Customer Service. Where has it gone?
5/17/2011
Every where I turn it seems the customer service people are trying to complicate my life, not make it easier.
I have a theory about how this all happened. From 2001 to 2007 no matter what you did it turned out great. Businesses were making lots of money. Our home's value only went up. Tax revenues to the government at all levels only came pouring in.
Then it stopped.
People had to start looking at how much was in their paychecks instead of borrowing the new appreciation that showed up in their property value. Businesses had to go back to competing for customers and government suddenly realized that their revenues would not only go up.
But what had happened during those years is everyone forgot how to serve the customer; the person who was actually paying and expecting something in return. Public servants have forgotten the meaning of the word 'servant'. Customer service people have forgotten the meaning of the word 'service'. Companies have lost sight of what their 'service' looks like from their customer's perspective.
In John Mauldin's book, Just One Thing, Michael Masterson's chapter is titled 'The Winner's Rule', and this is the one thing he thinks is most important in business as well as life. He writes, In every relationship you get into - every business, social, or personal transaction - make sure that the other person gets as much benefit from it as you do. When considering your own advantages and disadvantages in taking any course of action, consider those of everyone else involved.
In my business and in my life, I try to live by "The Winner's Rule". Sometimes my services are not the least expensive but I want the service to be the best for my clients. This isn't always easy because insurance is inherently negative as no one wants to think about having an accident or dying prematurely. It is much more exciting to spend money on a new car, but in our modern world insuring ourselves has become a necessity. Let each of us work to get the Service back in Customer and Public Service.
5/17/2011
Every where I turn it seems the customer service people are trying to complicate my life, not make it easier.
I have a theory about how this all happened. From 2001 to 2007 no matter what you did it turned out great. Businesses were making lots of money. Our home's value only went up. Tax revenues to the government at all levels only came pouring in.
Then it stopped.
People had to start looking at how much was in their paychecks instead of borrowing the new appreciation that showed up in their property value. Businesses had to go back to competing for customers and government suddenly realized that their revenues would not only go up.
But what had happened during those years is everyone forgot how to serve the customer; the person who was actually paying and expecting something in return. Public servants have forgotten the meaning of the word 'servant'. Customer service people have forgotten the meaning of the word 'service'. Companies have lost sight of what their 'service' looks like from their customer's perspective.
In John Mauldin's book, Just One Thing, Michael Masterson's chapter is titled 'The Winner's Rule', and this is the one thing he thinks is most important in business as well as life. He writes, In every relationship you get into - every business, social, or personal transaction - make sure that the other person gets as much benefit from it as you do. When considering your own advantages and disadvantages in taking any course of action, consider those of everyone else involved.
In my business and in my life, I try to live by "The Winner's Rule". Sometimes my services are not the least expensive but I want the service to be the best for my clients. This isn't always easy because insurance is inherently negative as no one wants to think about having an accident or dying prematurely. It is much more exciting to spend money on a new car, but in our modern world insuring ourselves has become a necessity. Let each of us work to get the Service back in Customer and Public Service.
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