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Quote
of the week:
"Activism
is the rent we pay for being
on this planet" –
Anita Roddick
Recommended
book of the week:
The
Soul of the new Consumer -
David Lewis
&
Darren Bridger
Published
by Nicholas Brearly
Website
link of the week
www.ideasiteforbusiness.com
A
Marketing Idea A Day keeps you
thinking of innovative
and
creative ways of marketing
your business
This
week’s customer service
"Touchstone".
The
Magic of Mirrors.
Some
time back, I read about a city
office building that, over a
period of several months, had
been completely refurbished.
Tenants were high in their
praise for the quality of the
workmanship, the choice of
décor, and were very grateful
that the old elevator had
been replaced with a new higher
speed model. The reality
was however that the elevator
had not been replaced at all,
nor had any modifications been
made to increase its speed of
travel between floors. What then
had happened to cause such
positive comments from patrons
of the building?
Here’s
a clue. The total refurbishment
of the building had included
replacing the old internal walls
of the elevator with new panelling
that included several
full-length mirrors.Remember,
the travelling time between
floors hadn’t changed at
all. What had changed was the
perception of time, now
that the elevator passengers had
something to do to occupy their
time. In this instance, preen
themselves. Ain’t vanity a
wonderful thing?
So what on
earth has this got to do with
customer service? Well, as
you know, I am obsessive about
not keep customers
waiting, so anything that can
reduce either real time or
perceived time should be
seriously considered. If
providing instant service to
your customers is not
always possible, then it is
important to have a range of ‘distractions’
to keep your customers
focused on things other than
just waiting, waiting, waiting,
inwardly complaining about how
poor your service is.
Banks often have television sets
positioned for viewing by
queuing customers during some
international sporting events.
My
question, is why not have them
switched on at all times? Why
not have a television screening
at your place of business?
Whatever you decide, remember
that the number one gripe of
customers is to be kept waiting.
Complaints can be dramatically
reduced if you provide some form
of entertainment whilst they are
waiting. That entertainment can
be as simple as installing a
mirror for customers to look at
themselves.
Many
happy customer returns!
Graham
Harvey APS
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