February, 2009

Customer Service — 2 Comments
22
Feb 09

Phone Customer Service Worst Practices


Photo Credits: garrulus

They say customer service is the new marketing. Many companies, however, still don’t “get” phone customer service, and they consider it a cost rather than a marketing opportunity.

In addition to having overly complicated automated systems and poorly trained representatives, some companies make things worse by doing this:

Forcing callers to dial “1” for English

If you’re in the U.S., English should be the default language. There is no need to make callers push an extra button. Request callers to “press X” only for other languages.

Welcoming callers by asking them if they knew they could go to the web for help

Callers don’t need to be reminded up front of other ways to contact you. They are already on the phone, with a problem. Solve their problem first, and then, at the end of the call, remind them about your website.

Asking callers up front to stay after the call to answer a survey

Like in the previous example, this is better done at the end, once you have addressed the caller’s problem.

Not giving callers the option to speak to a representative

Sometimes callers have problems that can’t be answered by an automated system, or simply don’t have the time to navigate through a complicated maze of options.

Some companies make it impossible or nearly impossible to talk to an agent, to the point that there are now websites that specialize in telling us how to bypass the automated systems of most companies.

Not giving callers the estimated waiting time before they can talk to an agent

Saying “your estimated waiting time is 8 minutes” is better than just saying “your call will be answered shortly”. A good automated system should make it easy for callers to decide if they should hang around or hang up and call later.

Using the call as an opportunity for a sales pitch

Some companies build a sales pitch into the recording, for when the caller is on hold. Being on hold with a problem doesn’t exactly put callers in the best frame of mind for a sales pitch.

In addition, some live operators are given a hard-sell script to be delivered after the customer service transaction. The rationale is that customers will feel guilty to say no to somebody that has just helped them solve a problem.

This may work sometimes, but most of the time it will backfire and make you come across as self serving.

Do you have a phone customer service pet peeve of your own that we could add to this list?

Personal Branding — 4 Comments
16
Feb 09

What to do When Yourname.com is Already Taken

yourname.PNG

Owning your name domain is very important for personal branding.  Given the fact that .com has become the default extension, yourname.com should be your first choice. However, if you haven’t registered it yet and your name is very common, chances are that the .com extension is already taken. There are, however, some alternate options that can work just fine:

  • Get the .org or the .net version, in that order. Lately, .name extensions have also become popular.
  • Use either your middle name, your maternal last name, or your husband’s last name (in case you’re a married woman) to create a slightly longer, more unique name, increasing the chances that the .com extension will be available.  Several prominent bloggers use this technique: mariareyesmcdavis.com, davidmeermanscott.com, suzannefalterbarns.com and lukeharveypalmer.com are just some examples.  For this tactic to be successful, you will need to start marketing yourself using your full name (repetition builds awareness).
  • If you think using two names or last names would make your domain too long, you can just throw in your middle initial, for example: michaeljfox.com, johntreed.com or georgewbush.com. Again, you will need to start marketing yourself using your middle initial to build awareness.
  • Use your name plus the fist letter of your last name (or the first letters of your compounded last name, if you have one).  This tactic is commonly used in the offline world by those who have a last name that’s difficult to pronounce or spell.  Some examples are garyv.com (a Philippino singer, not our Gary V), chrisg.com and alexdc.org.  A variation of this tactic is to use your first initial (or your first and middle initials) followed by your last name (for example: agsinger.com and tdjakes.com).

My personal case

I have a compounded last name: Sanchez Carrion. While in Latin countries compounded last names are common, here in the U.S. they are rarely used.  That is why most people I know call me just Mario Sanchez.  Now, the name “Mario Sanchez” is as common as apple pie and, naturally, mariosanchez.com was already registered when I first tried to get it years ago, so this is what I did:

  • I registered mariosanchez.org and created a Tumblr blog that I use as a repository of all my RSS feeds (my Twitter, my Wordpress blog, my Posterous blog, etc).  I then placed prominent buttons on the right sidebar with links to my other sites. By linking to mariosanchez.org with the anchor text “Mario Sanchez” from my other sites, I’ve been able to consistently rank mariosanchez.org in the top three results for “Mario Sanchez” in Google.
  • I registered mariosc.com (my name plus the first letters of my compounded last name), since it is short and memorable. Whenever I write my domain name on business cards, collateral, etc., I normally use a different color for the “s” and the “c” to make it easier to remember. I use mariosc.com as my home base, where I give a brief introduction about myself and post links to my blog and my different social media profiles.  I have also created three virtual “folders”: mariosc.com/blog (forwarded to ShoestringBranding.com), mariosc.com/twitter (forwarded to my Twitter page) and mariosc.com/linkedin (forwarded to my LinkedIn page). This gives these profiles a more “branded” feel in printed collateral, especially since I wasn’t able to register a handle with my name on those sites.
  • I registered mariosanchezcarrion.com and forwarded it to mariosc.com.
  • I’ve gotten into the habit of using “Mario Sanchez Carrion” instead of just “Mario Sanchez” to build brand. Lately, I’ve noticed that most bloggers are already using my compounded last name to link to me, so it seems to be working.

Final thoughts

Since most people looking for you will usually start by Googling your name (some even say Google is the new domain name, you can follow these tips to increase your Google visibility:

  • Create profiles in the most important social networks, since they normally show up in Google’s first page (especially LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter). If your name is available as a handle, register it.
  • If you have a blog under its own domain and you’re the only author, change the About Us page title to Your Name. This will give you a boost in Google.
  • Register different extensions of your name and create different profiles or sites: for example you can use the .net extension for a Tumblr blog, the .org extension for a Nombray page, or the .tv extension for a video blog. This will create more touchpoints with your name, and increase the chance of having more results coming up under your name in Google’s first page.

All these tips reflect my personal situation and personal branding strategy, and they work for me. However, their effectiveness will depend on what you want to do. If you have other tips or want to share your particular case, please feel free to leave your feedback in the comments section.

Blogging / Branding Basics / Others — 5 Comments
8
Feb 09

Take a Step Back and Watch Your Business Grow


Photo Credits: WTL Photos

Job titles and narrow job descriptions often stand in the way of being effective. It may sound counterintuitive, but by focusing excessively on what we are “supposed to do” we can lose touch with our customers and become irrelevant.

Let’s look at one example: “A” is a mortgage broker who defines his job as “selling mortgages”. He wants to sell more, so he increases the frequency of his sales calls. After trying this for a while, he notices that he’s not closing more sales.

Broker “B” also wants to increase her sales, but instead of jumping to conclusions she does some research. She finds out that most of her prospective customers can’t buy a house because they haven’t saved enough for a down payment.

She then takes a step back and organizes a series of free seminars at the local library or community center, where she teaches people how to stick to a budget and save. Then, she asks for permission to send them a monthly email newsletter, where she continues to give tips and talk about the latest developments of the mortgage market.

All things being equal, who do you think has a better chance of turning prospects into customers? I would say “B”. While broker “A” is thinking “me”, broker “B” is thinking “them”. I can almost hear Broker “A” react and spout off: “I’m a mortgage broker not a teacher! My job is to sell mortgages”. The reality, however, is that teaching and selling are two sides of the same coin. They’re all about educating and adding value.

Business blogs are the perfect example. Businesses that have taken a step back and launched a blog to develop a relationship with prospects before they are ready to buy are usually the most successful.

Selling involves more than just finding more mechanisms to push stuff. Take a step back to see what drives your prospects to buy, and if you find a problem help them solve it. Business usually follows.