How do you define good customer service?



Adam Sonnhalter at the mic discussing Dirty SecretsDirty Secrets of Small Business hosts, Jack Mencini and Adam Sonnhalter share stories and insights of small business owners every week on their radio show/podcasts.  The stories come from the clients they have helped from their coaching business, Maximum Value Partners. (MVP) www.maximumvp.com

Jack and Adam have personally owned and operated over 20 companies themselves and have helped hundreds of their MVP clients to become profitable, sustainable and successful in handling all the thorny issues of running a small business. They base their coaching on using the 7 Keys to Success http://maximumvp.com/7-keys-to-success/and cover many of the keys each week during their spirited discussions.

In this week’s June 28 episode of Dirty Secrets of Small Business aired at 7:30pm (EST) on WINT Radio 1330 AM and 101.5 FM, the business coaches give a good back and forth on the how question of How do you define good customer service? The podcast is available on iTunes or http://maximumvp.com/dirty-secrets-small-business-radio-show-podcast/

Adam shared real-life incidents of good and bad customer service that he experienced over Father’s Day weekend.

“Eight of us went to a Saturday night Father’s Day celebration at a BBQ restaurant known for their variety of ribs,” said Adam. “The first challenge began when our young waitress said we couldn’t mix the variety of ribs on our individual orders and ‘oh by the way, we are out of baby back ribs.’

“We put in our orders and 20 minutes later she came back to say that they were out of some of the beverages we selected. We gave her different options and finally after a very long wait, 7 dinners came to our table. Unfortunately, mine was not one of them. After waiting another 20 minutes, my rib dinner finally was set before me and looked like they had experienced a charred inferno.

“When the waitress came to clear the plates, she asked if everything was OK and I calmly said that the ribs were over done and she explained the cook had taken a break and she would take it off our check.

“The manager never came over to apologize or offer any condolences with a free dessert, etc.  Not what I would call good customer service and we will never go back.”

Adam experienced a much different scenario the next day when he and his family went for a Father’s Day lunch where they had to wait an extremely long time for their meals.  The waitress apologized numerous times and when the meals arrived, she checked to see that everything was perfect. When the check came, she said that the manager would be taking care of all the meals and we owed nothing because they wanted to make sure we knew that this was a mistake on their part and wanted us to return.

Jack shared that good customer service comes from points of honesty, empathy and ownership when things go wrong.  If you, as a small business owner, are not the recipient of your vendors’ good customer service where they are honest when problems arise and are able to empathize and quickly take ownership of the problem, then maybe it’s time to make a change and find a new vendor.  The same points need to be focused on for your own business and how your customer service is professionally working for your clients. You may need a tune up and Jack and Adam can help you see where the issues are in your team to change and become a stellar provider of goods, services and excellent customer service.

For more info on small business challenges tune into past podcasts of Dirty Secrets of Small Business on iTunes or http://maximumvp.com/dirty-secrets-small-business-radio-show-podcast/   or call Jack or Adam for help with your small business challenges at 877-849-0670.

Do you have any How Questions of your own to email to Jack and Adam?  Do it by sending your questions to radio@maximumvp.com  or submit a question on their web site at  http://maximumvp.com/how/

If you have a success story or a question you would like to share, email or contact Jack and Adam directly at radio@maximumvp.com or 877-849-0670.

You can also call in during the show each week when you are listening on Wednesdays at prime time 7:30pm (EST) on WINT 1330 AM and 101.5 FM. Or call 440-946-9468 to ask your question to the Maximum Value Partners’ coaches or tweet your question to @MaximumVP.

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