Internal and External Customers

External customers are the company’s clients. They are people who purchase the products the company produces. They are of a great importance to the organization. There are also internal customers. They play an important role in the organization’s success as well. Internal customers are the staff that the company hires.

Get Out of the Ivory Tower

Popeye's Chicken & Biscuits is a popular chain of more than 1,300 restaurants in 20 countries. They promote understanding between the people in head office and those in the restaurants with a range of vigorous and innovative programs.

Is the Customer Really King?

We often hear ‘the customer is king’. I don’t believe it. First, many customers do not behave like kings. Some act more like ruffians than royalty. You might want to disregard this kind of customer altogether. But it’s tough to disregard a king.

Whine, Moan & Complain - Then Contribute!

Every month I receive messages from students and readers that begin, 'I got such terrible service from...' and often close, '...and I'll never go back there again!' I find these stories upsetting, occasionally entertaining, but rarely are they motivating or instructive. Here's why:

Add Value First, Reap Value Later

I was teaching about customer intimacy and loyalty when one participant asked, 'What if your competitor has already built a close relationship with a customer, and you want to get inside?' I replied, 'Add value first. You will reap value later.' How can you help prospective customers right now - even before they become your paying customers?

Education is the Star at Starbucks

What lengths do you go to effectively educate your customers and colleagues? Is your effort a watery dose of weak support with lukewarm staff and systems? Or are you serving a hot, fresh brew of potent answers, proactive ideas and positive, powerful insights?

Where on the Floor is 264?

Your customers may require more than technical data to fulfill their wants and needs. Data only becomes useful information when it connects with human concerns.

Customer Recovery First, System Recovery Second!

When something goes wrong for your customer, you may know right away what needs to be done. But before you fix or change the system, set your precious customer at ease. Remember, there is a personal side to every breakdown. It's the side your customer feels first.

Are You Referable?

Being technically competent is not enough to build a growing business. You may be a terrific lawyer, doctor, accountant, broker, supplier, programmer, manufacturer or car mechanic, but if you don't keep your promises in every way, you just won't be referred.

Is Consensus Sinking Your Organization?

How open are you and your organization to completely new ideas? How welcoming are you to diversity, controversy and well-intended provocation? If there are questions you cannot raise, issues you dare not discuss or items banned from your agenda, make the space and time to relook and reconsider.

To Build Your Business, Appreciate the Customers You Already Have

Picking up new business is important, but it can cost a lot in advertising, special discounts, promotions and new customer orientation. Increasing your business with existing customers magnifies the loyalty of those you already have, and substantially boosts your profits.

Push Into the White Space

The next time your structure or system says 'no', 'cannot', or 'we don't do it that way', take another look. Think outside the box. Push into the white spaces that surround you. Don't be content just doing it right - find a way to do it better!

If We Implement Them All, You Have Not Succeeded

To keep your culture vibrant and evolving, you must consider ideas that are well beyond what makes sense right now. You must look ahead today, look beyond tomorrow and look 'over the horizon' for the future.

Top Customer Service Speaker Says: You Revoke Customer Entitlements at Your Peril

If a customer is used to VIP treatment, receiving a perk, year after year, such as attending a nice event, it becomes part of his routine, like a family outing, and it’s something he counts on. In this article, Dr. Gary S. Goodman, President of Customersatisfaction.com, best-selling author, top speaker and consultant writes from personal experience to show just how damaging and costly it is to delete customer entitlements.

Service Encounters of the Third Kind

What makes a company successful over the long, long term? What characterizes the service relationship between companies and customers who do business together for decades, even generations? How can your company stay close to your ...