Is Customer Service in Service?

By Debbie Nicholson, Think-to-INK!
https://www.linkedin.com/in/debbie-nicholson-24a53627/

Sometimes we give ourselves too much credit.  I bet you’ve heard and said this before; “I know my customers better than anyone; they use another Wide-Format printer -- there is no way we can compete with their price.”  Blah, blah, blah!

So, ask yourself – is selling print ‘all about price’ ? 

Sure, price is vital to our customers; however, in my experience, price is not the ultimate influential component.  When we raise our glass to only pricing, we negate the customer experience and the emotional attachment we build with our customers by reminding them we care at every turn; and are here to serve!

I may not always remember the price I paid for an item, but I will never forget the personal care and concern I experienced.  If I were to write a song, the title would read something like this…”Where Has All The Customer Service Gone?”

I am frustrated that our industry has removed the reception desk and replaced it with “If you know your party’s extension, please enter it now…” with no escape to talk with a live person during an emergency.  Oh, and I love this -- please leave your name and number; someone will return the call within 24 hours.

Customer Service, Customer Experience, Customer Satisfaction…do any of these ring a bell?

PSPs tell me customers are not loyal as they used to be.  As a reply, I ask - are we loyal to our customers?   Let’s define loyalty…a strong feeling of support or allegiance. 

Are we supporting our customers with pre-project collaboration, on-time estimates and quotes, project follow-through, and continuous updates; do we respond to emails and phone calls promptly?  Do we suggest effective value engineering processes to help with time-sensitive projects, and, most importantly, do we deliver projects on time? (to name a few)

So, what are our processes after the customer receives their projects?  Do we reach out to make sure everything was received as expected?  Do we ask what should be improved to make the next project more successful for you?  Lastly, this secures our position as a caring print provider; is there anything else I can help you with today?

Most importantly, do we Thank customers for their business and express how proud we are to be their Print Service Provider?  If not. Why not? 

So having said all of this, don’t allow printing to be all about the price – a quality customer experience is priceless; let’s see if your competitors can match that!