by Kevin Stirtz
The economic impact an event like the Republican National Convention has on a host city is tremendous. But if the event is done extremely well, the benefits can go on for years.
Here are ten customer service tips to the people hosting the 2008 RNC to help the event be spectacular in the eyes [...]

by Kevin Stirtz
Kevin’s Amazing Customer Service rule# 14:
Be an Amazing Listener
In a survey my company did recently, the number one thing customers said they wanted more of was better listening by the people they deal with.
This survey reflects a major weakness in how most organizations treat their customers. Listening skills are not a high priority [...]

by Kevin Stirtz
Kevin’s Amazing Customer Service rule# 29:
Give them details.
A sure-fire way to thrill your customers is to make sure you give them all the details they want. When you do this you’re helping your customers in several ways.
First, you’re letting them know you listened, understood and got everything correct.This simple feedback tells your customer [...]

Amazing Customer Service Rule #39:
Make a great first impression every time.
We’ve all heard it said first impressions are lasting and it’s true. Though we can improve a customer’s perception of us over time, we’re always better positioned if we show them our best stuff right up front.
One way to do this is see yourself as [...]

Amazing Customer Service Rule #18
Every customer contact is critical
What your customer perceives about your company is what determines whether they will stay with you. And their perception is built one contact at a time. Even one bad experience can taint their perception of your company and how you do things.
Every contact a customer has [...]

by Kevin Stirtz
Amazing Customer Service Rule #41
Always follow up and follow through.
One of the biggest complaints people have is they never hear back from sales or service employees. And we’ve all experienced it. Someone promises to do something and it never happens. So, as a customer we’re left wondering and waiting. And it takes more [...]

by Kevin Stirtz
Amazing Customer Service Rule #19
Offer your customers solutions, not dead-ends.
We all know not every customer request is easy or possible to fulfill. But rather than tell them “no” try to find other ways to help them get what they want.
Always focus on finding a solution. No matter what they ask for, you can [...]

by Kevin Stirtz
Amazing Customer Service Rule #35:
Never let your customer repeat themselves.
A common complaint customers have is they have to repeat their story over and over again as they get handed off to different people.
Customers understand that often you have to hand them over to other people to help them get what they want. That’s [...]

by Kevin Stirtz
Fifteen years ago I had a complaint at a very well known Italian restaurant in Minneapolis. I still remember how badly the employee responded to my concern. In fact, I’ve used it in my customer service seminars. It shows the power we all have to give our customers a memorable experience.
Here are some [...]

Here is a great (free) resource to help your organization increase customer loyalty, boost retention and generate more referrals. It’s my latest book (in ebook format) and it’s called:
More Loyal Customers
(21 real world lessons to keep your customers coming back.)
It’s a fast read but it’s full of practical ideas, tools, tips, advice and examples of [...]

by Kevin Stirtz
The fastest way to increase customer loyalty is by improving the quality of customer service you deliver. In fact, I dislike thinking of it as “customer service”. I prefer calling it “Remarkable Service”. When you take care of your customers so well they tell others, then you’ve delivered remarkable service. When you do [...]

by Kevin Stirtz
Several news items today talk about how chip giant Intel has parted company with the innovative group, One Laptop Per Child (OLPC). OLPC is a nonprofit educational computing group. Their mission is to help children have more access to information and opportunities by providing them with low-cost computing capabilities. Their OX laptop is [...]

by Kevin Stirtz
Remember the old motels where you drive up and park in front of your room? A few years ago, my wife and I had the pleasure of staying in one of these because the nice, new hotel we had planned to stay in had lost our reservation.
The first thing that caught my attention [...]

by Kevin Stirtz
Today a trial in Duluth, MN (USA) continues. It’s a trial that, IMHO, should never have started.
For years the Recording Industry Association of America has hammered people for downloading and sharing copyrighted music without paying. Thousands have settled (and paid fines) after getting the “nasty letter” from RIAA attorneys.
There is nothing wrong with [...]

by Kevin Stirtz
With apologies to Ralph Waldo Emerson for paraphrasing his quote , here’s an easy way to make your company stand out from the rest, in a good way or in a bad way.
It’s called consistency.
But, not all companies understand the difference between consistency and foolish consistency.
In my town there’s a grocery store that [...]

by Kevin Stirtz
Referrals are a hot topic. And they should be. Many businesses rely more on referrals than any other source of new business.
But many people get it wrong when they think about referrals. They see referrals as something they can “get” or produce. They try to build systems and plans to generate referrals.
The reality [...]

by Kevin Stirtz
A few weeks ago I renamed my marketing formula and talked about the first element, “Awareness”.
(Remember, “A” equals Awareness which means people know about our business and are likely to become customers.)
Today we’re going to talk about the next element that makes the Smart Marketing Formula work: “Time”.
Time is a constant for all [...]

by Kevin Stirtz
A while ago, I wrote about something I called the “Magic Marketing Formula”.
Here it is in a slightly different format (a.k.a, easier to read and remember). Also, I have changed the name to reflect the true nature of the formula.
From this point on, this marketing formula will now be called:
The Smart Marketing Formula
This [...]

by Kevin Stirtz
It seems whenever we talk about finding and targeting our customers, we focus on who they are. Are they young, old or middle aged? Are they educated or not? Rich, poor or middle-class? Tall, short, skinny, chubby? Urban, rural, suburban or even ex-urban? (Ex-urban sounds like you divorced a suburb.)
Of course, these [...]

by Kevin Stirtz
A couple months ago I tried an open source word processor, AbiWord . It’s a decent product and does everything you’d expect. I tried it because I was tired of Microsoft Word taking so long to start and crashing so often.
But before long I found myself using Microsoft Word again. Even though its [...]

by Kevin Stirtz
About a month ago, I posted the results of a customer service survey I did last year.
The number one thing customers said they wanted more of was better listening by the people they deal with.
This survey reflects a major weakness in how most organizations treat their customers. Listening skills are not a high [...]

by Kevin Stirtz
I visited the dermatologist today for a minor procedure. It was something I should have done a year ago but at that time the doctor talked me out of it with two solid arguments. One was that the condition would clear up on its own. Two was the treatment was painful. In fact, [...]

by Kevin Stirtz
A couple weeks ago my mom was in the hospital. She had a knee replacement, a procedure she was already familiar with. So, she knew what was in store and she was not looking forward to it.
One of her concerns was the level of service in the hospital. For good reason. When you’re [...]

by Kevin Stirtz
Some years ago (I can’t even remember how long ago) one of the biggest and most influential fast food chains in the USA did something that changed how the fast food (or QSR) industry does business. They did something so simple yet so brilliant that before long, 99% of their competitors had copied [...]

by Kevin Stirtz
Often business owners will focus on marketing to increase their sales without making sure the rest of their business is ready. I’ve heard it said that good marketing will help a good business get better and will help a bad business get worse. It’s true.
I’ve seen too many businesses that advertise aggressively and [...]