Of course all companies claim to be customer focused. Why wouldn't they? Anything else would be a death sentence. As a result we are constantly bombarded with messages indicating customer service is every business's "top priority."
The reality is few truly make customer service excellence a deliberate focus and execute well in this area consistently.
I've had the privilege to work with many top-notch companies as well as many average companies over the years. There is a clear and recognizable difference between the two. When a company excels in the area of service, the customer knows they have experienced something different.
That's when the magic occurs. The customer now becomes a brand builder, a spokesperson, or among the company's "raving fans"-as Ken Blanchard has labeled it in his best-selling book of the same name. Many average companies are reputable and provide good service, but superior customer service companies provide a memorable customer experience.
Tom McCormick is the founder and CEO of Top Notch Richmond
So what do companies delivering superlative customer service have in common?
In a successful organization, excellence is demanded from everyone every day, regardless of the position in the company. Each person knows the expectation and strives to exceed it.
Mistakes are always reviewed and employees exhibiting the proper behavior are recognized. Everyone who is exposed to the customer works with the same level of commitment to quality.
In top-notch companies, good is never good enough, perfection is the target. This perspective is truly a mindset, a healthy dissatisfaction for anything "mediocre."
Customers are engaged. The company understands their customers' wants and needs with a clear desire to exceed their expectations.
Each engagement is viewed from a relationship-based versus a transactional-based perspective. Companies dedicated to customer service excellence always look at the long-term effects of their decisions with a goal of making customers for life out of every person who passes through their place of business.
Top-notch customer service is not a title or an award to strive for, it's a declaration to the world that in business good is not good enough, only excellence will suffice.
