The trouble is that jobs often drag on, and change shape without having a sense of completion.  In fact your customers may not really know whether you have done a good job or not, but they will certainly be able to tell if the project is not completed.

I was reminded of this recently as I discovered a leak in a radiator and needed to call a plumber urgently.

My normal plumber did not reply, so I called another who had been recommended as good value and reliable. He came promptly, and all seemed to be well, and I was thinking that I could use this new plumber in future as he is much more local.  The carpets were getting soaked, and water was pouring down walls so I didn’t get comparison quotes – I needed quick action.

After the new radiator was installed, and the plumber had gone I glanced outside and noticed the old radiator propped up against a wall.  Now I may not be an expert on plumbing but I certainly know customer service when I see it.

I expected the old radiator to have been taken away.  It is extremely heavy, and I have no way of disposing of it at all.  So I had to phone the plumber up and ask him to take it away.  He did so, but without an apology and rather grudgingly.

Dirty old radiator not taken away at the end of the job

I have no reason to believe the plumbing is not first class, but I am not capable of judging it fully.  The leak has stopped.  However I can judge  customer service, and in my opinion it fell short of what I expected.  So he did not wow me.  The next day my original plumber returned my call as he had been away on holiday and apologised.  Next time he will – yet again – be my first phone call.

Even if we are not plumbers we still have radiator-removal in our business, so we finish the job cleanly.

The final parts of a project are in many ways even more important than the beginning.  Where things have gone wrong it is a chance to get back on track, and where they have gone right you can look back together knowing the work has been completed well.

The final assessment, or even a thank you helps to cleanly finish one scope of work, and tidy up.  It brings a sense of completeness and helps you to look good in your customer’s eyes.  Doing it really well brings that wow factor which is the best marketing in the world.

Mmm perhaps I’ll retrain as a plumber!

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My road tax became due and I was excited to read on the form that my car qualifies for payment of only £35.   I rushed off to the Post Office with what I thought were all the forms needed.

Road tax from the Post Office

I had completely forgotten that my (new to me) second hand car needed an MOT certificate.

I organised the garage visit, the car had the service and passed its MOT.  All very easy.  Then I looked for my papers for the repeat trip to the Post Office.  To my amazement I could find the insurance but the form from the vehicle licensing people couldn’t be found anywhere.

Then I discovered I could register online.  The  car log book number gave me access to check into the DVLA site.  All my papers were virtually verified online and payment was easy to do.  (And I enjoyed the low price of £ 35!).   I was told that the disc would arrive in the post 4 – 5 days later.

Well we are all more cynical now – and I certainly was.  But to my great surprise the tax disc arrived this morning in the post 3 days after I applied for it!

Online tax discs

When they over-delivered and it arrived early I was astonished…and delighted ..and want to tell people about the great service.

LOW EXPECTATIONS + OVER DELIVERY = POWERFUL MESSAGE FOR CUSTOMER LOYALTY

Delivering services and products beyond customer expectations is the best way to create loyalty and keep customers coming back.  If you are in a market not noted for good service you have an additional opportunity.

I do prefer to use a real live Post Office if possible, but it was great to receive excellent customer service.  Well done to the DVLA!

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I couldn’t process the payment because, Barclays Bank told me, I had to set the date to “immediate”.

Was it easy to set the date to “immediate?” No. I was thrown out of the whole process and ended up at a log in page again. When I tried to log in I was told that online banking was not available!

Of course online banking was available: I had just been sent to some strange waiting room in cyberspace without even a cheerful receptionist. In the end I had to go through the whole process again and was able to make the transfer. But what a waste of my time and my goodwill. Barclays have been doing online banking for years now. You would think they would have got the bugs sorted.

Just as I finished there was a knock on the door and a delivery man was standing there with a parcel from Amazon. I was astonished. The order had been made online the previous afternoon and I had not paid for delivery. My expectation was that the books would arrive in three days time.

So Amazon exceeded my expectation of their standard of customer service, and overdelivered, and Barclays failed to reach the standard I expected.

I don’t know how Amazon is faring in the recession but their customer service impressed me. They have cut 40% off many paperback costs, and obviously are hot on delivery. Good for them.

Barclays on the other hand have been doing online banking for a few years, and don’t seem to have the basics right. As they have chosen middle eastern, rather than taxpayer, money to bail them out, perhaps some new sharp shooter on the board will ask sharp questions about customer service. Sort that out, and they are more likely to keep existing customers.. and without the expense of expensive celebrity television advertising.

Good customer service is the foundation of good marketing… and is essential in the recession even more than at other times.

What are the standards that your customers expect? What are you telling them about what to expect?

Under promise and over deliver.

We have all heard it. It is a good policy to overdeliver against their expectations to get your customers talking about your business in the right way.

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