Self-service or customer service?

I read an article today that said many supermarkets were re-thinking the strategy of installing self-service checkout stands. Some customers seemed to like them while many customers found it easier or more pleasant to have a cashier ring up their purchases. (Read the article here.)

The article reminded me of an oft-asked question: Should we offer self-service or customer service?

My response is that’s the wrong question.

When self-service is great, it’s really great. Printing out my boarding pass at an airport kiosk or downloading it to my smart phone is a terrific time saver compared to waiting in line for a ticket agent. Looking up nearby coffee houses on a website or mobile app is much easier than spending 10 minutes calling a 1-800 number to get directions. Visiting a software company’s online learning center is much faster for me than signing up to take a class.

On the other hand, self-service can waste of time, cost money, and be extremely aggravating. Automated phone menus at the other end of 1-800 numbers often needlessly waste five minutes or more of my time before I can get to a person who can actually help. I don’t appreciate being charged a $7.50 “convenience fee” if I want to buy tickets to a play or sporting event online when I can buy them in person from a box office agent without paying a self-service surcharge. And, I really don’t like feeling like an idiot while I’m trying in vain to scan, bag, and pay for my groceries faster than the cashier in the checkout line.

Companies considering a self-service or automated option should start by asking themselves, “How can I offer the best possible service at the lowest possible cost?” These aren’t mutually exclusive options. Rather, they are counterpoints to a balancing act between a genuine desire to make every customer ecstatic about your business and the need to maintain fiscal responsibility.

Perhaps the best quote in the article was from Suzi Robinson, a spokesperson for Stop & Shop Supermarket Co. who explained why the company has self-serve lanes in about 85% of their stores. “Our philosophy is giving customers options. People shop in different ways and we want to accommodate their preferences.”

Listening to customers is harder than you think

I was halfway through my question when the customer service representative interrupted me. “That’s actually a separate password than the one I’m resetting for you. That one is just for billing.”

Great, except that wasn’t the question I was about to ask. “I know, but I was going to ask if I can reset the billing password myself so that I…”

He interrupted again, “But you don’t need the billing password to access your online account.” 

Sigh… Still not the question I was trying to ask. Why do so many knowledgeable customer service representatives find it difficult to truly listen to their customers?

Believe it or not, one explanation is poor listening skills are a product of our brain’s natural wiring.

Our brains have a unique design feature that allows us to take a small amount of information and compare it to familiar patterns. This enables us to make quick sense of large amounts of data without getting bogged down in the details. It’s an ability that comes in handy in many ways, such as determining if something is safe or dangerous, recognizing people we know, or even reading.

Here’s a simple example. Try reading the sentence below:

People can easliy raed misspleled wrods as long as all the lettres are there and the fisrt and lsat letters are in the corerct position.

You can read sentences like the one above thanks to this handy pattern recognition ability. Your brain recognizes the pattern presented by the arrangement of the letters and the context of the sentence. It doesn't matter that the letters aren't perfectly placed. They are close enough for your brain to quickly interpret their meaning.

Unfortunately, this same ability gets customer service representatives into trouble when it comes to listening. The customer service representative I mentioned at the beginning of this post had likely heard questions similar to mine many times. The start of my sentence fit a familiar pattern so his brain naturally stopped listening and presented an answer to the question he thought I was going to ask. The problem occurred because my question was a new variation this pattern, so the answer that leapt into his mind was incorrect.

In other words, it was a natural behavior that caused the customer service representative to keep interrupting me.

We can learn to short circuit our natural wiring and become more adept at listening, but it takes training, effort, and practice. Here are a few things you can try the next time you are listening to a customer:

1. Eliminate distractions and concentrate on what the customer is saying.
2. Don't interrupt customers while they are speaking.
3. Ask clarifying questions to confirm you understand their needs.

Should you get rid of your customer service email address?

How long does it take your company to respond to customer service emails?

If it is longer than one day, you may want to consider dumping your customer service email address. Why leave the door open for disappointment when you can stick with technology you're more comfortable using like the telephone, the fax, or even the telegram. 

I’ve lost count of how many companies have done a poor job of responding to a problem or even a sales inquiry via email in recent months. 

Here are a few examples:

I recently emailed three wine shops looking for a particular bottle of wine. One responded quickly and let me know they'd search for it, but it may take a few days (great response). One took a week to get back to me before replying, "Sorry it took so long, but we're looking for it." (Eh.) One didn't respond at all (fail). When the first two found the wine I was looking for, guess who I bought it from?

In another example, I emailed my frequent guest number to a hotel so they would have it on file when I arrived. They never responded to my email and of course didn't have it on my reservation when I checked in. Here was an easy opportunity to perform a simple service for a frequent traveler and they blew it.

Most customers expect a response to email within one business day or less (see my research here). My question is why do so many companies fall short in this area?

The power company reinforces the value of great service

I recently had a great customer service experience with San Diego Gas and Electric (SDG&E), my local power company. They're pretty much the only game in town if you live in San Diego and use electricity. Fortunately, SDG&E realized that good customer service is still good business.

The Situation
An SDG&E contractor broke a sprinkler pipe in my yard while working on some SDG&E equipment that is adjacent to my lawn. I called on a Sunday and filed my initial claim, but was told that the claims department wouldn't open until Monday. Someone would call me then.

I braced myself for the expected hassle and runaround, but what followed was a trio of surprises that exceeded my expectations.

RESPONSIVENESS!
A gentleman named Mike from the claims department called me on Monday morning. I was truly surprised to get a call as promised.

Why is this such a big deal? Too many companies don't call in this situation. That prompts another call from the customer. And another. And another. It aggravates the customer but also wastes valuable company time to deal with the some complaint over and over again. It's always better to put the problem in the hands of a person who can fix it and let them fix it right away.

IT WAS EASY!
I was bracing for a mountain of bureaucratic paperwork. Instead, Mike simply apologized and suggested I use my own sprinkler guy to do the repair. He told me I could send the bill directly to him and he'd make sure I got paid.

What?! Where is the bureaucracy? Where was the expected accusation that I was somehow trying to rip them off? What's up with this helpful single point of contact business instead of making me call another number and re-explain the problem?!

Mike's actions made things easy for me but they also saved SDG&E a lot of time too. Making me wade through a maze of bureaucratic steps would make it necessary to employ a legion of bureaucratic gate keepers to patrol the maze. Problems can and will happen, but customers shouldn't have to suffer more than necessary to get them fixed. Mike was able to resolve the problem with a minimal amount of contact and effort on both sides.

RESOLUTION!
A reimbursement check came in the mail a few days after I sent my receipt to Mike. I had expected it to take forever to get my money, so it was a real surprise to get the check so quickly.

Wait - aren't big utility companies supposed to be evil?

It turns out that being evil can be much more expensive than doing right. Let's imagine my check didn't arrive quickly. I'd probably call again. The labor cost of that extra phone call would offset any marginal savings gained from delaying payment. In fact, each time I called, the company would be deeper in the hole. Better, and cheaper, to just send the check and get it done.

So there you have it. A customer service lesson from the utility company. Be on the lookout for flying pigs!

The impact of conformity on customer service

Have you ever wondered why a company tends to have consistent service levels amongst all its employees? Sure, there are exceptions here and there, but a company known for poor service tends to be consistent. A company known for great service tends to be consistent too.

Why is that? One explanation could be the pressures of social confirmity. Employees may give in to social pressure to behave the same way other employees do. This means that if the culture supports poor service, otherwise good employees may lower their own performance rather than feel ostricized by their co-workers.

I've discovered some interesting psychological studies on conformity while conducting research for my book, The Unnatural Act of Customer Service. Here are a couple of short and entertaining YouTube videos that highlight some of the results:

This one recreates the famous Asch conformity experiment:

Can't see the video? Click here.

This one is a funny bit from an old Candid Camera episode:

Can't see the video? Click here.

So, what do you think? Can a good customer service employee turn bad in the wrong environment?