55 words or 10 phrases customers rarely hear (part 4)In part 1 , 2 and 3 of the above captioned article, I wrote of the welcome letter a guest received upon checking in at the Fairfield Inn & Suites in Florida and I went on to explained the benefits of using the ten, nine, eight, seven, six and five most important phrases, described in that welcome letter. In this concluding part of the above captioned article, we will discuss the relevance of points four, three, two and one.
The FOUR most important words: "How did we do?" Feedback is critical. Your customers who do business with you have a unique perspective and they appreciate not only being asked, but would also be eager to share their experience…if you take the time to ask and listen to the answer. People don't care how much you know, (or what you sell, or what type of service you provide) until they know how much you care! Unfortunately, the majority of those in the retail and service sector including hotels and restaurants do not bother to find out. They seem to operate on the *spoof Time Warner Cable site and video which asks customers 'what can we do worse?' or ‘who cares’ credo. *A customer, unhappy with Time Warner Cable’s services retaliated by putting up a spoof time Warner Cable Site and Video which satirically had a list of helpful facts, such as:
No wonder a recent American Customer Satisfaction Index ranked Time Warner Cable the 8th worst in that country!
The THREE most important words: "Glad you're here!" Never underestimate the value of a smile and a cheerful greeting. Nothing beats a cheerful welcome… Customers who feel welcome tend to become comfortable and spend more time. Feeling comfortable encourages a buyer to relax… to be open and to spend. What's more, a customer is more likely to return to a place that left him or her with good feelings than one that was cold and indifferent.
The TWO most important words: "Thank you." Basic manners...but how often do you get thanked when you’re the customer? ‘Thank you’ can be an incredibly powerful pair of words, especially if the person you're thanking really needs to hear them, or isn't expecting them. Unfortunately, we don’t hear it often from those who serve the customer. One reason for this is that employers in the service industry are themselves seldom shown appreciation by their supervisors or managers and run the risk of never hearing a genuine ‘thank you’ when it’s appropriate. Being appreciated is one of those things that really motivate us, both at work and in life - so these two words positively go a long way.
The MOST important word: "Yes." The word itself defines commitment to a purpose and rejects any ideas of laziness, inability, and refusal to deal with the requisites of service delivery. The word implies that you will execute the task at hand regardless of what measures you must take. In a society conditioned towards instant gratification and loathe for hard work we must recognize it as our duty to reinforce the importance of eliminating the word ‘No’ from our vocabulary. For most people, saying 'no' sounds like total bliss (sarcasm intended). Explains why ‘no’ is the 84th most commonly used word as compared to ‘yes’ which ranks 486 in the list of ‘The 500 Most Commonly Used Words in the English Language’ (based on the combined results of British English, American English and Australian English surveys of contemporary sources in English: newspapers, magazines, books, TV, radio and real life conversations - the language as it is written and spoken today). Saying ‘yes’, so long as it doesn’t get you involved with things that don’t align with what you need to deliver, is a wonderful opportunity to get to win-win scenarios. Go on…become a ‘yes person’!
Bedside Manner Needed In Customer Service In 2005, several medical students at the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in Nashville, Tennessee indicated that they were somewhat uncomfortable in making early morning rounds on our obstetrics-gynecology service. They were unsure of how best to conduct these rounds while obtaining pertinent medical information. Because of this, the University introduced teaching bedside manners in 2006. Students were instructed on the importance of the acronym AIDET (acknowledge, introduce, duration, explain, and thank) and were asked to be properly attired and that name tags were readily visible. They were told that appearance was important and enhanced patient comfort and respect. Patients needed to be able to see the names of those who enter their room, as an initial introduction was often quickly forgotten. No room was entered without a knock on the door; as they entered, each student was instructed to introduce herself/himself, and to shake the patient's hand. Students also introduced themselves to family members or friends who were in the room. Patients wanted health care providers not only to be knowledgeable and competent but equally importantly - to display a caring attitude. Therefore, students were taught that attention should be placed on cultivating and conveying just such an attitude. Students were informed that showing emotions should be viewed as acceptable behavior and that words of "I am so very sorry" connected emotionally. After a full year of conducting bedside manner rounds, student feedback surveys indicate that this exercise has been helpful and should be incorporated into the education of medical students. Taking a cue from what the Vanderbilt University did, isn’t it time for the hospitality and service-related industry to take a hard look at improving tableside or countertop manners (or whatever you call it), in customer service?
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