Friday, April 25, 2008

Smart Advice

I'm a letter writer. When I get great service, get bad service, hear something positive, want to make a change, or feel like my opinion will be helpful, I write a letter. Or an email. But I really consider them both to be the same as far as quality writing is concerned.

Emails should be well written, using complete words, not shorthand. They should be carefully constructed, re-read before sending to ensure you really are saying what you mean to say. Text messages should be used sparingly. I wouldn't confirm a show via text message; I'd call the host and have a chat. When I do send a text message, I always include my "WLC" at the end; who am I to think that they'll have my phone number in their phone. I do this even for my husband. Overkill? Maybe. Good practice, definitely.

In an email, if you ask yourself the question, "Will this person misunderstand my tone?", chances are that they will and that a phone call will probably be more appropriate.
Hi, it's Wendy here, I have written an email here that I'm about to send and just wanted you to know that everything is moving along smoothly. All of the details are in the email. Let me know if you have any questions; I'm happy to help.
The way we react to customer complaints is very important. You might think it's the American in me that has ingrained the belief that the customer is always right. Maybe it is. But I believe it so strongly that I want everyone on my team to know it and believe it, too. PartyLite supports that philosophy very well. They have systems and procedures that they follow, of course, and they really do have the customer in mind throughout.

But WE are the mouthpiece to the client. We are the cold face. We must be the ones who respect our clients and assure them that they are our first priority.

What if they complain?

Now we're getting to the point of this post. (Took me awhile, didn't it?) I just read a great article about this very topic. I will share it with you rather than recreate it. Here's a link.

What do you think? Do you have any examples of complaints that you handled well? Or not well? How might you do things differently next time?

Think first. Then react with the customer in mind.

Supporting you! WLC.

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