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Guest Problem Resolution 101: Power
of the Follow-Up
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By: Bryan K. Williams, June 2008 A few years ago, I saw some statistics that showed the top reasons why customers stop using companies:
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As for the new phone company, the same day I received the service, I also received an automated phone call thanking me for choosing them. I never got around to answering the phone, so they called back the following morning to ask a few questions about all facets of the service experience. Follow up, follow up, follow up. Follow-up is an art form. Some people have it down to a science. In many ways, one of the biggest differences between good, great, and engaging service is the quality of the follow-up. So what is the first step towards mastering this rare art form? It can be summed up in one phrase: Take ownership. Take ownership of whatever the issue is�that�s it. If you receive a complaint or if you are given a request, you own it. It�s yours. Don�t pretend it�s not or hope that the customer complains to someone else. A company I used to work with would say, �You ate it�you own it�. Once you own the issue, then the next step is to resolve the issue to the customer�s satisfaction. Then, you�ve got to follow up like you�ve never followed up before. Let me give you an example. One of my first jobs in the hotel business was as a towel attendant. Yes, I spent many days in the sun wearing beach shorts, and giving out towels to resort guests. One day, a guest walked up to me, took one look at my name tag and said �Bryan, my suite�s air conditioning is not working�. Even though I clearly was not dressed like I worked in the maintenance department, the guest asked me anyway. Do you know why? Because he didn�t care which department I worked in. Nor should he have cared. All he should have been concerned with is that I was an employee of the resort; therefore, I should be able to assist. So here�s what I did.
At that stage, I relayed the issue to the maintenance department�after all, they are the ones who will actually go into the suite and fix the air conditioning. So since I�ve given the issue to the proper department, my work is done right? Wrong. The maintenance department told me they would get to the suite in 45 minutes to fix the problem. So I then told the guest that the problem will be taken care of in 45 minutes. I�m done now right? Wrong. My next step was to follow up to ensure that the suite, in fact, got fixed. When I checked with the maintenance department, it was fixed! Now surely I�m done right? Wrong. The purpose of following up is to ensure that the issue has been taken care of to the guest�s satisfaction. So my next step was to let the guest know that the room had been fixed. This is the platinum rule at its best. Give the guest what they want. In this case, the guest wanted their air conditioning fixed, and it got fixed so now surely all is right with the world. Not so fast. If the purpose of follow up is to ensure the issue
has been taken care of to the guest�s satisfaction, how will I know that
the guest is satisfied if I don�t ask him? So the final step was
to call the guest when he finally got back to his room to ensure he was
happy with the resolution...which he was. I even sent a hand-written
note to the room apologizing once again and thanking him for choosing our
resort. Do you think the guest expected for the towel attendant to
follow through like that? Absolutely not, but I am sure it left a memorable
impression.
The ultimate goal is to follow up until you are confident the guest is happy with the resolution. If you do that, success is sure to follow. While some statistics may show that 67% of customers leave because of an indifferent employee, I would also bet that a significant % of guests are loyal because of a caring employee who takes ownership and follows up. Let �ownership� be your key word as you move forward, and commit the rest of this year to foster a culture of follow-up on your team. Visit www.bwenterprise.net to download a complimentary checklist that can assist with your service-recovery training efforts. Also, be sure to take advantage of our 2008 summer training discounts. Thank you for making the EngageMe DVD and Poster a success! Act now to add these great products to your training collection. |
B. Williams Enterprise, LLC
EngageMe�the voice of your customer
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