer service professionals who have handled some of the rough edges off.
Of course the situation isn’t perfect: too many companies employ ‘mushroom management’ with their customer service and call center staff, too often the wizards in Marketing pull off a great campaign that the call centers agents get to hear about from the callers and too many companies create policies and procedures to protect them from their customers and ask the call center and customer service staff to be the enforcers.
Yes there is a long way to go to deliver the level and quality of customer service we all would like to receive and provide, but lets not kill the messengers, its not the agents that can make customer service and call center interactions as much fun as a tooth extraction, it is their managers and their companies.
So take a moment, this week and every week, to think about the customer service people you interact with and have appreciate what they are able to do to help you and to help their organizations. Then, next week perhaps, you can consider what your organization can do to make the role of your customer service and call center staff more productive and enjoyable…remove nonsensical policies that create work and penalize customers, provide tools to the front line that speed and aid their efforts, realistically fund the center to deliver the customer experience you want to deliver and lastly appreciate your front line customer service staff by taking active steps to improve engagement and autonomy.
Sunday 20 October 2013
BRIDGING CUSTOMER SERVICE GAPS USING THE SOCIAL MEDIA: TRANSCRIPT OF THE TWITTER HANGOUT IN CELEBRATION OF CS WEEK 2013
Check out the questions and answers from the discussion:
A concept alien to Nigerians "@blcompere: Q1: What is customer service, @ikiebey? #CustomerServiceNG"
— Cosmond (@KingCossy1) October 11, 2013
Poor vis a vis what's obtained from other climes. @blcompere: Q2: How is customer service quality perceived in Nigeria #CustomerServiceNG
— ᴼᴹᴳ ᶥᵗˢ (@WilsonIsTalking) October 11, 2013
@blcompere @Ikiebey; if you ask me, I'll say 2; it's funny but many Nigerian customers don't even expect quality service #CustomerServiceNG
— Okey Obike (@OkeyObike) October 11, 2013
Most customer service personnel are not well trained @blcompere: Q4: What do you think are the reasons for your rating, #CustomerServiceNG
— ᴼᴹᴳ ᶥᵗˢ (@WilsonIsTalking) October 11, 2013
@Im_yearn @Ikiebey @servicenews9ja @blcompere; the rating is an average; while some coys may score high, majority will score less than zero
— Okey Obike (@OkeyObike) October 11, 2013
"@Bamilionaire: @im_yearn @blcompere @ikiebey @servicenews9ja 2say -10 isnt it. some do well. 1 cause is unda staffn", Wic is a major problm
— Emma Odia (@Im_yearn) October 11, 2013
A reason for bad #CustomerServiceNG@Ikiebey @blcompere @servicenews9ja Employees don’t believe in the company, product or service.
— Hajo (@Aitadi) October 11, 2013
when human relations are not priority customer relations are disregarded @Ikiebey @blcompere @servicenews9ja #CustomerServiceNG
— Hajo (@Aitadi) October 11, 2013
@servicenews9ja @servicenews9ja thanks 4 bringin dis important issue 2d fore as its most central to our enjoyin quality service as customers
— Emma Odia (@Im_yearn) October 11, 2013
@blcompere @Ikiebey @servicenews9ja; this is worth being an ongoing discussion; thanks for bringing it to the fore #CustomerServiceNG
— Okey Obike (@OkeyObike) October 11, 2013
@servicenews9ja @aitadi @blcompere i got a little busy but i can say i chat was on point readin 2ru now..its a core of biz..welldone..ciao
— Oyebolu Abiola (@Bamilionaire) October 11, 2013
If u weren't a part of #CustomerServiceNG u definately missd out! Many thnks to @ikiebey @blcompere @servicenews9ja @OkeyObike @Bamilionaire
— Emma Odia (@Im_yearn) October 11, 2013
Monday 14 October 2013
CUSTOMER SERVICE TIPS THAT WILL MAKE THEM COME BACK
The People aspect of business is really what it is all about. Rule #1: Think of customers as individuals. Once we think that way, we realize our business is our customer, not our product or services. Putting all the focus on the merchandise in our store, or the services our corporation offers, leaves out the most important component: each individual customer.
Keeping those individual customers in mind, here are some easy, down-home customer service tips to keep ’em coming back!
1. Remember there is no way that the quality of customer service can exceed the quality of the people who provide it. Think you can get by paying the lowest wage, giving the fewest of benefits, doing the least training for your employees? It will show.Companies don't help customers... people do.
2. Realize that your people will treat your customer the way they are treated. Employees take their cue from management. Do you greet your employees enthusiastically each day; are you polite in your dealings with them; do you try to accommodate their requests; do you listen to them when they speak? Consistent rude customer service is a reflection not as much on the employee as on management.
3. Do you know who your customers are? If a regular customer came in to your facility, would you recognize them? Could you call them by name? All of us like to feel important; calling someone by name is a simple way to do it and lets them know you value them as customers.
Recently I signed on with a new fitness center. I had been a member of another one for the past ten years, renewing my membership every six months when the notice arrived. I had been thinking about changing, joining the one nearer my home and with more state-of-the-art equipment. So when the renewal notice came, I didn’t renew. That was eight months ago. Was I contacted by the fitness center and asked why I did not renew? Did anyone telephone me to find out why an established customer was no longer a member or to tell me they missed me? No and No. My guess is they don’t even know they lost a long-time customer, and apparently wouldn’t care.
4. Do your customers know who you are? If they see you, would they recognize you? Could they call you by name? A visible management is an asset. At the Piccadilly Cafeteria chain, the pictures of the manager and the assistant manager are posted on a wall at the food selection line and it is a policy that the manager’s office is placed only a few feet from the cashier's stand at the end of that line, in full view of the customers, and with the door kept open. The manager is easily accessible and there is no doubt about "who's in charge here". You have only to beckon to get a manager at your table to talk with you.
5. For good customer service, go the extra mile. Include a thank-you note in a customer's package; send a birthday card; clip the article when you see their name or photo in print; write a congratulatory note when they get a promotion. There are all sorts of ways for you to keep in touch with your customers and bring them closer to you.
6. Are your customers greeted when they walk in the door or at least within 30-40 seconds upon entering? Is it possible they could come in, look around, and go out without ever having their presence acknowledged? It is ironic it took a discount merchant known for price, not service, to teach the retail world the importance of greeting customers at the door. Could it be that’s because Sam Walton knew this simple but important gesture is a matter of respect, of saying "we appreciate your coming in," having nothing to do with the price of merchandise?
7. Give customers the benefit of the doubt. Proving to him why he’s wrong and you’re right isn’t worth losing a customer over. You will never win an argument with a customer, and you should never, ever put a customer in that position.
8. If a customer makes a request for something special, do everything you can to say yes. The fact that a customer cared enough to ask is all you need to know in trying to accommodate her. It may be an exception from your customer service policy, but (if it isn’t illegal) try to do it. Remember you are just making one exception for one customer, not making new policy. Mr. Marshall Field was right-on in his famous statement: "Give the lady what she wants."
9. Are your customer service associates properly trained in how to handle a customer complaint or an irate person? Give them guidelines for what to say and do in every conceivable case. People on the frontline of a situation play the most critical role in your customer’s experience. Make sure they know what to do and say to make that customer’s experience a positive, pleasant one.
10. Want to know what your customers think of your company? Ask them! Compose a "How're We Doing?" card and leave it at the exit or register stand, or include it in their next statement. Keep it short and simple. Ask things like: what it is they like; what they don’t like; what they would change; what you could do better; about their latest experience there, etc. To ensure the customer sends it in, have it pre-stamped. And if the customer has given their name and address, be sure to acknowledge receipt of the card.
WRITTEN BY LIZ TAHIR
Thursday 10 October 2013
MAKING THE CUSTOMER KING AGAIN
WRITTEN BY SYLVA IFEDIGBO
SOCIAL CUSTOMER SERVICE
We Are Only Just Getting Started
Such is the inner world of social risk management at this current stage in the game. But there are already signs of the evolution that will inevitably take hold.Here is an example of an individual with enough confidence and capability to take on a brand for poor service. I’ll summarise the story through an excerpt from Laural Hampton‘s post ’Should Social Media be a Tool for Consumer Battles?“Martin Macdonald works for Expedia EAN and is well known and respected in the digital marketing community. He has a good following on all of his social media, and his blog is widely read. As I type this, Martin is launching his campaign against British Gas (and more specifically, @BritishGasHelp ) following unsatisfactory communications with their customer service team.”Here is another one.British Airways has been forced to apologise after a Twitter user bought a promoted tweet to complain about the airline losing his luggage.Hasan Syed, who uses the handle @HVSVN, bought the promoted tweet through the site’s self-service ad platform. The tweet said: “Don’t fly @BritishAirways. Their customer service is horrendous.”In the first six hours since the tweet was promoted, it had notched up over 25,000 impressions on Twitter. This is how he summarised his efforts once BA had found the luggage and apologised.
CULLED FROM BRAIN FOOD EXTRA.COM
Tuesday 8 October 2013
5 REASONS TO CELEBRATE CUSTOMER SERVICE WEEK
I am not aware the customer service week has gained any form of official recognition in our country. But that doesn't matter much. What matters is that there is a dire need to focus on customers and the quality of service we render to them. Just as in most things, we have much to complain about, as far as service in our country is concerned.
Here are five reasons on why you should celebrate Customer Service Week:
It is an international event devoted to recognising the importance of customer service.
To reward frontline staff for the important work they do.
To raise company awareness of the importance of customer service.
To thank other departments for their support
To remind customers of your commitment to customer satisfaction.v>
Monday 7 October 2013
VITAFOAM AWARDED BEST FOAM MARKETING COMPANY OF THE YEAR
The company got the recognition of the National Institute of Marketing of Nigeria (NIMN), which at the weekend, awarded it the best foam marketing company of the year and a commendation as a trailblazer in the manufacturing and distribution of foam and allied products.
Rotimi Adeyeye, NIMN’s chairman of Council, who presented the award to Vitafoam at the institute’s 10th anniversary/lecture and conferment of fellowship and marketing excellence awards on corporate organisations in
Lagos, urged Vitafoam to sustain its excellent corporate performance in order to uphold its philosophy of creating shareholder value.
Gabriel Okoli, Vitafoam’s head, sales and marketing, who received the award on behalf of the company, described the award as an assurance that the company had always been on the top, noting however that the award imposed certain responsibilities on his company.
“This prestigious award is a call to duty. The least expected of us at Vitafoam is the need to double our efforts by ensuring that the company surpasses the current performance that earned it this award,” Okoli said.
On the challenges facing marketers in Nigeria, Okoli lamented the influx of adulterated products, urging the regulatory authorities such as Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) and National Agency for Food, Drug
Administration and Control (NAFDAC) to wield the big sticks on the culprits in order to curb the menace of poor quality products whose low prices and orchestrated packaging make them attractive to unsuspecting consumers.
HOW WELL DO YOU YOU TREAT YOUR INTERNAL SERVICE CUSTOMERS?
The concept of internal customer service may be just as important, if not even more so, than general customer service. So much of what drives the customer experience is what is happening on the inside of an organization. It’s the company’s culture that creates and ultimately defines the customer service experience. So here is an interesting concept:What if your internal customers had a choice about doing business with you? Customers have a choice with who they do business with, so why shouldn’t internal customers have a choice as well? Okay, that may not be realistic. We have to do business with our internal customers, don’t we? We actually work with our internal customers, or do we?Typically, if one of our internal customers is unhappy with the way he or she is treated, they don’t usually have a choice to go outside to another vendor. But, they do have a choice of continuing to work for the organization. If they are unhappy and have an opportunity to leave and work for the competition – or any other company for that matter – isn’t that kind of the same as a customer leaving us for a competitor?No doubt employees leave if they are unfulfilled or are offered opportunities that are of better value than their current job. But that’s not what this is really about. This is really just a concept to get you thinking. So here’s another question:How well do you treat and take care of your internal customers?Okay, let’s go back to the original question: What if our internal customers really did have a choice of doing business with us or someone else? Would they choose us? Do we deliver a level of internal customer service that is just acceptable or satisfactory? Or is it above average – even amazing?Years ago I worked with a client who had an internal event planning department. What was interesting is that they had to bid for every job they did for their own company’s meetings. They went up against other creative meeting and event planning companies. And, the internal customer had the choice of doing business with their own department, or going to an outside firm, which in a sense is a competitor. The pressure was on for the internal event planners to deliver an experience and level of customer service that would get their internal customer to come back. This concept worked and the internal event planners kept their creative edge and worked to make their internal customers very happy.In the end, most of our internal customers really don’t have a choice, but if they did, would they choose you?
Culled from www.hyken.com
Friday 4 October 2013
NEVER BLAME THE CUSTOMER(TIPS ON CUSTOMER SERVICE)
to look for someone to blame. If you're BP, you blame the
contractor for a big oil spill in the Gulf. Other times, you
might blame another employee. The blame game is never a good
idea. Customers don't want to hear it. What they want is for
your company to step up to the plate, take responsibility,
and resolve whatever issue they're having.
But the blame game becomes an especially horrific idea when
companies decide to blame the customer. In the past couple
of weeks alone, we've seen two major brands take this
incredibly stupid PR approach.
First, there was Apple. When it was discovered that the
iPhone 4 had a faulty antenna, the tech company's first
response was to blame the user, saying they were holding the
phone incorrectly causing the signal to drop out:
"Gripping any phone will result in some attenuation of its
antenna performance with certain places being worse than
others depending on the placement of the antennas," the
company said in a statement. "This is a fact of life for
every wireless phone. If you ever experience this on your
iPhone 4, avoid gripping it in the lower left corner in a
way that covers both sides of the black strip in the metal
band, or simply use one of many available cases."
Needless to say, customers were less than thrilled with
Apple's response, and they only got more upset. Finally,
Apple responded by giving them what they wanted (free
bumpers for improving phone signal), but the PR crisis could
have been much smaller if they had done that from the
beginning.
But Apple isn't the only company who mistakenly points the
finger at the customer. Remember the Toyota debacle? In case
you don't let me refresh your memory. All across the
country, people were getting into wrecks and many died
because of sudden acceleration in Toyota's vehicles.
Well, just when things have finally started to quiet down
for the auto manufacturer, they insist on stirring things
back up by saying some new research shows that drivers were
to blame for the accidents.
"Toyota Motor Corp.'s investigation of accidents involving
unintended acceleration where motorists said they pressed on
the brake pedal shows that "virtually all" involved drivers
who pushed the accelerator instead, a company spokesman
said.
Toyota, the world's largest automaker, is looking into
causes of unintended acceleration in its cars and trucks and
has recalled more than 8 million worldwide in the past year
for defects such as pedals that stuck or snagged on floor
mats. U.S. auto-safety regulators are also probing the
causes and haven't released their findings."
Auto safety advocates called the report "totally ludicrous."
It's easy to understand why Toyota did this, as they were
trying to reestablish their credibility, but it's just never
a good idea to blame the customer-even if he really is the
one to blame. The public still sees Toyota as responsible
for all those accidents.
ETISALAT REITERATES COMMITMENT TO YOUTH EMPOWERMENT
Thursday 3 October 2013
RECKITT BENCKISER ALIGNS WITH MEDICAL EXPERTS ON CONSUMER AWARENESS
Gaviscon, the heartburn and indigestion solution health brand from the stable of Reckitt Benckiser, has aligned with medical experts on how to raise consumer awareness for the prevention and management of heartburn and indigestion health conditions in Nigeria. To this end, Gaviscon’s two separate interactive medical and scientific stakeholder events during which experts from across Nigeria, Ghana and Turkey converged on Lagos to educate consumers on facts about heartburn and indigestion health conditions. One of the events was the sixth Scientific Conference and Annual General Meeting of the Society for Gastroenterology and Hepatology in Nigeria (SOGHIN), with the theme, “The Burden of Gastro-Intestinal and Liver Diseases in Nigeria.” The second was a special forum organised by Reckitt Benckiser under the auspices of an initiative code-named ‘Golden Faculty.’ The forum focused on “Optimising the Management of Reflux Disease in the 21st Century.” The events, which brought together eminent medical professionals in the fields of gastroenterology, hepatology, family medicine, pharmacy and other specialties, were in furtherance of the company’s corporate social responsibility. It was aimed at increasing consumer knowledge about heartburn and indigestion health conditions and what they can do to prevent or manage it in view of the noticeable low awareness on the difference between the two terms (heartburn and indigestion) which majority of the populace often use interchangeably whereas they are actually two different health conditions. Marketing director, Reckitt Benckiser, Oguzhan Silivrilli, underscored the essence of the initiatives by the company as a demonstration of its value-addition to the communities, noting that the company has continued to invest in product research and development in a bid to make its brands deliver more value to the consumers.
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2013
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October
(14)
- UBA INTRODUCES NEW E-COMMERCE PLATFORM
- WOW FACTORS THAT KEEP CUSTOMERS COMING BACK
- ACCESS BANK LAUNCHES CORPORATE INTERNET BANKING SO...
- WHAT NEXT AFTER CUSTOMER SERVICE WEEK?
- BRIDGING CUSTOMER SERVICE GAPS USING THE SOCIAL ME...
- CUSTOMER SERVICE TIPS THAT WILL MAKE THEM COME BACK
- MAKING THE CUSTOMER KING AGAIN
- SOCIAL CUSTOMER SERVICE
- 5 REASONS TO CELEBRATE CUSTOMER SERVICE WEEK
- VITAFOAM AWARDED BEST FOAM MARKETING COMPANY OF TH...
- HOW WELL DO YOU YOU TREAT YOUR INTERNAL SERVICE CU...
- NEVER BLAME THE CUSTOMER(TIPS ON CUSTOMER SERVICE)
- ETISALAT REITERATES COMMITMENT TO YOUTH EMPOWERMENT
- RECKITT BENCKISER ALIGNS WITH MEDICAL EXPERTS ON C...
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October
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The world of loyalty management in Nigeria is about to change as Synergy 360 Limited, a Nigerian loyalty solution provider launches it...
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Every year, the first week of October is International Customer Service Week. Are you doing anything special? Here are ten customer ...
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Have you ever wondered, where did all the customers go? Gosh, let's hope not! But stick with me here. Do you constantly scratch your ...
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More people now than ever before are working in the customer service industry, predominantly in telecommunications and other lines and p...
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I received a mail from an aggrevied reader and a customer of First Bank,please check it out and I hope they respond to this mail: I wen...
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Welcome to the Customer Service Week 2014! This is an annual event celebrated in the first full week in October in a number of countries ...
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I received a mail from an aggrieved reader and a customer of GTB (Adeone Adeola),hope GTB responds to this: I was in Dubai for a confe...
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It goes without saying that your attitude towards a social media crisis should be one of anticipation than denial.You know it’s just a matte...
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The customer, they say is king, but in Nigeria, customers can be likened to slaves, a reflection of the many years of poor service deli...
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Do you remember the first day you realized that your customers knew more than you, that they had expert knowledge that you lacked? It...