Toronto's Transit Commission Vows to Improve Customer Service

InsideToronto.com reports that the city's transit commission, Toronto Transit Commission, has pledged to do better at serving their customers. According to the report, the TTC has been under fire for poor customer service in addition to a 25 cent increase in fares and a prevalent service interruptions. TTC Chair Adam Giambrone apologized for their low standards of customer service and said, "We all know that it went viral on the Internet, and we found that the TTC was at the root of a lot of ridicule across the system," Giambrone said. "These issues really highlight a need for us to focus on where we go in the future. We need to modernize our fare technology, we need to work with employees to enrich their jobs and we need to use our resources better."

Learn more: TTC unveils plan to help improve customer service

As TTC works to improve its customer service, what initiatives can they implement to ensure customer service sustainability? Could these initiatives be shared with other major metropolitan transit organizations?

The Life Stage Marketing Summit Full Program and Early Bird Savings!

Understand and maximize your customer lifetime value by knowing your customers better than anyone else, anticipating their needs and satisfying them first.
 
Knowing your customers inside and out is the key to innovation. These days, we're operating in a transparent "real time" world with abundant choice and increasing customer power. Identifying and focusing on core segments is critical. Understanding needs and behaviors and translating those insights into new business opportunities becomes the real foundation for achieving growth.
Are you ready to put 2009 to rest and focus on real growth in 2010?
 
Attend The Life Stage Marketing Summit
Exploring the intersection of life style and life stage marketing strategies allows you to deeply understand your customer segments beyond demographics. The key to achieving customer relevance means knowing your best customers even better so you can deliver on their current and future needs while identifying new high priority segments for new growth.

Event: http://bit.ly/8mOz1O
Brochure: http://bit.ly/9Z225b
Register Today: http://bit.ly/a9nDRO


Why Life Stage Marketing 2010 is a must attend:
· Learn from the best... Practitioner speakers share real life actionable case studies on Innovation, Trends, Segmentation, Market Research and Marketing and Loyalty-
· The IIR Motto: NO COMMERCIALISM from the platform
· Featured topics include: Behavioral Economics, Applying Key Information into Actionable Strategies, Anticipating the Future, Leveraging WOM, The Power of Experience Design, Driving Brand Relevance and Growth across Multiple Categories...
· Segments covered include: Millenials (Echo Boomers), Boomers, Gen X, Hispanic and Latin Americans
· NEW 360 Degree Trends Panel and Multiple Interactive Real Time Exercises
 
Delve Deeper...
· ALL Day Symposia Dedicated to Social Media & Technology

· ALL DAY Ethnographic Workshop: Using Ethnography as a Tool for Identifying Opportunities and Building Customer-Relevant Strategies at the Intersection of Lifestyle and Life Stage

· NOW CO-LOCATED with The Youth & Family Marketing Mega Event! The destination for those looking to deeply connect with all segments of the contemporary family to drive innovation, make smarter decisions and ultimately create what's next first, before your competitors.

Delta Airlines plans $1 billion revamp of customer service, entertainment options over next 3 years

The New York Daily News reports that Delta airlines is planning a $1 billion revamp of customer service, entertainment options over next 3 years. The airline is making the changes to lure corporate travelers who pay the highest fares. It is adding leather seats and upgraded lighting to all 269 aircraft it acquired through the 2008 purchase of Northwest. All wide-body planes will have in-seat video and audio on demand when the upgrades are complete, Delta said.

It's the "most significant" customer-service investment Delta has made in more than a decade, CEO Richard Anderson said.

Learn more: Delta Airlines plans $1 billion revamp of customer service, entertainment options over next 3 years

Is this enough for Delta to keep and serve their customers?

GM focuses on customer service

According to the Oakland Press, GM is now focusing on building quality customer service into their operations. Mark Reuss, president of GM North America, is focusing on creating a new type of company for GM, and taking a step by listening to exactly what customers have to say about their service. They're trying to create an environment where all employees can help the customers directly.

Reuss stated:

“This is the kind of service I’m talking about — person by person, customer by customer. This is the kind of customer focus we’re building throughout GM these days and the kind of service I expect all our employees to embrace whenever and wherever they can.”

Read the full article here.

Google's Nexus One Customer Service Problems

Infoworld.com reports that Google's Nexus One is causing some unforeseen customer service problems. As Google is selling the phone directly to customers, they no longer have the cellular phone middleman to handle customer service requests. Google appears to be only accepting e-mail customer queries, to which it pledges to reply in one to two days -- far too long, say most people who are complaining online.

Many people are also turning to T-Mobile and HTC, but getting little help there. T-Mobile is often referring people back to either Google or HTC for answers to questions. HTC is often referring people back to T-Mobile, according to complaints online.

Learn more: Google hit with Nexus One sales model complaints

How could this have been avoided?

Airlines continue to cut customer service

According to the Daily Herald of Chicago, United Airlines will cut more customer service representatives, 50 of whom work at the Chicago O'Hare Airport. Other customer service representatives are receiving a reduction in hours. They're encouraging customers to rebook their flights online. This occurs just as a snow storm is expected to roll into the area this weekend. Read the full article here.

Companies looking to social customer service post-holiday

According to Marketing Vox, many companies are relying on social media tools to accommodate the questions of the individuals using the tool for such questions as return policies. Companies such as Comcast, Dell, Southwest, and AT&T are fully using it as a customers service tool.

What do you think of companies using Twitter as a customer service tool? Have you had a pleasant experience as a customer using these tools? One interesting fact in the article was that customers who do use these social media tools for assistance expect a higher level of service. Read the article here.

Happy Holidays from Customers 1st

We're taking some much needed time off from our coverage of customer relationship management to celebrate the season with our loved ones. We want to sincerely thank you for your readership, your comments and your participation.

Here are our top posts from 2009:

Dell Delights Customers

NACCM 2009: Answering the Social Phone – Listening, Measuring, and Engaging in Social Media.

Hospital provides customer service training at the request of employees

We'll be back in January with more coverage.

We wish you Happy Holidays!

OFFICIAL CALL FOR PRESENTERS - Submission Deadline EXTENDED The Life Stage Marketing Summit Uncovering Opportunities for High Priority Segments

Email krivielle@iirusa.com by Tuesday, December 15, 2009

Life Stage Marketing Summit

May 10-12, 2010

Hotel Sax

Chicago

IIR is excited to announce that we are putting the finishing touches on the Life Stage Marketing Summit. We are looking for just a few more speakers to cover the following session topic areas: Social Media Strategies (measurement & ROI, branding and innovation are priority key themes), Marketing & Engagement for specific life stage or life style segments and research and Segmentation and Trend Insights, as it relates to understanding your key segments or emerging priority segments better. Case studies are particularly well received.

If you have an interesting case study or provocative perspective to share please contact me directly.

Session topics include but are not limited to:
· Transition in Life Stage: How Your Customer Evolves
· Breaking into New Life Stages without Alienating Your Consumer Base
· Products Across Life Stages - Which Ones Succeed and Why?
· Researching Life Styles and Stages: Tools and Techniques
· Innovating New Products or Services for Multiple Life Stages and Styles
· Common Threads and Differences in Specific Segments
· Creating an Authentic Message to Build Loyalty for Life
· Integrating New Trends into Traditional Products to Grow Your Brand
· Emerging Product Markets for Various Life Stages
· Product Life Stages: Introducing and Removing Products
· Ethnography for Universal Design
· The Spread of Technology through Life Stages
· Keeping Your Product Relevant as Your Consumer Ages
· Using Social Networks and Blogs as a Marketing Tool? What Works?
· The Right Mix of New Media to Reach Your Target Market
· Mobile and Online Marketing: Where Your Consumers Are
· Trends in Social Media and Technology
· How Your Consumers are Using Online Now
· Cutting Edge Trends: What's Next?

The Audience
Who will attend? Leaders from a variety of industries with responsibilities in:

· Marketing
· Market Research and Development
· Product and Brand Management
· Consumer, Customer, Shopper, Strategic Insights
· New Product Development/Management
· Strategic Planning and Development
· Customer Experience, Loyalty, Retention
· Business Development
· eMarketing/Social Media
· Innovation & Discovery
· Communications/Design


Speaker Benefits
Our speakers join us for countless reasons. Come include:
· To advance the purpose and value of reaching life stages and styles
· To showcase the critical role of reaching life stages and styles within their organization
· To network with their peers and other industry leaders and participate in high level, intellectual exchanges

Added Bonus: Each speaker will receive free admission to the conference (a $3000+ value) including admission to all conference sessions, networking breaks, lunches, exhibit hall, cocktail party, etc.

Submission Guidelines & Deadline
For consideration, please e-mail Kim Rivielle at krivielle@iirusa.com with the following information by Monday, December 14th:
· Proposed speaker name(s), job title(s), and company name(s)
· Contact information including address, phone and e-mail
· Title of presentation
· Brief overview of the presentation (1 short paragraph plus 2 bullets that illustrate audience takeaways): Please note: if your proposal is selected, portions of this description will be printed in the brochure and used online to promote your participation
· Previous conference presentation experience and/or brief speaker biography

Due to the high volume of responses, we are unable to respond to each submission. All those selected to participate as speakers will be notified shortly after the deadline.

Thank you for your interest in The Life Stage Marketing Summit!

All the best,

Kim Rivielle
Managing Director
Marketing and Business Strategy Division
Institute for International Research
krivielle@iirusa.com
708 Third Avenue, 4th Floor, New York, NY 10017

Budget cuts axe KS Medicaid customer service line

The Kansas City Star reports today that Medicaid budget cuts in Kansas have forced the state to axe its customer service line. Starting in February, a help line for doctors and pharmacists who provide Medicaid care in Kansas will close. Hours for a customer service line for Medicaid recipients will be “sharply” reduced.

The delays in confirming eligibility for new Medicaid applicants will grow. The state will cut $200,000 in funding earmarked for overtime and extra help to reduce the backlog.

Are there any other means of customer service that the state can introduce?

Learn more: Budget cuts axe KS Medicaid customer service line

Poor Customer Service Costs Billions

DestinationCRM.com reports that a new, "The Cost of Poor Customer Service: The Economic Impact of the Customer Experience and Engagement," may finally put the damage bad service can create into a language executive boards understand -- dollars and cents. According to the survey of 8,880 consumers across 16 countries, poor customer service cost an aggregate of $338.5 billion per year, the average value of each lost relationship across all countries surveyed costing $243.

Learn more: Poor Customer Service Costs Billions

Is this news to you? How are you leveraging the costs of customer service?

Customer service strategy more important in emerging markets

Barney Beal of SearchCRM.com reports today that customers in emerging markets seem to have more bad experiences to share thereby making a customer service strategy even more important for businesses. According to the results of a recent survey by Accenture,
the survey, conducted over the summer, found that 87% of consumers in emerging markets switched providers in at least one industry sector because of poor service in the past year. That's 18% more than the global average. And, the survey suggests, they're not hesitant to tell others about their experiences -- 69% tell their acquaintances about bad experiences and 25% use social media to spread the word. In emerging markets, 40% of consumers said they use blogs and other online media to tell others about their negative experiences.

Learn more: Customer service strategy more important in emerging markets

Improving Customer Service Phone Skills

Here's an interesting post on the FuelNet blogs that details six tips for improving telephone conversations with customer service agents. After all, every phone call is important, so knowing how to provide good customer service is crucial. Here are the tips:

1. Improve your posture.

2. Give a confident welcome.

3. Ask for the customer’s name, and use it.

4. Give a positive, definite first response.

5. Listen and use verbal “nods.”

6. Offer a customer-friendly solution or explanation.

USAToday: Social media like Twitter change customer service

By now you've heard of companies in the United States harnessing the power of Twitter to fully connect with their customers. USAToday has a fascinating breakdown of the companies and what has and hasn't worked with Twitter and customer service.

Social media like Twitter change customer service

Is your company utilizing Twitter? What do you think you've learned from your customers? We'd like to hear your thoughts.

Heart Based Service Expo

I just finished doing my seminar on the Heart Based Service Expo. What fun - my heart felt thanks to Lori and Raleigh for inviting me to take part in this extraordinary event.
If you missed it and you want to listen in do this:
Download your handout at www.PositivityPractices.com and then go to
http://www.heart-based-service.com/expo/Brandi http://bit.ly/23U3mL to find my seminar (in the next 48 hours) and to sign up for the others! 20 Experts 5 days - spectacular info, great fun!

All the best, JoAnna

Best customer service according to shoppers

The National Retail Federation spoke with 8,000 shoppers and asked which stores they believed had the best customer service. The Top Ten listed were: Amazon.com, Coldwater Creek, HSN, J.C. Penney, Kohl's department stores, Lands End, L.L. Bean, Nordstrom, Overstock.com, QVC and Zappos. A number of these recently spoke at the NACCM: Customers 1st Conference. Click to read more about Zappos' customer service and HSN's customer experience. The winner will be released on January 12. Read more here.

Treat your Customers Right this Holiday Season

Here's five tips from the EConsultancy blog for holiday retailers on treating your customers right during this holiday season. Enjoy!

1. Pay attention to price - Pay close attention to competing prices as customers will bargain hunt during this recession.
2. Customer Service: bring your A-game - If customers feel left behind, chances are they will shop elsewhere.
3. Reach out and reward existing customers - Customer engagement is crucial and that is even more so during the holiday season. Be relevant in your communications and reward.
4. Don't be afraid to start early - Start sales early this year.
5. ...or save yourself for later - Stores that stock up on in-demand products during the end of the season coup reap the benefits.

5 Ways to Flub Customer Service

Samuel Greengard of CIO Insight lists ways that even the biggest companies can flub customer service. He writes, customers are rarely satisfied with the service businesses provide. Understanding those complaints, as well as the processes and technologies associated with customer service, can help CIOs and their teams avoid these customer-care blunders.

1. Outsourcing without understanding all the implications
2. Relying on incomplete metrics.
3. Underutilizing analytics.
4. Taking your existing customers for granted.
5. Trying to be everything to everybody.

What do you think of Greengard's list? Any that you'd like to add?

Dead from Distraction?

Like many of the attendees at the NACCM Customers First conference last week I was excited to see Michael Tchong (http://www.ubercool.com/) as one of our closing keynotes. Michael (besides being ubercool is uber informative and engaging in his presentations. He playfully engaged the audience and kept us involved in his thoroughly well done peek at the future of our world – which is without a doubt a digital one.


Michael asked this audience of professionals (not teenagers, mind you, grown-ups) how many people texted while driving. I’d say about 20%- 30% of the audience raised their hands. I looked around the room and saw people I knew with their hands in the air. I must say I was a bit taken back, after all we all know the dangers, yes?

Read the rest of this important story HERE : www.CustomerCareGoddess.com

You'll be shocked - and it's my intention to shock you. Let's wake ourselves up - the digital future will only be ours if we are alive to enjoy it!

Cutting off the customer

The Wall Street Journal has an article that looks at how some companies are cutting off the customer that's costing the company more money than profit. Last year, many companies would work with their customers, offer them discounts or work with them on payment options. This year, however, many smaller companies are finding that by cutting off customers who don't pay actually increases their profit, as they have more time to spend with those customers who are making their payments.

Do you agree with this? Have you had to break relations with some of your needy customers in order to create a better supplier for your revenue-generating customers? How do you feel about this approach to business from a customer service perspective?

NACCM 2009: An interview with Allegiance, Inc.

Guest blogger Norma Huibregtse spoke with Jason Tripp, Sales Manager with Allegiance, Inc, while at NACCM 2009 to find out about their offerings and their views on the customer service industry.

NACCM 2009: Do you outsource your social media work?

Guest Blogger Norma Huibregtse talked to Becky Carroll after her presentation about outsourcing your social media, how you should bring personality in to your social media when using it for customer service, where it's going in the future, and more.

NACCM 2009: In Photos

Day Two was a great experience. We spent most of the day looking at the kind of service we provide through our customers eyes.

Here is the day in photos:

We Can Change the World

While the "official" bloggers for Customers First show have written about ever speaker at the show, this somewhat newbie show blogger is still digesting the amazing amount of info and writing slowly. (That's why I didn't volunteer to be "official". I suspected it might take me a little longer.)

I've enjoyed the show tremendously and tonight I am enjoying the company of a friend here in Phoenix, and will continue with my blogging thoughts tomorrow.
Meantime - I just loved Emily Yellin's session this morning and have my comments on that session posted over at my place : www.CustomerCareGoddess.com

Enjoy - and then get out and change the world

NACCM 2009: Make Customer Strategy a Reality: Moving from Vision to Execution – Implementing Your Customer Strategy with Speed

As we end the North American Conference on Customer Management 2009, consider how we take the “what” we learned and turn it into a strategic “how”. This thought was posed by Tom Atkinson, Director of Customer Research for the Forum Corporation.

Atkinson talked about developing “strategic speed” because of the impact it has on sustaining our businesses. The 1980’s and 1990’s were about first-generation speed. It’s now time for second-generation speed which is about mindset and mobilizing people.

Strategic speed means delivering value to customers faster. The key to strategic speed is how your organization’s leaders think and act. They don’t aim for speed per se, but rather for increases in three people factors:

1) Clarity – shared understanding of the situation and the direction you are heading. Employees should be able to answer the question “where are we going and why?”

2) Unity – collaboration across departments, geographic boundaries, etc, is the main driver of unity in business. A culture of collaboration helps projects and strategies hold together.

3) Agility – Encouraging people to find ways to meet strategic objectives in a constantly changing environment rather than sticking to a rigid plan. Companies which can quickly resolve customer issues win.

Atkinson stressed that strategic speed requires leadership and that leaders need 4 key abilities to succeed:

1) Affirming strategies
2) Driving initiatives
3) Managing climate
4) Cultivating experience (learning and sharing by all)

He challenged the audience to think about these concepts as they return home to develop new strategies. Visit Forum’s website at Forum.com to read more about this concept.