"CEBI has been a strong resource in helping me improve my company. The education and advice I have received is worth considerably more than my investment in dues." Doug Shull President/CEO Transmet Corporation

COMMENTS

This book is the most frequently read and quoted book by CEB members in the area of customer service.  The senior author is the owner of a very successful General Motors dealership in Dallas, Texas.

The book is full of practical examples of how to provide outstanding customer service.

10 OF THE BEST IDEAS

1. Customer service is a matter of systems, not smiles.  In McDonald’s quest to serve the perfect french fry every time, they developed systems for grading potatoes; systems for guaranteeing the grease would maintain a constant, perfect temperature; and systems for storing potatoes.  They also created their own frying equipment to ensure that the potatoes cooked the same way every time. They even controlled the soil the potatoes would be grown in to achieve the consistency they wanted.
   
   

2. What you charge a customer is not a part of customer service.  After visiting a restaurant, you probably don’t remember exactly what the hamburger cost, you only remember whether you liked the experience or not
   
   

3. You can’t compete solely on price.  No matter what you charge, somebody because they are smarter (they figured out a way to be more efficient) or dumber (they don’t really know what their costs are) - can always charge a dollar less.
   
   

4. The customer, more than anyone else, will tell you how to provide good service but you must have ways of facilitating that feedback on a continuous basis.
   
   

5. Customers are pleased when you exceed their expectations.  You have a lot of control over what they expect.  To exceed their expectations, always under promise and over deliver.
   
   

6. Customers don’t want their money back, they want it right when they buy it.
   
   

7. Fire your customer relations department.  The people who deal with customers must have the authority to resolve problems.
   
   

8. If you can get a customer to come back, you (1) increase sales, (2) strengthen your position in the market place, (3) cut marketing costs, (4) insulate yourself from price competition and increase the odds the customer will buy other products and services from you.
   
   

9. “Stay in touch.  Once you have identified your best customers, communicate with them regularly”.
   
   

10. “You can shear a sheep for many years, but you can only skin it once”.