What’s the difference between good customer service, great customer service and Extreme Client Care™? It’s a question I’m often asked and here’s an easy way to think of it:
- Good Customer Service: You purchase something and receive an electronic (email) receipt and autoresponder message follow-up.
- Great Customer Service: You purchase something, receive electronic (email) receipt, nurturing sequence messages to walk you through using the product and a thank you card (usually done via “Send Out Cards”).
- Extreme Client/Customer Care™: You purchase something, receive electronic (email) receipt, nurturing sequence messages which ensure you consume/use the product (yes, there is a way to do this AND do it in an automated fashion), a hand-written thank you card and, dare I say it, a follow-up phone call.
Now most business owners think that the good or great customer service is “good enough”. It’s not. In today’s impersonal, technology-driven environment, creating a customer experience through personal touch is not only invaluable, it’s a necessity.
It’s so invaluable in fact that it turns your average clients and customers into raving fans. Imagine not having to focus on “getting” clients, knowing that you have a waiting list of people to work with you. . .that’s the power of Extreme Client Care™ and a power that too many business owners overlook, instead choosing — often by default — to worry about constantly getting new clients and customers.
Another quick example:
I recently received several birthday cards and/or thank you cards from people I met and assisted at recent events:
- 6 cards were generated by Send Out Cards — all with the usual indicia, blue writing and glossy card. Nothing personal here at all. In fact, one of the “birthday” cards was promoting a woman’s event (hint…I’m not going).
- 2 other cards were also generated by Send Out Cards and included $5 Starbucks gift cards (I don’t go to Starbucks, in fact, I’m not even sure there’s one near where I live).
- 1 card was handwritten, thanked me for the specific assistance I provided and included a $10 Amazon Gift Card (which I promptly used).
- And several beautiful handwritten birthday cards which were promptly displayed on my desk and bring a smile to my face every time I see them.
I appreciate and am grateful for everyone who took the time/energy to write. That said, which cards/people do you think I’ll remember a month from now:
- the ones who took the time to do something by hand or
- the ones who likely shot an email to their assistant and said “send this”?
That’s the power of Extreme Client/Customer Care™. It’s about creating an experience that lasts and is remembered long after the actual sale (or event) is over.
Will you share some examples of businesses which either did, or did not, practice great customer service and Extreme Client Care™ with you below?