Recently PCE had to fly to Singapore to deliver a presentation. It was a fly in and fly out. All up the total time spent in Singapore was just on 24 hours.
The quirk with that jet set tour was that PCE had the same flight crew on the way to Singapore and on the way back home.
On the way in amongst enjoying the inflight entertainment, PCE prepared the final touches for the presentation including reading some psychology journal articles. This was noted by two members of the flight crew and a short and let's say less than 2 minute conversation was had about what PCE was reading and why.
24 hours later whilst in the boarding gate lounge, as the flight crew walked through, PCE was tapped on the shoulder and asked "how'd it go....the presentation?".
It's nice to be remembered.
On board the second member also engaged, inquired how the presentation went and then after take off provided exceptional service.
Now PCE love great customer service and love to tell people about it and feedback to the providers of that service.
SO PCE conducted a little experiment: we tweeted the customer care twitter account of the airline sending thanks from passenger 54D.
Customer care tweeted back: thanking PCE for the feedback and that they'd pass it on and they looked forward to welcoming PCE back.
As a contrast a colleague of PCE after landing at an airport was when crossing the road physically hit by an airline van that continued on without stopping or apparently noticing they'd impacted a pedestrian.
An email to advise what had happened was sent to the airline, two tweets : no reply.
How service companies manage feedback and complaints are moments of truth for companies and differentiate companies from those you would promote positively and those you would negatively detract from.
But what is alarming is that many in financial services, in customer service industries do not actively seek or respond to feedback and when faced with a complaint have inadequate procedures or empowerment of staff to actually take any meaningful action.
PCE sheds no tears for companies battling for the consumer dollar when a look at the company client experience leaves a lot to be desired.
So the challenge for you as a service provider?
Assess your feedback mechanisms : how do you ask for and respond to feedback : is that process known by your clients and accessible? Do you make clients aware of how they can provide feedback and do you actively ask for it?
And what about your complaints philosophy : once again how do you respond?
If your process lacks on these fronts you are missing tapping into aspects of what clients actually look for when utilising your services.
Thursday, 21 March 2013
Thursday, 14 March 2013
Becoming Highly Referable : By Being You
PCE spent time today with a brilliant individual who had lost confidence in their customer approach as it had been questioned by an influential adviser in financial services who has succeeded using a very different style.
So we had in front of us someone who is:
- genuinely passionate about people
- connects with people about their values
- shares her dreams with clients and they reciprocate
- matches strategy solutions with delivering client wants
- lives breathes and sleeps her chosen profession : insurance advice
- professional and polished
So why on earth was she questioning herself now? Well, she's new in town and perhaps that approach does not work in the market she's found herself in.
In PCEs opinion nothing could be further from the truth.
Here before us was a perfect example of a new age adviser : an adviser that clients are desperately seeking.
This adviser has all the hallmarks of being highly referable simply by being who she is.
So here in a nutshell is what you need to do to create the differentiator that leads to genuine client engagement and referrals and genuine enjoyment of what you do. Follow your bliss!
1) be highly referable : that is you need to have a visual value document that illustrates what it is that you do and what your input into the process is for clients. In other words a value of advice document. For more details contact PCE direct www.positiveclientengagement.com. You also need to have a pitch about why you do what you do, who you do it for, what outcomes they have by working with you.
2) be able to demonstrate your process / method for what it is that you do : flow charts are brilliant here
3) engage your clients : lifestyle questions, ratings, profiling, wealth management indexes and scores all help
4) survey your clients and ask for feedback : how well do you know them and how well do they know you
5) educate your referral sources and educate yourself about them : and don't pay them for referrals : rather you through your exemplary service will make them look good purely due to the fact that they cared enough about their clients to refer them to you : and you can turn away referral sources who won't work with you in this way
6) be able to be reviewed : that is have a web presence and on that site show case you, your team, educate, inform, engage, share - but most of all be real
7) communicate communicate communicate : reassure your clients after they engage you, after you present your advice, after they sign up
Templates, examples are all things that great genuine people in this industry share.
PCE has bucket loads and are happy to engage you with these tools ( and a little tip ....most of them can be found in the 100 posts we've written.....so as much as we'd love to package them and sell them to you....with a bit of work from your end ....most of it is here already)
Enjoy!!!
So we had in front of us someone who is:
- genuinely passionate about people
- connects with people about their values
- shares her dreams with clients and they reciprocate
- matches strategy solutions with delivering client wants
- lives breathes and sleeps her chosen profession : insurance advice
- professional and polished
So why on earth was she questioning herself now? Well, she's new in town and perhaps that approach does not work in the market she's found herself in.
In PCEs opinion nothing could be further from the truth.
Here before us was a perfect example of a new age adviser : an adviser that clients are desperately seeking.
This adviser has all the hallmarks of being highly referable simply by being who she is.
So here in a nutshell is what you need to do to create the differentiator that leads to genuine client engagement and referrals and genuine enjoyment of what you do. Follow your bliss!
1) be highly referable : that is you need to have a visual value document that illustrates what it is that you do and what your input into the process is for clients. In other words a value of advice document. For more details contact PCE direct www.positiveclientengagement.com. You also need to have a pitch about why you do what you do, who you do it for, what outcomes they have by working with you.
2) be able to demonstrate your process / method for what it is that you do : flow charts are brilliant here
3) engage your clients : lifestyle questions, ratings, profiling, wealth management indexes and scores all help
4) survey your clients and ask for feedback : how well do you know them and how well do they know you
5) educate your referral sources and educate yourself about them : and don't pay them for referrals : rather you through your exemplary service will make them look good purely due to the fact that they cared enough about their clients to refer them to you : and you can turn away referral sources who won't work with you in this way
6) be able to be reviewed : that is have a web presence and on that site show case you, your team, educate, inform, engage, share - but most of all be real
7) communicate communicate communicate : reassure your clients after they engage you, after you present your advice, after they sign up
Templates, examples are all things that great genuine people in this industry share.
PCE has bucket loads and are happy to engage you with these tools ( and a little tip ....most of them can be found in the 100 posts we've written.....so as much as we'd love to package them and sell them to you....with a bit of work from your end ....most of it is here already)
Enjoy!!!
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