In February there is a conference called Customer Service is the New Marketing in San Francisco
I may we wrong here but isn't customer service the OLDEST form of marketing? My mother, grandmother, grandfather, friends, family all do word of mouth marketing and what is the one thing highest on their list for negative press on a place - yep, service.
Point in case, I was out for dinner on Saturday night at a new(ish) place in Liverpool. Usual footballer and WAG crowd were installed at the bar but that's not a guarantee of good food. In fact the food was above average but bar one waiter, the service was sloppy. So would I recommend it to friends? As it happens I probably would as the service was okay...only okay, but it's not got much competition.
I know nothing about the restaurant industry and I don't mean to be rude as they work very hard but I bet I could make that place more successful in about 2 months. Here is what I'd do
Once you've done this stuff, word gets around. You can't stop working at it of course and you need to decide who your clientele are to be long term
This isn't a rant. I just think living in London highlights how much competition can make you better. As more places open in Liverpool over the next 18 months, standards will naturally rise and those that don't will fail.
I agree that customer service is the oldest form of marketing, but these days retail (especially Internet Retail) establishments need to be reminded of that (hence the need for this event in San Francisco). It seems to have gotten worse over the past decade. My theory is that it has to do with technological advancements, but I could write a whole book about that. The main premise is that retail companies are so focused on what data they can obtain with technology (including CRM, etc.) that they forget about the basics.
I agree and the buck stops at the the top. If you provide a service then you need to make sure that it is the very best. Train your staff and do not accept anything other than the highest standards. Some of the best service I have known was in countries where service is not a dirty word and people take pride in what they do.Word of mouth is a powerful tool, but once let down people will be reluctant to try again,so maintaing service is just as important. Something else "respect", managers for staff, customers for staff and fellow customers.
fair point Wes though there is some irony in having an event about internet services :)
Great article.
Customer service is the oldest way to market and happily the internet makes companies have to pay more attention.
Your readers might want to try www.Measuredup.com a leading customer service review website where people share reviews with other users and with companies. Companies that are involved with and value customer service read Measuredup to keep up on what people are saying and to be able to improve customer service.
It is free and easy to use.
thanks for the heads up Marc - much appreciated
Steve