“Please put me back on hold. I want to keep listening to the music,” said nobody, ever — unless they were listening to the hold music at the Kansas City Foot and Ankle medical practice. The owner of this four-office podiatry practice with seven doctors and 25 staff members, Dr…

How Brands Can Find a Balance Between Incentives and Emotional Connection Shep Hyken interviews Mark Ross-Smith a.k.a Mr. Loyalty and the CEO and Co-Founder of Loyalty Data Co, the parent company of StatusMatch.com. He talks about the roles of transactional and emotional incentives and how brands must learn to balance…

One of my favorite concepts to cover in my customer service keynote speeches is to act like an owner. I originally wrote about this in 2011 and shared the story of an 18-year-old server at a pizza restaurant who took so much pride in his work that the guests thought…

You’ve probably experienced this. No matter how hard you try to please some customers, they aren’t happy. It’s frustrating, but at the same time, it’s reality. And speaking of reality, no matter how good you are at creating an amazing customer experience, the customer’s perception counts. Their perception is their…

How Leveraging Artificial Intelligence Can Be a Win-Win Contact Center Agents and Customers Shep Hyken interviews Mario Matulich, President and Managing Director of Customer Management Practice. He talks about how organizations can use artificial intelligence and self-service options to empower support agents and elevate the customer experience. Top Takeaways: There has…

For a number of years, I’ve preached that our customers no longer compare us just to our direct competitors, but instead to the brands they enjoy doing business with the most. In other words, the ones that provide the best customer service and experience. In many of my customer service…

I like the title of this article, but perhaps a more appropriate title might be: Customer Service Is Like Being Married. The buying cycle for a customer typically includes a little research, talking to a salesperson, making the purchase, and whatever happens after the sale. This can include follow-up from…

How The Savannah Bananas is Changing Baseball through Fan Focus, Creativity, and CX Shep Hyken interviews Jesse Cole, founder of Fans First Entertainment and owner of the Savannah Bananas. He talks about how he redefined baseball and customer and employee experience by creating a culture that puts them first. Top Takeaways: …

There is a massive benefit to empowering employees to “break the rules” for their customers. And what I mean by “breaking the rules” is to consider what you can do for a customer outside of the norm that doesn’t cost the company money, isn’t illegal or immoral, and won’t hurt…