Bull’s-Eye of Customer
Service Success Comes After First Focusing On the Target’s Concentric Rings
By David Saxby
Utilities that want to improve their customer
service can reach that goal by using a visualization technique that involves
an archery target and successfully hitting not just the bull’s-eye but also
the rings around it.
The bull’s-eye is successful customer service and the rings represent
skills, performance and accountability. Utilities should focus on all four
areas of the target, not just the bull’s-eye.
I remember taking archery in my high school physical education class. I
thought it would be easy to hit that little red circle but I quickly
realized I needed to learn the basics first. For utilities, the rings of the
target are the basics and they must master them before they can succeed with
customers, the bull’s-eye.
Ring No. 1 – Skills
Let’s say the outer ring represents skills. What training do your employees
need to become knowledgeable about the products and services you offer? What
skills need to be sharpened in order to identify your customers’ needs,
recommend solutions that meet their needs and move customers to a buying
decision?
Utilities should ask themselves the following questions. Do you keep up your
training? Do you practice new techniques? Do you help those who are
struggling within your organization? Do you give helpful suggestions when
some employees miss the target at times?
It’s difficult to move closer to the bull’s-eye of success if you don’t have
the training to develop the correct skills.
Ring No. 2 – Performance
Utilities should give serious thought to how employees perform the skills
they have learned. The company also should review the ways it makes
customers aware of what it does. Do your Web site, advertising and even your
location reflect your professionalism and your knowledge about the company’s
services and products? Don’t forget that your customers are your audience
and they critique your performance even if they don’t tell you they’re
watching.
Ring No. 3 – Accountability
Focus on feedback. In archery class, I had to be reminded about my stance,
straightening my head and adjusting my arm as it pulled back the arrow. All
of this was done before I ever let that arrow fly.
Here are additional questions utilities should ask themselves. Who gives you
feedback? What do you do with that feedback? Are you willing to learn and
change based on feedback? Who holds employees accountable for their skills
and performance?
If no one is watching, does it really matter how that customer is handled or
that service is completed? You bet it does! Because customers are the ones
watching, they probably can tell you each and every mistake you make. Some
customers can even tell you about mistakes you are not aware of.
The Bull’s-Eye – Success
Now that you have mastered the first three rings, you can focus on the
center, the bull’s-eye. It represents customer service success. But don’t
expect to hit it every time. It takes skill, practice, performance and
accountability to even come close. Each time you come close to or actually
hit the bull’s-eye, there should be a learning curve. What did you do right
when you hit the bull’s-eye? What did you do that was different from the
last time? What should you focus on the next time? What are you doing to
celebrate your success?
Many times, we set our goal as the center of the target. We think that is
where success and money lie. We feel that if our “arrows” hit any part of
the concentric circles but not the bull’s-eye, we have failed to some
degree. Wrong! All of those circles are part of the target area.
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David Saxby is president of Measure-X, a Phoenix,
Ariz.-based measurement, training and recognition company that specializes in
customer service and sales skill training for utility companies. He can be
reached at 888-644-5499 or via e-mail at
david@measure-x.com. Visit the Measure-X Web site at
www.measure-x.com.
