The ONE WORD that kills your Customer Experience

It's the little things that make all the difference...

And it can be single words or phrases that determine the quality of the customer service your clients experience...

During a recent Hotel stay - we had to leave early in the morning in order to meet our connection. So the evening before Lynn asked at the reception desk if we could have our VAT Invoice then, rather than wait until the morning...

The mouse was moved and clicked and the printer coughed into life - not a word was spoken, and no eye contact was made...

The Invoice was printed and handed to us with a deep sigh...

Lynn noticed that the invoice didn't include the amount for the final night of our stay and asked why...

Obviously, the computer system doesn't update until midnight and so you'll have to come back in the morning to get the updated copy...

Obviously...

How stupid of us as simple customers to not realise that their system didn't update until midnight...

Please let us go and whip ourselves vigorously with a Birch twig until we recognise the error of our ways and undertake to never to ask any more dumb questions...

We needed to leave at around 06.00 the following morning, so asked if anyone would be on reception at that time in the morning...

Well obviously, there will be someone here - and they should be able to print your invoice off before you leave...

Obviously...

Well it's not obvious to us or else we wouldn't have asked the question.

In the morning we went to reception as ordered by Herr Oberleutnant to collect the printed Invoice.

Guess what - no one there - obviously...

So we rang the bell to request assistance.

The Vogonesque administrator appeared from behind the door, lumbering towards us with a clear look of disdain..

May we have a copy of the VAT Invoice for our stay please...?

To which the reply came...

Obviously there is no one in reception at this time in the morning... 

There it was again - we mustn't let the fact that there is a person in front of us who wears the badge of the hotel confuse us into thinking that there may actually be a person in reception..

Obviously we were morons - how dare we wander into reception and ask for an Invoice from a person who wasn't there...

This was like a scene from a comedy - a catalogue of errors compounded by attitude and lack of care...

Being present is not enough to deliver a great customer experience...

Great Customer Service must have the 5 P's...

1. Presence - being not just physically present, but focus and attention present with customers during all transactions.
2. Purpose - delivering a great experience should be at the heart of all service activity.
3. Passion - when someone actually enjoys what they do it shows and makes a difference; the opposite is also true.
4. Pretend - that the customer is right even if you don't think they are, negotiate with them but never admonish them.
5. Profit - you both should be better off as a consequence of the interaction; financially and emotionally...

It comes from the Top - goodness knows how their Manager treated them as a team, habits are learned from those with influence...

Have a great week..

Obviously...