Judy’s 10 commandments of winning customer service

Have you ever wondered why Apple created the Genius Bar? They did their homework. They interviewed customers and asked them where they experienced the best customer service. The overwhelming winner: the treatment experience working with a hotel concierge. Why a concierge? These talented people do what it takes to satisfy their customers. They help you find what you need when you need it, even when the path to success is not easy or a straight line.

I’ve translated the parallels between the hospitality model and that used by Apple into the 10 commandments of winning customer service:

1. we are here to help you have a good experience

2. listen to what your customer has to say, especially when they are upset

3. respond with helpful behavior

4. treat your customer with respect

5. have a fix-it mentality (solutions not excuses)

6. maintain a broad spectrum of knowledge related to the needs of your customer base, beyond the expertise of your own business

7. recommend tools and resources outside of your own brand when appropriate

8. be friendly

9. be available

10. make it easy to work with you, be flexible

How to build customers for life

Become a resource like the Apple Genius Bar. You will find that you have higher customer satisfaction, frequent contact with your customers, repeat business,  it is more fun for you as well as your customers to be engaged and to work together on solving problems (which will come up — and how you behave under pressure can make a customer one for life or one who goes out and tells 10 or more people about their bad experience with you).

This post was triggered by an article about why Apple is great in the May issue of Fast Company. You can read more at http://bit.ly/cdLiGy, Whether you are an Apple fanatic or a PC fan, there is much to learn about why the Apple style is a winner and why other industries want to emulate them.

Let me know how I can better serve you.

An effective way to build the habit of asking for referrals begins by giving them to others first!

If you are now or have ever been a member of BNI, you know the philosophy well.  “Givers Gain.”

Joanne Black, author of “No More Cold Calling” says that this behavior stimulates reciprocity in others. She herself has benefited from this habit. Repeat business doesn’t just happen. Staying in touch reminds clients about us and when they have a need for our services, we are top of mind.

Being generous with contacts, resources and help that is asked for and needed builds strong relationships.

Judy’s Ten Eleven Commandments of Referrals

1. Listen to the needs of others with an open mind, heart and ears.
2. Ask for permission before giving information or advice.
3. Confirm your understanding of what people say they need.
4. Respect others as you would like to be respected.
5. Follow-up when you have shared with others, get their feedback on what worked well or what you could do better next time.
6. Give credit where it is due.
7. Ask for what you need.
8. Be specific.
9. Give often.
10. Let others know how they can help you.
11. Express gratitude.

Here is a short movie clip of an exercise based on these principles.

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“Creating Connections at BACN”
It was filmed at the BACN meeting on June 25, 2010.

“Creating Connections” is a regular part of our meetings, yet each month this segment is presented in a different way.

The purpose of this segment is to bridge the gap between meeting someone at an event and building a connection that is of benefit beyond the moment.

If you would like a one page handout on referrals, send your request to me at info at creative1 dot com

Light up Your Buying Brain

“When we brand things, our brains perceive them as more special and valuable than they actually are.”

Martin Lindstrom

“The Joneses” is one of the movies that were shown at the Sonoma Valley International Film Festival. I found it to be an insightful, sometimes funny look at how our desire to buy things is influenced by our need to fit in and acquire the things we observe to be possessed by those we admire. Since I am in the business of branding, it got me thinking about what it is that creates that irresistible urge to buy IT, makes us think we cannot live without IT or that having IT will make our lives so much better.

The Brain and the Buy Button

The field of neuromarketing is real science. It has been popularized through the works of branding expert Martin Lindstrom. He gives us a peak inside of this fascinating field in his best selling books: brandsense and buyology. I was introduced to neuromarketing by Patrick Renovise and Christophe Morin. These two are entertaining as they explore how to turn on the “buy button” we have in our brains. There are differences between consumer products and business services, but the triggers that activate the “buy button” described in SalesBrain Neuromarketing: Understanding the Buy Buttons in Your Customer’s Brain are the same.

Triggers That Cause us to Buy

We may think we make decisions to buy based on objective information. In reality, our decisions come from our old brain, the one we share with lizards. Our emotions reside in the mid brain, and our new brain, rationalizes our decisions.

How can we attract and stimulate the old brain to take action? The main function of our old brain is survival. It behaves to keep us safe and wants to avoid pain. Safety, shelter, food and belonging are the domain of the old brain. We respond to marketing messages that identify a real or perceived pain and how to avoid it or remove it. Then we need to make it clear that we have the ability to fix the situation. A well-defined claim that differentiates us from our competition is will help us get the attention of our ideal clients. To seal the deal, a demonstration of what is to be gained by using our services will light up the buy button in our old brain.

In the movie “The Jones”, wanting to be like the beautiful, charismatic family of the title influences buying behavior. As a species we survived by choosing the most attractive mates, those who were strong and good providers. In today’s consumer world, we respond to the same triggers as our cave dwelling ancestors.

Brands Light up Brains

Neuromarketing measures observable brain behavior.

Techniques include:

How well does your brand message answer these questions?

1. Who do you serve?
2. What is their pain?
3. What makes you the best solution to their problems?
4. What will clients gain working with you?

Are you keeping up with the Jones with your marketing message?

Tell me how your value proposition lights up brains.

Did you know that everyone who is in business is in Sales?
Sales is part of the marketing process.

Watch this video to find out the golden lessons I learned about Sales from Robert Mondavi.

My thanks to Jon Jones of LunarParcel Media for his fabulous support and videography.

“People do business with people they know, like and trust.”

Try asking these five simple questions the next time you meet someone or want to know more about someone you already know.

You might be surprised at what you learn when you are curious and make the other person feel like they are the most important person in the world while you are with them.

Watch this short video to find out more

The 10 Most Addictive Sounds in the World | Fast Company.

I was listening to the radio this morning and heard that the most addictive sound is that of a baby giggling. It is one of 10 sounds that trigger our brains.

Martin Lindstrom, the noted market researcher and author of two outstanding books on customer behavior: buyology and brand sense, posted this article to Fast Company. It is all about the sounds we know, love and remember.

For years, I have encouraged clients to record memorable voice messages. I get comments on my voice mail greetings. The sound of your voice is part of your brand. How do you sound to the ears of your prospects and clients?

Most of us have five senses, yet over 80% of all marketing communication is aimed at our sense of sight.

What opportunities do you have to use sound to attract and engage your audience?

I recommend starting with your “audio logo” also known as a elevator pitch.  It is a sound bite. If it is done right, it catches the attention of your intended audience and triggers their interest to know more about how you can help them.

Sounds good to me.

I want to share this article written by Stacey Johnes and Regina Novickis with you. It is a snapshot of how to make PR work for you.
I whole heartedly agree with their approach.

I would love to hear how you are using public relations to get attention for your business.

Building Positive Momentum Through Public Relations
If you’ve never been in the press, securing media coverage or garnering attention for your business is not usually an instant thing; but it is accessible to everyone and consistent efforts WILL reap rewards. While it can happen very quickly for some – especially if you are able to tie-in with breaking news – for others it may take weeks, or even months, to see results depending on a few factors such as how simple (or not) your story is to communicate, and how consistently you reach out to media.

There are things that you can do, however, to bring positive momentum into your business and, in particular, your public relations efforts.

Perseverance: Like growing your business in general, a successful PR campaign means dedicating some energy to it. This means continually developing new pitch angles that can spark the interest of media, and following up with the news organizations where you want to be covered.

Avoid the Overwhelm: Don’t try to build Rome in a day. There is a wide universe of media out there and the thought of attempting to reach them all can feel overwhelming. Try starting in your local market where you already have built-in news value by being a local business or expert. Or focus on one genre of media, such as trade publications read by your industry, or business press. “Working” one area of media can give you the confidence, and success, to spark momentum.

Set Clear Goals – on Paper: Write down your public relations goals and three things you can do to achieve each goal. Take at least one action a day that gets you closer to achieving a goal. The mere process of taking that action creates momentum that will build upon itself.

Build Time For PR in Your Schedule: Every week, find at least one hour to focus on your public relations efforts. Even if it means blocking it off in fifteen minute increments at a time; in fifteen minutes you can email a pitch to five journalists, place three follow-up calls, or research a new media outlet to see where you could be covered.

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Regina Novickis and Stacey Johnes have nearly 30 years of combined experience helping both emerging and global brands take off and enter the spotlight through public relations. They apply their creativity, strategies and proven know-how to help business owners and experts get their message out to the world. If you’re ready to get your company off the ground and soaring through the incredible power of public relations, get your free tips now at www.PRTakeoff.com.

Sometimes things seem to be easy but they are not obvious. Like transferring photos from my iPhone to my computer. I googled my query and here is what I found: How do I get pictures off my Apple iPhone? :: Free Tech Support :: Ask Dave Taylor!® http://bit.ly/aGYec7

If you are on a Mac, you can use Image Capture, an application that come with the operating system. Once you know how, it is easy. Dave Taylor explains it well. I am bookmarking his website for the future.

Here is one of the photos I wanted to move from my iPhone.

Northbay Webify meeting with Patrick Schwerdtfeger

Patrick Schwerdtfedger, author of Webify Your Business, was the guest speaker at the North Bay Webify meetup. I used my iPhone to take a few candid photos. Patrick mentioned posting photos that are tagged (with the name of the person(s) in the photo) as one of the strategies for increasing web traffic.

Do you have ideas about how to use photos for building traffic to your web site? Please share them with me.

Turn on your Energy
Supercharge your Strategy
Prime yourself for Prosperity

Creativity thrives on energy. Your brain and body crave it.

You can learn how to turn on your energy from Deborah Myers, founder of Health at Your Fingertips.

switch on the energy of prosperity

Judy Baker, Completely Creative will help you use the energy in your brain to shift your beliefs and get you into action.

Prosperity unfolds when you know what you want and how to get it. Joyce Shimetz, Shimetz Enterprises will give you a model to evaluate your current situation and see what is working and where you are exposed to risks.

By the end of this class you will be energized, have clarity about what you want and what steps to take to move forward toward your goals.

Sign up now at http://bit.ly/7HtOfY

What you believe determines what you can achieve.

The laws of attraction are based on this concept.

Follow this link to hear more. What’s Your Marketing Mindset?

When you find yourself in a funk, what do you do to get back to a positive outlook?