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Let’s play a game. We can call it Lousy Service Versus Good Service, or a better title I came up with: The Dark Side Versus the Shep Side.
The Dark Side of service is just bad. The opposite is what I teach in my CX keynote speeches and customer service training program. Here are some Dark Side and Shep Side examples:
Dark Side: Making customers wait for long, unreasonable lengths of time.
Shep Side: Customers don’t wait. But that’s not always possible, so if they do have to wait, they are told how long, and the company honors its commitment.
Dark Side: Employees are rude. In my annual customer service research (sponsored by RingCentral), the top reason customers leave one company to go to another is rude employees!
Shep Side: Employees are the exact opposite of rude. Our research found the top reasons customers come back to a company are employees who are helpful, knowledgeable and friendly.
Dark Side: The experience is marred by friction and unfriendly customer policies. It seems like it’s never easy to reach a person or get help, and even if you’re trying to buy something, sometimes the company makes it hard. It’s almost as if they have a sales-prevention department.
Shep Side: Customers love companies that are easy to do business with. It’s more than convenience – although customers love convenience. Being easy in business means processes and policies that are customer-friendly. It’s easy to reach a customer support agent. Employees respond quickly to customers’ messages. Maybe it’s a hassle-free return or exchange policy. The point is, the experience is just easy!
Dark Side: Inconsistent experiences … one day, the service and experience are great. The next time, they aren’t. The customer wonders, “What will the next experience be like?”
Shep Side: When customers have a consistent and predictable experience, they trust you. They know what they are going to get. They “own the experience,” often to the point where a customer won’t take the risk of doing business elsewhere for fear of being let down. This is what you want customers to experience.
I could go on and on with examples like these, but instead, how about you come up with your list? Use these examples as conversation starters to find your version of the Shep Side of service. Start by asking where you fall short or receive complaints. Dig deep to find the root cause of these problems. Then, determine what the opposite of these problems would be. More importantly, what drives the opposite experience? And when you find it, do what’s necessary to make it consistent and predictable. That’s what customers want: a consistent and predictable experience they can count on.
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