What exactly is customer service?
Imagine you want to meet a friend for coffee.
They suggest meeting at Starbucks, but don't specify which one. The location isn't obvious because you don't have a regular meeting place.
The Starbucks website lists 50 locations near my home. I'm guessing you have an equally absurd number, too.
Hey friend, which Starbucks?!
It's easy to get confused when people aren't specific. Customer service poses a similar challenge.
Try asking ten people to define customer service. You'll likely get ten great answers, but they'll all be different.
That's not helpful if you're trying to improve. Fortunately, I've got you covered.
TL:DR Version
LinkedIn Learning has just launched an updated version of my Customer Service Foundations course.
A video from the course answers three key questions in <4 minutes:
Are you one of those people who prefers the book over the movie? If that's you, here's the written version:
What is customer service?
Think of any situation where you're helping a customer, and that's customer service. The Oxford English Dictionary provides a clear definition:
The assistance and advice provided by a company to those people who buy or use its products or services.
Here are just a few examples:
These are just a few examples. I'm sure you can list many more from your own work.
What about internal customer service?
The definition still fits. An internal customer is someone inside your organization who uses your products or services.
For example, I once worked in a corporate training department. The service I provided was training.
My internal customers were the employees I trained and the managers who requested the training
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You can learn more about internal customer service here.
What is customer experience?
Customer experience is more than just customer service + surveys. It's the sum of every interaction a customer has with your company.
Here's a great definition of Customer Experience from Annette Franz, CCXP :
The sum of all the interactions that a customer has with an organization over the life of the “relationship” with that company… and, especially, the feelings, emotions, and perceptions the customer has about those interactions.
Here are just a few things that are part of the customer experience, but are not customer service:
I've written a more complete explanation here.
What is outstanding customer service?
Generally speaking, you've provided outstanding service if your customer feels you've helped them have a better experience.
The challenge is every customer has different needs, wants, and expectations. Outstanding service for one might be poor service for another.
Your customer is the one who ultimately decides whether they've received outstanding customer service. It's a perception game.
This one is easier to show than tell.
Go to the 2:12 mark in this video to see three customers have a very different reaction to the same experience.
How can you improve customer service?
The first step is making sure everyone is clear on the definition of customer service. Share this newsletter with them if it helps.
Otherwise, you'll have a "meet you at Starbucks" problem on your hands.
Once that's clear, here are some resources that can help.
Stay Connected
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1 年I worked at Walmart for long time and I learned that customer service isn't just for customers it can also be used on co-workers friend and family. Customer service is a great way to help individuals with what they are looking for and its also a great way to get to know your individuals on a first name basis and what they like or don't like.
??Client Relations LinkedIn Voice | Senior Specialist at FactSet | 3+ years (Client Solutions) | 12k+ post impressions
1 年Thank you for the insightful inputs Jeff Toister, and the wonderful example of having the same problem with three different reactions from the customers. I couldn't agree more when we say that the outstanding can be poor for one customer and best for another.
Gerencia de Ventas, Administración, Artículos de Consumo y Farmacia. MBA, INCAE
1 年Everything here is described so clearly and helpful to me, I certainly agree with Jeff Toister, it is not an easy task but it can be done! Thank you Jeff!
Retail Marketing Management & Creative Services
1 年This is great Jeff Toister! I've seen both people joining and leaving because of this reason. Extra perks like health programs, education, team building activities are great, but they have to be real and consistent. It's worse when there are high expectations for great culture that are not met in reality.
Project Manager at Myntra
1 年Highly informative read.!! ??