Archives

If It Were That Simple, You Wouldn’t Have Done It Yet…

Things are changing. So fast, they’re staying put, at least for the most part. It usually brings a smile to my face when they phrase “We’re doing well. Things could be better, but compared with (fill in competitor) we’re actually doing fine/well“, is muttered for two reasons. First, it’s part of our selection process and second, it’s part of the business’ selection process. “No, we’re not changing” is a great response, even though most can’t get it out of their mouths.

Recently one of our clients called to advise us that they were being pushed be their OEM to do some print advertising, their first in nearly two years. So they advised us that they’ll do it for two months, just to get the heat of their back. That made me think about what business owners and senior management do to simply make their business partners happy, or trying to make competitors worried, or to make a statement as well as a list of other, mostly ego-driven or self-centered, reasons.

Many businesses today are out of touch with their customers even though consumer sentiment and feedback is so readily available today, to the point of nausea. And we don’t ask. Heck, we can’t even get accurate sourcing at the point of sale today as “the fastest way around the system” is what most of those in sales will do because “I just want to sell a (fill in the blank) now”.

Logic tells us if something is easy enough, we should just do it! Logic also tells us most people won’t opt to do things that are deemed difficult so the few that do that harder work reap the greatest benefit. Most things that can increase results relatively quickly, given the proper attention, will absolutely give an unprecedented advantage. Yet most fall short. Well short.

Take, for example, call tracking. Why would you want to use your cell, at your desk, when you can kill two birds with one stone on the business’ land line (unless you have a more advanced CRM that can append a cell call to a customer record)? Convenience is not a reason, that’s called an excuse. Sure, there are reasons to have your land line forwarded to your cell, however it makes sense to get the most out of each contact, being somewhere you can easily take notes and/or check something online and more, simply by making/taking the call at your desk on a tracked phone. (Using this example due to the fact that for most car dealerships this is a huge pain point in accountability and tracking.)

Do we really think the top producing salesperson will drop 20-70% of their sales when pressed to follow a process versus letting them “do it their way” since nobody wants to “rock the boat”? That’s not likely to happen and,  better yet, it’s more likely to provide a boost in production.

More than ever we need to stretch the rubber band if we expect to succeed, not just get along. There are so many simple things that we can get done offering huge benefits in return. They may not always be easy, but they are worth it. The salesperson chatting on the front line may just be able to reach five more people today on the phone. But it won’t happen..

Because if it were really that simple, it just won’t get done. That, ladies and gentlemen, is a big issue.

 

Best Practices: Professional Insight, Powerful Results

June 26, 2012 by Gary May 0
The Gift That Keeps On Giving (That You Don’t Want To Give Customers)

It was years ago, and repressed on and off over the years, that I received what would have easily been the biggest gift received in my young life. The box was huge, maybe up to my neck if I can remember correctly. It was wrapped. That was the fun part, or maybe the following minute or three.

After opening the box, another smaller box was revealed. Followed by a smaller next box. And another. And another. And another. My grandfather, who had given me the gift, was starting to really enjoy himself about two or three feet away from me in his favorite rocking chair. The box reduction play went on until it was almost unbelievable that they could get any smaller.

At some point, a handful of minutes later, I achieved present status and my only memory,(to this day) is the exercise that took place. No, the present does not exist in my memory. What is there is the half-hysterical feelings that existed.

So, as it's time for a question, what is it that you take your customers through and what do you give them? What is their level of expectation when you have them start their box-opening process? Do you get to the present (car, reward, incentive, warranty, etc.) quickly, or do you make it more about the entertainment (throwing keys on the roof, driving their trade for appraisal to lunch and back while they're waiting, etc.) prior to the painfully long process?

Regardless of how time-deprived "we all are" today, there are unbreakable rules in retail today, especially when driven by online/eCommerce. Yes your customers, like I did years ago, have expectations. While my grandfather's only intention was to get his laugh on for the day PRIOR to my getting the gift, do everything you can to ensure that you don't end up with only a laugh and your customer walking (or running) out of the store to the next one.

Too many businesses today still make the same fundamental mistakes in making customers happy because (1) that's the way you have always done things, (2) you're not willing to change, (3) you're not truly connected with your customers or (4) because customers "don't expect it". You can never ask enough questions, properly validate enough and set/work with expectations well enough.

Tomorrow is first day of the rest of your "I'm in retail loving, customer service-oriented" life so what are you doing? Do you have your stack of boxes and scotch tape ready or are you heading an in-the-game organization toward the happy, engaged customer base?

p.s. (anyone know a good shrink?)

 

Best Practices: Professional Insight, Powerful Results

 

June 19, 2012 by Gary May 0
Leave A Number, Maybe We’ll Call (And Other Customer Service Fables)

"I'll get right back to you". The biggest one we all hear, almost every day. As if the caring dried up as fast at the ink on your signature. Customer service has fluctuated as much as marketing dollars over the years, with the marketing dollars typically winning.

Simply put, while customer service is more important than ever for every website, marketing and CRM company, and "statistics" show more outbound calls than inbound calls, proactive support is just not what it should or could be. And with automotive retail moving at the speed it is, anything less than complete customer service is completely unacceptable. And commonplace.

The issues are more about mentality, approach and operation over that of scale, overhead and resources. Customer service is a mindset, not a skill set. One way to know what to expect is get things in writing. If you are signing a contract for deliverables (be it hardware, software, applications, etc.) you, as a business owner or operator, are entitled to a service level agreement. You can always demand things such as average resolution times, limit of billable hours for modifications, response time expectations and more.

Another oversight is the process of signing, through implementations, to operation. Too often, the business falls victim to a vendor's protocol, rather than the business being in the driver's seat. First have a single-point of contact. Next ensure that there is an understood "live" date that needs to be approved by both parties for billing to commence. Third, ensure support is in lock-step with both process and time requirements. More often than not, from cradle to grave you'll deal with more people than a presidential candidate will kiss to get into office.

Customer service is Kung Fu in a MMA world, a lost art. Businesses are counting on getting the type of attention and service that is deserved, especially based on claims of unparalleled practices. Number one, by the way, simply means in more stores. Not customer satisfaction. Not hours on phones. Not dedication to community. Maybe vendors should start being rated on outstanding/open tickets, measured on response times like businesses are for lead management and penalized for each time they nickle and dime their clients.

So leave your name and a number. Wait for the call back. More importantly, wait for the customer service you expect. Some day, your operation will be as important to your vendors as their is. Until then get what you deserve and nothing less.

Best Practices: Professional Insight. Powerful Results


June 5, 2012 by Gary May 0