By: Trickybits, Flickr
Business owners seem to inherently know the value of a customer. If not, they generally go out of business. As businesses grow and hire more people, the employees don’t inherently know the value of the customer.
As part of National Customer Service week, I wrote this Customer Value Creed for organizations of all sizes to use as ongoing inspiration for quality customer care.
This creed includes the two winning entries from the customer value contest held back in July-August. Congratulations and thanks to Kalin Bracken and Joan Koerber-Walker for their winning entries (#12 and #13 below).
The Value of Customers
- Customers spark innovation through their demands. Embrace your innovators.
- Customers give you an advanced education about people. Respect your “teachers”.
- Customers pay for your performance. Give your best show.
- Customers keep your company alive. Feed your blood.
- Customers blow your horn. Herald your trumpeters.
- Customers are your future Wikipedia. Make many entries.
- Customers are your tweeps on Twitter. Tweet them right.
- Customers are your reputation. Protect it.
- Customers are gold. Mine for it.
- Customers are your greatness. Cherish and nurture it.
- Customers are human. Help humankind.
- Customers are your muse. Be inspired. ~Kalin Bracken
- Customers share their remarks with others. Be remarkable. ~Joan Koerber-Walker
Still time to contribute: Although the contest has ended, I invite you to share this creed with your entire organization. Brainstorm additions to this creed and send your best ideas to me in the form of two short sentences. I will feature many entries with the author’s names in an updated blog post by the end of November 2009.
As you share this with others, please credit me as the author and the URL, (http://katenasser.com).
Many thanks and I welcome your comments and entries in the comments field below.
~Kate Nasser, The People-Skills Coach
Posted in Customer Service
on Jul 24th, 2009
As The People-Skills Coach, I am sponsoring a contest to come up with TWO additional entries for my Customers Value Creed (noted below). Two winners will each receive a $30 gift card to http://amazon.com. Winners will be announced on Twitter in National Customer Service Week 2009 which starts Oct. 5th and their winning entries and names featured on the updated blog.
To Qualify: Submit your original short one or two sentence entry in the comments section below by Aug. 31, 2009 and tweet the following text on Twitter: ”#Customers Value Contest spons. by @KateNasser The PPL-Skills Coach, http://tinyurl.com/ng2g75 RT apprec.”
Customers Value Creed
- Customers spark innovation through their demands. Embrace your innovators.
- Customers give you an advanced education about people. Respect your “teachers”.
- Customers pay for your performance. Give your best show.
- Customers keep your company alive. Feed your blood.
- Customers blow your horn. Herald your trumpeters.
- Customers are your future Wikipedia. Make many entries.
- Customers are your tweeps on Twitter. Tweet them right.
- Customers are your reputation. Protect it.
- Customers are gold. Mine for it.
- Customers are your greatness. Cherish and nurture it.
- Customers are human. Help humankind.
Using the guidelines provided at the top of this post, please submit your additions to this list in the comments section below.
Also consider reading the other customer service posts on this blog and signing up for the always free newsletter Smart SenseAbilities in the upper right corner of this page. I do not sell or share your email address – period.
My passion is customer service and teamwork. So I was very pleased to deliver a key session at the International Help Desk Conference Las Vegas, NV.
“Conversations with Customers: Best & Worst Moments”
The session was recorded. If you want a copy of the CD, please contact me.
Metrics don’t create great service. They measure great service that you create through the conversation. In fact, the conversation is the customer’s metric — voice-to-voice and online.
When conversing, speak from inside the customer’s head.
- Value the customer’s need for help – that’s why you are in business.
- Use the customer’s language and jargon — not yours.
- Respect the customer’s expertise and add yours to it.
- Use the customer’s perspective when choosing your focus.
- Embrace the customer’s business priorities and deadlines to satisfy them.
Lastly, make the service experience easy and enjoyable for the customer. View this related post GPS Your Brain to Work Other Personality Types if you want to deliver customer service at the highest level.
I welcome your contributions in the comment section below. If you wish to share the info in this post with others, I ask only that you credit this site.
Yours in service … Kate
