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Business Development Cultivating Positive Relationships Empowerment Techniques Tips

Sometimes, the decisions about pitching clients are clear-cut

Recent furor about new voting legislation has caused companies and organizations to choose sides on the issue. Major League Baseball moved the All-Star Game from Atlanta to Denver in the wake of Georgia legislation designed to restrict voting options. So, depending on how you feel about the voting rights issue, your prospecting process can have […]

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Business Development Empowerment Techniques Tips

When ‘customer service stars’ present mixed reviews

Amazon gets high customer service marks. But, its employee treatment is controversial and, by most accounts, lacking. In contrast, Costco gets consistently high marks across both categories. As employees also are vital “customers,” mixed reviews can present a dilemma when deciding to court customer service stars as prospects. It’s not necessarily an all-or-nothing scenario. It […]

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Business Development Cultivating Positive Relationships Empowerment Techniques Tips

Seek clients emulating your personal preferences

In addition to courting customer service stars, client prospects that emulate your personal preferences also can be good way to pursue new opportunities. Companies scoring high on both fronts will be more likely to sync up with you in a business relationship. There are many ways to assess preference and style compatibility. One obvious and […]

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Business Development Cultivating Positive Relationships Customer Service

Business development benefits from courting customer service stars

Looking for new business contracts? Consider courting companies that are customer service stars. If a company scores high on customer service, it follows that they may also be committed to providing a high-quality product or service, and treating all their stakeholders well. Stakeholders include suppliers/vendors, partners, and employees. It improves the odds of working with […]

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Cultivating Positive Relationships Customer Service Empowerment Techniques

Once the force is with you, rinse and repeat

Engaging and exercising your Customer Force of 1 abilities isn’t always a one-time opportunity. Once relationships with key higher-ups are established, there may be reasons to reach out subsequently. My favorite example, of course, is Costco. (Why would you expect anyone else? 😊) Years ago, I had an issue with a third-party company partnered with […]

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Cultivating Positive Relationships Customer Service Empowerment Techniques Social Media

Going viral potential amps up Customer Force of 1 influence

Airlines called on the carpet for perceived passenger mis-treatment. Companies seeing stock plummet after a negative quality report spreads like wildfire. Celebrities dethroned after a slur. It’s all part of our viral world. It can bring down captains of industry and raise up a single individual to immediate fame. The omnipresent potential for going viral […]

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Building Bridges Customer Service Empowerment Techniques

4 practical, tactical tools to achieve the best ‘Customer Force of 1’ outcomes

There is an etiquette of sorts that will help ensure achieving the best possible Customer Force of 1 results from higher-ups in the organization you’re targeting for help and resolution. Here are four tips to help you get there: Leverage your initial contact with the regular customer service department. Sometimes, when you’ve experienced poor customer […]

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Building Bridges Customer Service Empowerment Techniques

Be a customer service force of 1

While customer service departments and representatives generally are doing a better job of addressing consumer satisfaction in a timely and complete manner, it’s not always sufficient to rely on others to move the process forward. In some cases, the impacted customer needs to go further and farther to pierce the normal routes and get needed […]

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Cultivating Positive Relationships Customer Service Kudon'ts Kudos

Comcast customer service fails to follow through

Over-promising and under-delivering takes many forms, as a Comcast customer service snafu detailed by ZDnet.com’s Chris Matyszczyk shows. A log-in failure on HBO Max, part of a Comcast plan, led him to Comcast customer service to solve the problem. Ultimately, the problem was resolved…by HBO Max, not Comcast. Oracle.com addresses how customer service can and […]

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Cultivating Positive Relationships Customer Service

Be who you are, then build on it: Customer service success tips

The pandemic has proven a catalyst for companies to enhance their customer experience (CX), retain customers, and build loyalty. A McKinsey & Company report sums up the challenge and reward of improving customer experiences: “The recent shifts in consumer behaviors and expectations brought about by COVID-19 are forcing companies to change how they connect with and serve […]