6 Steps to Deliver Remarkable Customer Service
By Henry Lopez
Co-Founder of Levante Business Group
Co-Host of The How of Business Podcast
From a viral video to a positive review, a customer’s motivation to share their experience
with your product or service usually comes down to remarkability. By remarkable we
mean something that is worth commenting on and sharing with others.
Sharing can be in the form of ratings, reviews, comments, posts, and good old fashioned
word-of-mouth. For small businesses, what your company offers must be remarkable, and
the largest opportunity to make a guest’s experience notable lies within the domain of
customer interaction. From the smallest details to the overall company culture, the
customer’s experience is what makes or breaks continued client attraction and retention.
How do you instill a culture in your small business that motivates your staff to deliver
consistently remarkable customer service, resulting in increased customer loyalty and
revenues? Here are six steps to delivering consistently on your customer promise and
improving your business.
It Starts and Ends at the Top
Customer service begins and ends with YOU, the owner. Nothing else really matters, and all
other efforts are pointless, unless the owners truly believe in the value of delivering
remarkable customer service.
Do you believe your customers are looking to take advantage of you, or do you realize that
the vast majority of them are honest and will reward you with their loyalty if you treat
them right? Are your employee policies all about control and avoiding theft, or is your staff
truly empowered to take care of the customer? The “Employee of the Month” plaque on the
wall is meaningless if the owners and management of the company don’t truly believe in
delivering remarkable customer service, and the investment it requires.
The investment from the top includes believing in and instilling a persistent culture of
superior service. It should include a shared manifesto which serves as a foundation for
your company’s culture. It’s not just the cliché posters about leadership and team work, but
your true conviction about running your company in a way that proudly represents you
and your staff. It’s about delivering the service you enjoy experiencing when you visit your
favorite establishments – the places you go back to again and again because they make you
feel great, and which you share with others!
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Culture
The interaction between customer and company has become increasingly transparent,
thanks in part to technology. Company brands are no longer static entities, but rather
dynamic and personified. Culture is everything in today’s business environment, and
customers can smell insincerity from a mile away. Part of a brand’s culture must be built
from the values and core beliefs of the company’s owners. Your company should foster an
environment where a passion for remarkable customer service can thrive. Like much in
life, it all comes down to balance. If you believe in your core values and have faith in the
ability and training of your employees to deliver, it will be easier to develop an
environment of empowerment and trust.
Culture is a living, breathing organism that needs to be supported and nurtured. It evolves
over time, but the core tenets should never waiver. One way to measure if you have
successfully instilled a strong culture is to observe how your team handles a new member.
Does the team automatically correct and guide the new member’s behavior and actions if
they vary from the accepted norms of your culture without being told? Are they quick to
tell managers that this new employee is not a fit? Does the new employee stand out from
the other employees and feel as if they are a “fish out of water”? These are good signs that
your team embodies the culture of your business and leads to consistently delivering on
your customer promise, even when you are not watching.
Systems
Systems are the ways in which a company’s culture is carried out consistently and
repeatedly. Without the infrastructure of systems (including software, manuals, forms,
training, and checklists), remarkable customer service deteriorates quickly. Systems are
the key to executing consistently in every aspect of your business.
As it relates to customer service, your employee training and development systems are
critical. Well trained employees that have access to protocols and procedures which foster
good client relationships are a key to the success of any business. Your focus should be to
develop systems as if you are a multi-unit operation, even if you are running a singlelocation company. This approach supports the repeatability of your process which should
ensure that every new employee is hired, trained and developed to the same productive
and effective standard.
Employees
Your culture and systems mean nothing without the right team of highly motivated people
to execute them. When it comes to your company’s team of workers, it’s important to take
the time and focus on finding people that will make a good fit.
Always remember to hire slowly, and fire quickly. If a member of the staff is not a good fit,
it is critical to sever ties quickly. Remember, just because an employee is unsuited for a
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particular position does not make them a bad person or poor worker, it’s just likely not a
good fit.
When hiring customer-facing employees, personality and character are often more
important than skills or experience. You can teach a person new skills, but it’s extremely
difficult to teach someone how to enjoy working with and serving customers. It’s helpful to
have a baseline of a great employee, and also use employee assessment tools like Kolbe’s
RightFit™ solutions when possible to help you choose the right candidate for the position.
Listen and Measure
How do you know if you are delivering consistently remarkable customer experiences?
How do you measure customer service and satisfaction? It’s imperative that you and your
management team listen and measure to objectively assess your progress and execution.
Your customers will tell you what they think about your product and service, but you have
to listen and be receptive to their feedback. You must also measure, and reward or correct,
how your staff is executing. Doing so keeps your focus on customer service top-of-mind
throughout your entire organization.
From online reviews to mystery shoppers, the trick is to make sure to listen and take into
account what your customers are saying. Try listening for broad themes that permeate
from a variety of sources. Ask your employees what they think, or ask a friend to test out
your business as a customer to get an unadulterated and trustworthy view of customerfacing interaction. Monitor social media platforms and use alert technologies to stay
attuned to what people are saying about your business. Take reviews and feedback to
heart, and take input from the loyal customers who love your company.
Execute Consistently
Consistency is the true test of your commitment to delivering remarkable customer
experiences. Are you dedicated to delivering remarkable service for the life of your
business, or was it just a fading phase?
An individual customer does not really care that you have executed flawlessly on the
previous thousand customers – it’s their transaction and interaction that matters most.
Furthermore, a high opinion from one customer can be cancelled out by a bad opinion from
another. And people are more likely to share a poor experience than a positive one – a
reality which is greatly amplified by the relative anonymity and ease of the internet to
share with others and encourage everyone to become a critic.
Delivering consistently, with each customer and every interaction, is the most difficult
thing to achieve, and it should be your ultimate goal. While it’s impossible to be perfect,
your standard must be set extremely high so that you execute as closely to 100% as
possible. And when you fail, as we all naturally do at times, your process should include a
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fast and genuine resolution for your customers. Most customers understand that we all
make mistakes – what they don’t usually tolerate is indifference and lack of follow-up.
Being remarkable is often what sets us apart from the competition. Our products and
services must be of high quality, but it’s the experiences our customers enjoy when they
interact with us that they value and share the most.
About the Author:
Henry Lopez has over 34 years of diverse business experience,
including successful careers in the information technology industry,
sales, sales training and business ownership. Henry is currently
involved in several businesses, and is the Co-Host of The How of
Business Podcast – helping you start, run and grow your small
business.
[full bio]
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