There\u2019s a story of a Boy Scout arriving fifteen minutes late for a Troop meeting because he helped an old lady cross the street. When his Patrol Leader pointed out that crossing the street shouldn\u2019t have taken a quarter of an hour, the Scout explained it took so long because the lady didn\u2019t want to go.<\/p>\n
Do you do that?<\/p>\n
Do you decide for the customer what service should consist of? Do you deliver it regardless of whether she perceives any value in your actions? Are you frequently surprised to learn that service is not a quality your company is known for?<\/p>\n
Perhaps you’re crossing the street with old ladies who don’t wish to cross. <\/p>\n Better customer service starts with \u201cWhat can I do to help?<\/i>\u201d Truly savvy customers understand this and take the initiative, asking \u201cWill you help me?<\/i>\u201d<\/p>\n It was October of 1985. Jesse, Ray Anne, and I had not that long before been co-workers at an Orlando radio station. Now, oddly enough, we were all working for separate advertising agencies in Orlando. Each of our respective employers was a small fish in the Central Florida advertising pond, and each of us wore several hats in the completion of our duties.<\/p>\n As colleagues often do, the three of us met for lunch at a small Vietnamese restaurant. (\u201cTry the spring rolls, they\u2019re incredible\u201d).<\/p>\n While I tried my best to look skilled at eating rice with chopsticks, Jesse and Ray Anne started comparing notes on the rates various media sources charged their respective clients. Then they started bragging about their own negotiation skills.<\/p>\n \u201cHow much are you paying for K-92? That\u2019s outrageous! I never pay them a dime over $57.<\/i>\u201d<\/p>\n After listening for a while, I finally said \u201cYou two seem to think beating up a media rep for a couple of dollars per spot is going to help your clients. How much did you accomplish? You saved the client, what? $170 over the course of the month? Pfffttttt.<\/i>\u201d<\/p>\n Ray Anne looked at me and said \u201cChuck, you know how competitive the advertising business is. How else can we demonstrate that we’re working on the client’s behalf?<\/i>\u201d<\/p>\n I said. \u201cI go into meetings with the media reps and say \u2018Here\u2019s what I\u2019m trying to accomplish for my client. I\u2019m not here to try to grind down the cost per point. I\u2019m asking what you might be able to do to help my client reach his goals.\u2019<\/i>\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cDoes that work for you?<\/i>\u201d asked Jesse.<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019d be amazed at how often the sales department calls in the programming or editorial or production or promotion department and creates an extra splash for my client. I pay that $170 each month that you manage not to, and my client easily gets thousands of dollars in additional exposure.<\/i>\u201d<\/p>\n Additional exposure. Do you suppose that’s a street your client would like some help in crossing?<\/p>\n I doubt seriously that our 1985 lunchtime conversation changed the way media is purchased in Orlando. But what I find amazing is that these sorts of discussions between buyers and sellers don’t happen naturally in the course of doing business.<\/p>\n You\u2019ve heard it said that more than half the time customers don\u2019t make their purchasing decisions on price at all. (There’s hard data to prove that, by the way). But even when price isn’t the primary consideration, value always is.<\/p>\n Does your customer see any value in your customer service? Does she actually want to cross the street?<\/p>\n If you normally react to competition by cutting rate, perhaps you have an opportunity for both you and the customer to leave the negotiation thrilled at the outcome if instead you ask \u201cHow can I help?<\/i>\u201d<\/p>\n
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