Excellence Wins

“profit is the applause you get for creating a motivating environment for your people so that they will take care of your customers.”

“Ladies and Gentlemen Serving Ladies and Gentlemen”

“Horst has always seen his employees as business partners.”

“Very few people come to work to be negative or to do a lousy job. People come to contribute to a purpose. When we invite them to join us, to take on positions that befit them, their talents can blossom.

If you’re in the general business arena, as I am, you will speak most naturally about customers or “ guests. I’ll be doing this throughout the coming chapters. If you’re a consultant, adviser, or counselor, you’ll probably call them “clients.” If you work for a government entity, you’ll say “citizens” or “taxpayers.”

“If you’re selling hot dogs at the ballpark, obviously the fans want hot dogs—at the lowest possible price. If you’re running a school, parents want their kids to be educated—while paying the lowest possible taxes and fees”

Its important as a entrepreneur to get meaningful information from a wide pool of individuals. One way to get them without spending a fortune is to pay attention to ongoing surveys of customer satisfaction This feedback can be gathered in various ways: comment cards, follow-up phone interviews or online questionnaires

I learned that deep down inside, hotel guests want to feel assured that everything is under control, and that any problem will be resolved right away. They don’t want to wait three hours. They want to unload their feelings on the closest person they see.

“Real knowledge of the customer is absolutely essential. Without it, you cannot serve your market in a way that is superior to the competition.”

No matter what field you’re in, I can guarantee that the people you serve want three main things. First, they want a product or service or other output with no defects. When I talk about defects, I’m thinking not just of physical defects say, a sticky door or a noisy toilet. I’m also including process or system defects

Finally, they want the person with whom they’re dealing to be nice to them. They want to sense a caring attitude. In fact, this third desire is greater than the first two combined. It can atone for other shortfalls.

Two more customer desires have arisen in recent years. No matter what your standard product may be, people these days seem to be more and more interested in individualization and personalization.

Customers’ preferences keep changing. If you think you know them well today, you will still need to keep learning next year and the next and the next. Organizations and their leaders have to keep adjusting.

understanding what means most to the public we serve is essential, even if it is not always easy.

Customer service starts the instant you make contact with an individual. Customer service starts at the front door or with the first ring of the phone. The first step of service is ➡️offering a great welcome⬅️.

Many of the smallest things we do have an impact on customers. They listen to how we talk When an organization builds a reputation for quality service, it creates a unique reputation.

I have taught my hotel staff that this welcome needs to happen as soon as the person gets within ten feet of them.

I learned that if a customer’s first four contacts with our hotel go well (for example, the phone reservation clerk, the doorman, the bellman, and the front desk), there will be virtually no complaints thereafter.

The second step is complying with the customers wishes. The focus here is not on your agenda but theirs. Yes, you want to make a sale. But what is most important is what is on their mind. That is why you say “How may I help you? I’m happy to do so” And then you listen—really listen to see what is front-of-mind for them

We’ve had the great welcome and have complied with the customer’s wishes. Now comes the final part of customer service, which is saying good-bye. It’s always important to say, “Thank you for coming in today,” or “Thank you for allowing us to serve you.

Customer service isn’t just for those who face the public. It also extends to people inside an organization who deal with each other. Every employee in every department needs to figure out who their internal customer is.

There are two warning signals from the staff of troubled companies. The first warning signal is the overuse of the pronoun they. This telegraphe a rupture between departments or between upper and lower echelons. “Well, they won’t let us do such and such,” or “They messed up,” or “They just don’t get it.”

I’m not a big fan of desks with signs reading “Customer Service.” It sends a silent message to the rest of the employees that they don’t have to mess with such problems or serve customers because “Customer Service” will take care of it. No!

Service always implies caring. Make customer service a reality, not just a label, we have to hire the right kind of people and orient them thoroughly at the start, and then we have to repeat our values again and again. Every last employee contributes to creating loyalty among customers.

Sometimes a customer service problem or any defect, for that matter is rooted as much as five steps away from where it shows itself. One solitary person at a counter somewhere can’t solve it alone. It needs the best thinking of everyone connected to the process..

2% of customers simply cannot be pleased. They’re clearly irrational. They want things you can’t afford. Or they want things that will irritate the other 98% But even these people do not give us an excuse to stop being ladies and gentlemen. That is who we are and must continue to be whether others appreciate it or not