The Best Customer Service Articles from 2019

The Best Customer Service Articles from 2019

The results are in, and here are The DiJulius Group subscribers’ favorite articles of 2019 ranked by popularity. I recommend printing and reading any you missed and sharing this list with your team. Want to keep your leadership team motivated about Customer service all year?  Sign them up for our weekly eService and we’ll be sure they receive inspiring Customer service tips each week in 2020! Send the email addresses of those you’d like inspired to: lindsey@thedijuliusgroup.com

1. 10 Ways To Be The Partner Your Clients Can’t Live Without

When it comes to your clients, you need to ask yourself, would you be in the CEO’s bomb shelter?

2.     The #1 Skill A Great Leader Needs To Master

Being a great leader today is tough. You need to be smart, agile, open-minded; the list goes on and on. However, there is one critical skill any leader needs to master and execute to help others obtain their highest potential.

3. The One Thing That Separates The Best CX Companies From Everyone Else

Nearly every business states how important customer service is to them, however, the vast majority don’t truly mean it, are not willing to do what it takes and will never be a world-class customer service organization.

4. Make Your Interview Process Ungameable

The companies that hire the best employees have the best screening processes that are “ungameable”.  The following are three best practices for the interview/screening process.

5. The Millennial Crisis: 22% Have No Friends

As a result of living in the Touch-Screen Age we have significantly fewer face-to-face interactions, and when we lack those interactions, our people skills begin to erode or are never developed. A recent study shared startling facts about the millennial generation.

6. Irrefutable Evidence on R.O.X. – Return on eXperience

The Customer Experience ROI Study is out, depicting the impact of good and bad customer experiences. This year’s study provides the strongest support yet for why every company –public or private, large or small – should make differentiating their customer experience a top priority.

7. 3 Strategic Ways To Dominate The Relationship Economy

A study by the Relational Capital Group revealed that 89 percent of senior leaders believe that relationships are the most important factor in their success year over year. However the study further indicated that less than 5 percent of organizations actually have any specific strategies for helping their professionals develop and strengthen the relationships required to achieve their goals.

8. 7 Soft Skills To Train Your Employees

There are seven key interaction traits that determine a person’s service aptitude competency.

9.  Conversation Nevers & Always

The following is a great guide of conversation Nevers & Always that will help you become fantastic at conversations.

10.  Welcome to The Relationship Economy!

It is finally here—John DiJulius’ new book, his best work, The Relationship Economy, Building Stronger Customer Connections In The Digital Age. This book could not be timelier in the world we are living in.

4 New Digital Presentations Available (slides included)

Build A World-Class Internal Culture by Dave Murray

One of the biggest mistakes’ companies can make when they embark on a World Class Customer Service initiative is to skip over their internal culture. All too often, assumptions are made that “everything is ok”, or “our teams are in good shape”. Organizations that are stuck in this mindset have two things working against them: 1) no initiatives are sustainable if departmental leaders (directors, managers, supervisors) are not reinforcing the initiative on the local level, and 2) managers are very rarely trained how to actually lead their teams. In this session, we will look at ways to identify and create standardized touchpoints for all of your leaders to follow. These touchpoints are designed to increase engagement and morale, while creating an overall better working atmosphere. Learn how you can start your Internal Culture Revolution!

THE DAY IN THE LIFE OF A CUSTOMER by Jess Pischel

The biggest challenge nearly every company has is that their customer-facing employees cannot relate to their customer for several reasons, including differences in age, demographics, income levels, or circumstances. Thus, they do not know what their customer is going through, personally or professionally. They can’t see it from the customer’s perspective, which results in a lack of empathy and compassion. They become numb and transactional.

So, the very FIRST thing The DiJulius Group does with our clients is create a Day in the Life of a Customer. Creating a Day in the Life of a Customer script will be one of the best exercises your company can do to change the mindset and service aptitude of your entire organization. Your Day in the Life of your Customer script should be like watching a reality TV show of your customer’s day unfolding—a roller coaster of twists and turns and surprises, both positive and challenging. As a result, your employees gain an abundance of compassion and empathy for every customer with whom they interact.

BUILDING YOUR CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE CYCLE by Jess Pischel

It will not surprise you that the most successful companies provide consistent service to their customers in every interaction in every location, no matter what time of day or which manager is on duty. Think of Starbucks; your extra hot, venti, almond milk latte is the same in New York City as it is in San Francisco.

YOUR Customers crave consistency. Regardless of the situation or stage in the customer journey, each interaction should be smooth and effortless. In this session, you will learn how to transform even your mundane interactions into memorable experiences. You will be able to identify the inconsistencies in your business and others. As the end of the session, you will know how to create your non-negotiable service standards to become the brand customers can’t live without!

HOW TO SPARK A FIRE THAT KEEPS ON BURNING by Brittni Walker

Most companies have more ideas than they know what to do with. But how do you go from great ideas on paper to consistently executed concepts? Brittni is an expert on developing and implementing customer service systems and employee engagement strategies, both at the consumer banking company where she serves as Director of Customer and Employee Experience, and at the organizations where she leverages her expertise as a consultant.

Brittni knows that becoming world-class does not happen in a single spark….it takes a slow burn. How do you start a cultural revolution that doesn’t fizzle out at your workplace? In Brittni’s breakout, you will learn: How to roll out your ideas with flair and spark a fire that keeps on burning; How to set a path, train on it, and stick with it; How to keep the flame alive and keep your ideas from becoming just the “flavor of the month”.