|
Are
you good enough to keep servicing your clients, attract
prospective new customers and then keep your customers for life?
Maybe…
possibly… definitely… well… er...you know… because of … yabba…
yabba yabba. Excuses and maybe’s don’t cut it in this day and
age. Positive results are the required fuel of sustained
growth and profitable clients service.
Are you one
of those people who just gets up and delivers the goods, or
are you an OPEC (over paid excuse creator). We can all find
reasons why not… why the project failed… or why the client
changed suppliers…, or why we messed up. In fact most people
are programmed, and their work environment is designed, to
create excuses and to usually work in relentless CYA mode
(Cover your ar#e mode).
I recently
attended a competitors “customer service” workshop. The
presenter flew in from the USA, paced up and down for the day,
entertaining the 600 attendees (at R950 a pop) with humorous
banter interspersed with the occasional pearl of “wisdom”, and
then flew out again the same day.
Let me ask
you this? Out of the 600 attendees, how many do you think went
back to their office and became Customer Service Masters,
created and implemented an effective clients for life plan?
Maybe 1% to 2%.
So what about the other R558,600 worth of
lecture? What became of that investment in TIME and MONEY?
Probably very little! And why is this? We know that around
10%-12% of what people hear/learn in training ever gets used
back at work. So what's the solution for building a clients
for life strategy and process that will work better than
5%-10%?
Clients For Life Philosophy
Most savvy
business people are quickly realizing the fact that to create
a “Customer For Life”
environment, they have to address areas not usually
scrutinized or appreciated - Their Staff’s emotional energy,
attitudes, focus, direction, capacity and resiliency (EQ, AQ and SQ) and
client relationship equity.
The Clients for Life
philosophy follows the premise of happy internal clients
can, and will, create happy, loyal and profitable external
clients, if they have the tools, context, opportunity and
responsibility / accountability.
Some of the areas that are
fundamental and critical to address include:
|
Destiny, Cause and Calling
|
(Old Vision/ Mission)
Do the staff clearly understand where we are aiming for,
other than just money? |
|
Values |
What are the driving core values and beliefs we live by?
And do we walk our talk? |
|
Technology |
Do we have the correct tools to do the right work, right
the first time? |
|
Competence |
Do we have sufficient IQ competence,
attitude and passion to deliver world-class
service?
|
|
AQ/Resilience |
What are the Adversity Quotient levels of your staff? Their
resiliency factors! Are they tenacious? |
|
Confidence |
Are our people clear of any inhibiting self-defeating and
undermining beliefs? |
|
Self-Aware |
Do we have the awareness to
positively manage the
relationship at the point of impact? |
|
Self-Manage |
Are we able to take a scathing blast from a client without
loosing our focus and our confidence? |
|
Self-Motivate |
How quickly do you perk yourself up to perform 100% for
every client? |
|
Intra-Relations |
How
well do you get on with You? Do you like YOU? Do you Love, respect
& admire YOU?
|
|
Inter-Relations |
How
well do you create and maintain valuable, honest & caring
relationships? |
|
Stress Levels |
What level of
anxiety and pressure do your staff work under? |
|
Control
|
Lack of control contributes > 80% to stress
– what control do they have?
|
|
Trust levels |
How much trust or mis-trust circulates between staff,
management and clients? |
|
Team levels |
Do your people really work well together and
support each other? |
|
Fun Levels |
Is it any FUN to work for your company? How often do people
really laugh? |
|
Rewards |
Are your
incentives, salaries and remuneration fair, competitive or
effective? |
|
Energy leaks |
How much “static” are your staff carrying – fears, anger,
frustration, anxiety? |
|
Honesty |
Is it safe to be 100% honest in your
organization – Really honest? |
|
Empathy |
Empathy levels need to be high. Usually lowered through
stress & emotional leaks. |
|
Care |
Do you & your staff really care –
about you, about their team members & clients? |
|
Authentic |
How authentic
are your people – Is there any “Soul” in the service or
company? |
|
Commitment |
Are people
committed, empowered and accountable to agreed performance
levels? |
|
Challenge |
Is the work and
environment challenging, interesting and stimulating? |
Cultural
Awareness |
Do you have
superior intercultural understanding and savvy? |
| Touch-Point Tuning |
Are all of your
touch-points tuned to the same song? |
| Defection Aversion Planning |
|
| Buy-styles |
|
From the above
list, we can see that customer-care and customer-service
interventions are critical fundamental foundations of any
organizational service focus looking to build a customer for
life process.
Only through a planned, ongoing
process of staff healing, empowerment, alignment, engagement and
relationship building can we ever get to “World Class” levels, and achieve our full potential of gaining – “Customers
For Life”.
So much interest,
focus and money is currently being placed on new CRM (Customer
Relationship Management) computer technologies. Expensive
tools for service are being touted as the ultimate solution
for the service dilemma. They are NOT! That’s’ why around
80% of CRM initiatives currently fail!
All things being
equal, “high tech” and “low touch” can loose you a large chunk
of your client base very quickly. We still want to be
appreciated, served, touched and thanked by a warm and kind
Soul.
At Life Masters
International, we believe the focus and investment balance
for building a customer for life focused organisation should be: 75% human and 25% technology. The biggest
difference you can make is in your staff. Why not make them
clearly understand that you appreciate and care for them and
that their success is tied inextricably in your success.
If your staff
doesn’t FLI (feel like it) they won’t DI! (Do it), It’s your
call! Call us now to book your Customer For Life Coaching
Programme.
Talk to us
today about a customized client for life research and solutions to your client and CRM
challenges.
For information on how you can
pump up your staff’s performance with AQ coaching and
customised workshops, contact Tony Dovale of Life Masters
International. – 011 467-1763.Call 083-447-6300 for a FREE 30
minute intro session or presentation. email
webcoach@coachfree.com
Websters, the definition of customer is
"One that buys goods or services."
Websters definition of client is "One
that depends upon the protection of another." This is where
the client depends on the knowledge and trusted advice of
the professional supplier. There is an unwritten ongoing
relationship with ongoing opportunities for both parties
held together with trust. |
