Keep Your Friends Close, But Customers Closer

With Mary Kelly, Group Director of Customer Operations?

At Lifestory, we refer frequently to various journeys undertaken by our team, our customers and, potentially the biggest of all, our brand. From whichever point you joined us; we have three businesses and two mergers behind us; it’s safe to say that you will have witnessed a complete transformation of the Lifestory brand. Some might shy away from communicating such an operational restructure in a short period of time, especially with their customers, but that’s not very Lifestory - and our honesty is something we don’t intend to change soon.?

Truthfully, our businesses pre-mergers had to be evolved to ultimately be improved and become a brand we’re proud to work for, creating communities that our customers are proud to live in. Pride can be confused with ego in the development arena; a quality we actively steer clear of in all that we do. Where our business is complex and the people we cater to through our developments are of every demographic, we have to approach things differently to most. One size never fits all, but everyone values truly good customer service, regardless of age. Our first-time buyers at Anthology may need extra guidance in their journey to owning their first home. Running in parallel, our later-living customers of Pegasus and Renaissance increasingly choose to rent because of the certainty that we will be there for the entirety of their next chapter. Although on completely different journeys, their Lifestory experience will be remembered as one that surpassed their expectations because of our understanding of true customer service. In an age and an industry where this sentiment is often sidelined, this personable approach is at the very heart of all that we do.?

It’s needless to say that in new-build homes things can go wrong, quickly. This is an inevitable part of the sector we work in, but all things can and will be solved. The true measure of success in this field is the ability to balance keeping your customers calm while providing informative and transparent updates on the situation at hand. On that basis, one of our proudest assets are our Lifehosts in our later-living communities; it is not a simple task to become extended members of your customers’ family, as integrated members of their communities, moreover an element of their home. Our Lifehosts embody everything we stand for on that matter, with a completely in-person capacity. So often, customer service gets muddled with over promised grand gestures, but we know that our people predominantly value our time and taking that time to listen to them and most importantly, hear and act upon what they’re saying, while not being too intervening. Our Lifehosts are the crucial piece of this puzzle, perfecting this balance by being involved and ensuring our customers are kept close to the business, but not inundated. Simply put, this is how customer service can tailor ideal lifestyles to our homeowners’ and tenants’ desires.?

As with all things, times are changing in the customer operations and property management realm, as ideas come in and out of style much like the trends that we see come and go. With that in mind, we can reiterate our understanding that buying or renting a Lifestory home is a journey rather than a one-off transaction. New strategies, for example technology innovation as the older generation get younger, developing our designs for future communities based on customer feedback, for example streamlining facilities and allowing for lower service charges, are discussed all the time, with the involvement of our customers if and when they want to be.?

Finally, our belief of good service at Lifestory is ensuring our customers enjoy their homes to the best of our ability. This is an organic idea that will never end, continuous improvements and adaptations will be made as the world changes around us. We’re here for the entirety of that journey: that’s a Lifestory home.?