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The Secret of Barack Obama’s Success

by Kevin Stirtz By now we all know President-elect Barack Obama has stormed the American political scene like a hurricane, a tornado, a typhoon and a tsunami all rolled into one. In a few short years, he has gone from “Obama who?” to the President-elect of the USA... [Read more...]

This Company Cares About Their Customers

by Kevin Stirtz Yesterday a massive fire engulfed a large apartment complex in my city. While fire fighters from 6 communities fought the blaze, residents shivered in sub-zero temperatures. It was three days before Christmas and everything they owned was going up in smoke. It... [Read more...]

Books

A lesson on changing your organization

by Kevin Stirtz In my work, I spend a fair amount of time helping people bring change to their companies. That’s what improving customer service is all about. The companies that make a substantial and permanent improvement in how they serve their customers have discovered... [Read more...]

“More Loyal Customers” Selected by Customer Service Manager for Recommended Reading List

by Kevin Stirtz Just today I learned my latest book “More Loyal Customers” has been selected by Customer Service Manager to be on their Recommended Reading List. Wow! This is cool. Customer Service Manager is an e-magazine for customer service professionals and anyone... [Read more...]

Resources

New Resource: AllTop.com

by Kevin Stirtz File this under “cool new resources”. I just learned (via Chris Brogan with an assist from Guy Kawasaki) about a useful website called AllTop.com. They aggregate headlines from a variety of (what they consider) top sources of news and info. From their... [Read more...]

What Do Your Customers Want?

by Kevin Stirtz I read a recent report by Accenture that I found downright exciting. It’s the results of their 2008 Customer Satisfaction Survey. (Click here to download your own copy.) Much of the report was old news to me simply because I live and breathe this stuff.... [Read more...]

Surveys

Communications Companies Failing at Communicating with Customers

Here’s an interesting note from MarketWatch. They report that almost two-thirds of telcommunications companies in North America fail to respond to customer requests within 24 hours.  In a recent survey released by eGain Communications Corp., they found that 20% of communications... [Read more...]

2008 Customer Service Survey: Tell us what you think

We’re getting close to the end of 2008. And what a memorable year it has been. Of the many things I’ll remember about 2008, one thing that stands out is how customer service has changed. But, what I think is not nearly as important as what YOU think. Now is your opportunity... [Read more...]

Technology

Twitter Beats Customer Support at Comcast

by Kevin Stirtz Yesterday while surfing the web I noticed it was very slow. So I did a little research and discovered the problem was with my service provider, Comcast. So, the first thing I did was try to let Comcast know using their online services. I hate making phone calls... [Read more...]

Jitterbug Focuses on Customer Experience

by Kevin Stirtz An article in the Business Mirror today talks about the growing backlash toward outsourced customer service. It discusses Dell’s new service that provides North American based customer service, for an extra fee. Dell finally gets the message that their customer... [Read more...]

Awards

Editor's Picks

Jitterbug Focuses on Customer Experience

by Kevin Stirtz An article in the Business Mirror today talks about the growing backlash toward outsourced customer service. It discusses Dell’s new service that provides North American based customer service, for an extra fee. Dell finally gets the message that their customer... [Read more...]

This Company Cares About Their Customers

by Kevin Stirtz Yesterday a massive fire engulfed a large apartment complex in my city. While fire fighters from 6 communities fought the blaze, residents shivered in sub-zero temperatures. It was three days before Christmas and everything they owned was going up in smoke. It... [Read more...]

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Twitter Beats Customer Support at Comcast

January 2, 2009

by Kevin Stirtz

Yesterday while surfing the web I noticed it was very slow. So I did a little research and discovered the problem was with my service provider, Comcast.

So, the first thing I did was try to let Comcast know using their online services. I hate making phone calls to customer service of big companies because they usually take more time than doing it online.

I was amazed (but in a bad way) at how difficult it was to let Comcast know I was having service problems. I had to create a login for their website. Then I had to find the support area so I could leave a message. Then I had to find a form or some way to tell them about the problems. [Read more...]

The Secret of Barack Obama’s Success

December 29, 2008

barack_obama_2by Kevin Stirtz

By now we all know President-elect Barack Obama has stormed the American political scene like a hurricane, a tornado, a typhoon and a tsunami all rolled into one. In a few short years, he has gone from “Obama who?” to the President-elect of the USA and a hugely popular man both in the US and abroad.

For many, this begs the question “How does he do it?”

I won’t try to answer every aspect of this question. But I will offer one explanation. My answer comes with a little help from Nicole Bacharan, a political scientist in Paris who focuses on French-American relations. I heard her interviewed this morning on National Public Radio and she offered this observation [Read more...]

Remember Your Customer’s Name

December 22, 2008

by Kevin Stirtz

Kevin Stirtz’s Amazing Service Rule #25

Remember your customer’s name.

Years ago I heard a quote that goes something like: “Nothing is sweeter than the sound of a person’s own name.” I don’t know who first said this but I agree with them. When we hear someone say our name, it brings us closer to that person. It suggests they are a friend. At the very least it says they care enough to know and use our name.

When you use a customer’s name, [Read more...]


Customer Service Videos

Black Jack Pizza Should Win a Customer Service Award

December 20, 2008

by Kevin Stirtz

On a recent YouTube jaunt, I found this “customer service” video. It’s funny because of the setup. The “caller” is Jack Nicholson, or rather select audio clips of big Jack from his movies. The clips are inserted into the phone call skillfully enough that two employees at this pizza place believed it was a real person calling.

But beyond funny, it’s also instructional. The employees in this call are very good. They never get upset or rude with “Jack”. They never hang up. They stay with him and try to accommodate his requests. But they’re also consistent in what they ask of him - so they can help him.

[Read more...]

Lowes Knows Customer Service

December 14, 2008

by Kevin Stirtz

While surfing YouTube, I found this video about customer service at Lowes. It shows how Lowes sees customer service” as an asset and a high priority. In this video, a Lowes customer tells how their new refrigerator (bought from and installed by Lowes) leaked all over their kitchen floor, ruining it. Rather than argue with the customer or try to minimize their exposure, Lowes simply replaced the floor.


[Read more...]


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Customer Service Podcasts

Amazing Service Podcast #5 October 22, 2008 (the “Just say no” edition)

October 22, 2008

customer service podcast

Welcome to the 5th edition of the Amazing Service Podcast. In this segment we talk about two fun and helpful Amazing Service Rules: #15 “Don’t interrupt your customers” and #40, “It’s okay to say no”.

We start the podcast talking briefly about how to get better results by getting everyone in your company involved in finding solutions and addressing opportunities.

Amazing Service Podcast 10-22-08

Amazing Service Podcast #4 September 25, 2008 (the “It’s okay to vent” edition)

September 25, 2008

customer service podcast

Welcome to the 4th edition of the Amazing Service Podcast. In this segment we talk about two very useful Amazing Service Rules: #20 “Be grateful for your customers” and #31, “Respect your customer’s opinion”.

We start the podcast talking briefly about how to make the most out of those things we love to hate: customer complaints.

Amazing Service Podcast 9-25-08


Customer Service Articles

Jitterbug Focuses on Customer Experience

December 29, 2008

jitterbugby Kevin Stirtz

An article in the Business Mirror today talks about the growing backlash toward outsourced customer service. It discusses Dell’s new service that provides North American based customer service, for an extra fee.

Dell finally gets the message that their customer want support staff who can actually help them, rather than read from a script, and their solution is to charge for it. To me this is like the airlines charging customers to buy a ticket through a real person rather than the Internet. [Read more...]

5 New Year’s Resolutions for Amazing Customer Service

December 11, 2008

by Kevin Stirtz
The Amazing Service Guy

New years are wonderful because they give us the ability to improve, to learn from our experience and then start over and do better. It’s like shaking the Etch A Sketch and being rewarded with a blank canvas to create another work of art. But in this case, the work of art is our business. Use this opportunity to plan how you will improve your business in 2009.

One of the ways to improve your business is to improve customer service. In a recent report, Accenture found that more customers than ever are abandoning companies because of bad service. Now is the time to create (or beef up) your customer service improvement plans. And to help you, here are five Amazing Service Resolutions to get you started. [Read more...]

Don’t Let Invisible Customers Ruin Your Business

December 5, 2008

invisible-customerby Kevin Stirtz

A few weeks ago I was at Perkins, attempting to pay for my meal. Employees scurried back and forth with not even a curious glance in my direction. Finally, the manager said something which compelled another employee to issue an order. And, like magic, a smiling young lady appeared and graciously took my money.

Not long after that I [Read more...]

Top Ten Ways Retailers Can Sell More This Holiday Season

November 28, 2008

by Kevin Stirtz

Even though Black Friday has begun, there is still time for retailers to increase their chances of having a good holiday shopping season. We all know customer service is important, but it’s critical during stressful times like the holidays. And when the economy is sour and people want the most for their money, one of the best things your company can do is take steps to improve their customer service.

Remember, customers come to your company to get something they want. The companies that do the best job giving them what they want (in a way that is sustainable for them) will be the winners. They’ll get more customers, more repeat business and more referrals.
[Read more...]