“Things to Think About” for the Reference Professional

#crlp Yes, there are other reference professionals out there. Join groups like the Customer Reference Knowledge Sharing Network (CRKSN) on LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter.

“Things to Think About” for the Reference Professional is a weekly blurb to get you thinking. You can find content here on this blog or at Twitter under the hashtag for Customer Reference and Loyalty Professionals #crlp.

The Importance of Employee Loyalty

Do you think that there’s a relationship between happy employees and customer loyalty?  I think yes and I’m not alone.  When I asked this question via Twitter I got some great answers back.  Here are some of them:

 

@joerawlinson “Employee loyalty usually means a happier staff. When they are happy, they serve customers better. That grows customer loyalty”

 

@wwcasey: “If you want to know why customers view the company the way they do, look at how the company views employees.”

 

@jasontryfon: ”It’s a proven fact employee sat has direct correlation on customer sat. Upset staff, upset customers : )”

 

@efrainm: “Fastest way to loose loyal customers is having them deal with an angry detracting employees.”

 

@michaelfieldcom: “For organisations, the first customer is the employee, the actual customer will be treated the way the employees are treated.”

 

Think about it for a second.  One place I hate going to is the DMV. Why?  Because I generally (sorry to the good DMV employees) get the cranky man/woman sitting behind the counter.  They don’t look up and definitely don’t give me the time of day.  After waiting in line forever, I finally get to the counter where the person only knows their job and can’t answer questions that don’t deal with “Line 4”.  What does all of this make me?  It makes me dread going to the DMV because I know that the cranky employees I have had to deal with are going to put a damper on my day.  If there was a choice to go to a non-DMV, I would but unfortunately you can’t renew your license at Starbucks.

 

So what would happen if all DMV employees loved their job?  They’d smile more and probably really want to help me.  Remember the days when companies would hand out mirrors to employees and tell the employees to smile and look at themselves in the mirror when they’re talking on the phone?  The smile goes through the phone. 

 

You might not agree with my example, but I think you get the point. Your employees are generally the first line to your customers so make sure that you’re treating your employees right.  Their attitudes will be reflected onto the customers.

 

Dr. Gary Rhoads wrote in his recent blog “Employee Engagement: An Essential Ingredient for Business Success”

 

“… found that one out of every 10 customers was hurt by disengaged employees. We also found that the work environment combined with employee attitudes has a significant impact on a customer’s perception of quality. For this reason, it’s important that companies lead with their strengths, emphasize the positives, and remove the barriers that lead employees to be disengaged with their jobs, their organization and customers.”

 

If you want to read an interesting case study on employee loyalty having a direct impact on revenue, read this case study “Top 11 Ways to Increase Your Employee Loyalty” provided by Allegiance.  One bullet in the report that struck me was:

 

“According to Target Training International, more than 60% of all customers stop dealing with a company because of perceived indifference on the part of an employee.”

 

Sometimes the answers to your problems are closer than you think.  Look inside your organization as well as outside when you realize that customers aren’t happy.

“Things to Think About” for the Reference Professional

#crlp Customers are like fingerprints – no two are exactly the same

“Things to Think About” for the Reference Professional is a weekly blurb to get you thinking. You can find content here on this blog or at Twitter under the hashtag for Customer Reference and Loyalty Professionals #crlp.

Customer Advisory Boards – Are They Worth It? Just ask Chrysler

I ran my first Customer Advisory Board (CAB) about five years ago. Going in to it, I wasn’t sure what to expect or why it was so important. I was told to work with so and so and have a CAB.  That was it. As the meeting took place, my eyes were opened to the power of the CAB. Five years later and a few more CABs under my belt, I am still a huge proponent of them.

Here’s a CAB 101 for you.

What is it? A CAB is a select group of customers (either in a B2B or B2c setting) that have been selected to give feedback on a particular company or product.

Why have a CAB? CABs offer companies a direct touch model for communicating with customers. We sometimes get so wrapped up in what our product does and how it’s better than the competition that we forget that people actually use the product. I can write a blog post that I think is the best blog post ever written, and then turn around and have someone tell me it stunk because of X, Y and Z. Yes, I might be shocked but it’s only going to help me become a better writer. Take the feedback and make a better product for your customer, not for you! They are the ones signing the P.O.’s right?

Who belongs? You need to determine who you want to hear from. Maybe it’s your most loyal customers. Maybe it’s your unhappy customers. If Chrysler isn’t doing well with women ages 20-35 and they want to make that demographic a larger part of their customer base, then they’ll make sure that they have a good representation of that group in their CAB. Select people you want to hear from.

How is a CAB different from just listening to customers? Most companies don’t actually listen to their customers. As crazy as it sounds, it’s true. Most companies just want the next product to come out and for revenue and billings to hit the target numbers. Sitting down with a customer and saying “How can we help you?” usually ends there. No feedback is given to the executives or decision makers in the company. I’m not saying all feedback needs to be given, but there has to be a formal closed-loop process. By having a hand selected group of people allows you to get targeted feedback. This feedback is then given to the powers that be and something is done about it. A closed-loop process is critical for a CAB. Without it you just have a bunch of people talking.

How do you host a CAB? There is no golden rule on how to host a CAB. I have done both in-person CABs as well as virtual CABs where it’s a video webinar. With the economy the way it is now, a virtual CAB might be the most cost effective. Chrysler has created an online CAB which also works.

Why would a customer want to join a CAB? Who doesn’t have an opinion? And who doesn’t want to feel like they are important? By selecting specific customers to be part of a CAB, you are building customer loyalty because you’re asking for their opinion and doing something about it. A successful CAB also allows participant direct access to executives at your company – so make sure you know who you want joining and make sure you have executive buy-in.

If you’re still not sold on a CAB, check out what Chrysler has done.  I have never met Mopar Norm, but the guy knows what he is doing. Don’t just read his post, read his CAB member comments and it’ll sell you on the value of a CAB. Mopar Norm has successfully engaged and encouraged the voice of the customer – something very few companies have done and even fewer have done well.

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Here are some comments from Chrysler’s CAB blog that I think speak volumes:

“The two fastest changes in the short time that the CAB and Chrysler LLC has existed was the new Lifetime Warranty and the numerous interior quality changes made, some even in mid-model year, including the interior upgrade to the Jeep Patriot.”

“The most interesting discussions, albeit the most chaotic, are the live chats that we have with various Department Vice Presidents and Managers, up to and including Vice Chairman and President Jim Press. He proved that Chrysler does listen by giving out his email address to the group. “

“Overall it is the best of any industry attempt to gain direct customer input in order to build a better and more appealing product, because ‘Chrysler Listens’!”

“Sometimes you are so close to a product that it takes outside eyes, looking from a fresh perspective, to spot and identify problems. That is what the CAB brings to the table.”

“As long as the CAB is around Chrysler will have an edge up on their competition.”

 

“With the help of CAB members Chrysler can once again begin to listen to real world customers instead of guessing what people will and will not like.”

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If you’re going to start a CAB I think the two most important things are 1) pick exactly who you want to hear from. You can rotate membership every 6 months or year if you want. And 2) don’t just listen…act! Do something about what you’re being told or else the customers will think that they’re wasting their time.  Make them feel important and make changes. Who wouldn’t want to say “Yeah, the cup holder in the back seat of the new car was my idea!”? Imagine the possibilities.

 

After reading all the Chrysler CAB comments I’m tempted to sell my Honda tomorrow and buy a Chyrsler!

 

Great work Norm!!!!!!!!

“Things to Think About” for the Reference Professional

I’m very fortune to work at a company that has a social media guru on board. She has been my mentor when it comes to blogging and getting what’s in my head, out into the cyber world. Since we work closely together, our jobs sometimes overlap. Last night when I was suppose to be writing a blog for her (oops!) I stumbled upon an idea in my head that at this point I think is great. Maybe it’s not so great, but it got me thinking.

 

I’ve decided I’m going to start doing weekly “Things to Think About” snipits on my blog and via Twitter. Starting next week, I’m going to start posting one sentence things for customer reference professionals to think about. Some might be extremely obvious, others might be controversial. My goal isn’t to have you agree with all of them; it’s to have you think about your job and how you can make it better or to force you to give yourself a pat on the back for running a successful program.

 

If you have a snipit you’d like me to add, feel free to DM me on Twitter or email me.

 

Customer reference / loyalty professionals can search Twitter either by following me @maevenaughton or doing a search using the hash tag #crlp. I will also post the one liners here on my blog.

The Net Benefit of Building Customer Loyalty

 

Times are tough right now.  The housing market is plummeting, the stock market is taking a dive, 401Ks are now roughly 200.5Ks, Chrysler is shutting down for a month and tons of other people are getting laid off.  When money gets tight for me the first thing I clamp down on is the extra spending for movies, shopping and going to professional sports games.  These are generally the first things that go when money gets tight. So how do companies, especially media and entertainment companies, make sure that they keep revenue up? 

 

Take a look at this story posted on ESPN.com in Nov. about how the New Jersey Nets are building fan loyalty.  It goes beyond just giving away free tickets for immediate customer satisfaction.  The organization is helping fans in the long term thus building loyalty.  And I’m pretty sure that if Nets fans are making money, they’ll be spending more on tickets. 

Here are some bullets from the article:

The Nets announced Wednesday they are providing 1,500 free tickets over the next two months to unemployed fans who submit resumes to the team.

Send in your resume, and not only will the Nets give you free tickets to a game, they’ll work with their partners and advertisers to try and find the perfect job for you.

The NBA team plans to send the resumes to its 120 corporate sponsors and a couple hundred firms that own season tickets.

The Nets also plan to have a career day at the Nov. 22 game with companies setting up informational booths at the arena.

 

My challenge to you is to think long term and about customer loyalty not just the short term profits and customer satisfaction.  Long term thinking will be of a greater benefit to you and your company.