Customer Service Charm School

In utilizing today’s business communication methods such as voice mail and email, many companies overlook the value of customer service.  Every organization approaches customer service differently, but many miss a unique opportunity: the live customer service conversation.

Responding to customer inquiries via the web or recorded voice mails may get the requested information to the customer, but there is no substitute for a real person interacting directly with a customer.

At NetPublications, we like to put our customer service representatives through “charm school.”  Here are ten points we stress to assure that our new and existing print customers receive the “white glove” treatment.

1. Make It Personal.  Each customer should feel as if they are the most important person you are talking to on that day 
2. Don’t Make Excuses. Don’t tell them you have had a bad day, need to return fifteen other calls, or have other pressing problems to solve. 
3. Be Empathetic.  Try to understand how the customer feels about the problem or opportunity that they are discussing with you.  Put yourself in their situation. 
4. Listen.  When a person is upset, they tend to turn you out; be sure that they understand what you are telling them.
5. Ask, and Then Ask Again.  Have the customer repeat back what you said, so that both of you are on the same page at the same time.
6. Solve It Together.  Give the customer solutions that will help them to solve the problem.  Offer them choices.
7. Be There.  Do your job.  Get involved.   If at the end of the day you do not remember the last three problems you have solved, then you are not really involved with the customer’s needs.
8. Always Focus On The Customer. Only when you have assessed and resolved their primary problem(s) can you recommend other services of the company as a “new sell.”
9. Understand Your Company.  Be sure that you know your company’s services and capabilities so that you can address the customer’s issues without putting the customer on “hold”, or asking them to “hang on.”
10. Call the Customer Back. If you must get off the phone to check something, call a customer back.  A second of hold time to a potential customer or existing client often feels more like a minute of waiting time.

The Technology of QR Codes

QR Codes are now being used to extend the value of the printed page, while providing more interactive and engaging information to the customer.  QR, short for quick response, allows information to be read at very high scan speeds.  The technology was invented by the Japanese company DENSO Wave, but it is available to everyone since DENSO does not exercise any rights under their patent.

The usage of QR Codes has progressed from Japan to Europe to the United States, where it is quickly becoming a valuable communication tool.  The key to the use of the QR Code is the smartphone, which can instantly scan and read the code. According to Nielsen, 17% of the U.S. population owns a smartphone.  ABI Research reveals that by 2015,119 billion dollars of purchases will be made via these mobile phones. 

Often described as a sister or offspring to the traditional linear barcode, the two-dimensional QR Code looks like a series of black-and-white squares resembling a puzzle.  The codes are machine readable through any smartphone equipped with a QR Code Reader App. The more complicated the lines of the code, the more information there is contained inside.  A QR Code can include a URL, SMS message, contact information, a phone number, or an invitation.

Using a QR Code in a printed piece allows your intended audience to instantly connect to a website without having to manually enter a long URL into a browser.  The codes can take any marketing campaign viral with the option of linking to a landing page, or a PURL (personalized URL).

QR Codes are still a novel idea for some, but they are gaining in popularity. These codes are a great way to connect your printed pieces to your web content, and a method of getting your potential customers to an exact location on your website.   Scan the QR Code below for a demonstration.

Digital Book Manufacturing Helps Solve Costly Inventory Builds

With the advent of digital manufacturing facilities in the book and manual production industry, inventories can be managed.  No longer do publishers/authors need to warehouse large quantities of books with the hope that they will sell.  Every day that a book sits on a warehouse shelf, it is costing the current owner money, storage costs, and the cost on the money that you have paid for the manufacturing of this unsold unit.  When looking at manufacturing order quantities, look at how fast a title is going to be sold. Even if it were to sell over a specific time frame, such as a year, digital manufacturing is the most cost-effective way to manage your inventory costs.

Book Distribution Model Needs to Change for Both E-books and Physical Books

Taking a look at the book industry distribution model of the past and seeing how that model is evolving presents many options for change.  Traditionally in the book market, books were sold to distributors and the distributors sold them to book stores.  With the advent of the big-block book stores, some of those organizations went directly to the publishers to purchase books.  Then came the Internet, and a whole new selling model emerged.  Publishers in all cases were forced to give up large portions of the retail price to both distributors and book stores.  With the advent of the e-book, the possibility of this whole model could change.  Who does the marketing for a new book?  The publisher and the author do, not the distributor. Why shouldn’t the publisher just use a service to sell its downloaded books, and keep that “distribution” margin?  We see evidence of this new model in the airline industry, where airlines are now selling tickets directly off of their web sites along with other travel needs, cutting out the other “middleman” web sites.  We look forward to working through this whole book distribution model change.

Blogs for the Media Distribution Industry

As we begin 2011, we feel it is important to start this blog and show how our firm is adapting to meet the continued demands of our current and future customers.  The media distribution business is changing rapidly with the emergence of new technologies and their usage. Throughout this blog we will attempt to keep you informed of these changes, how they could or will affect you and your business, and how we can help you to use and implement them.  Some of these blogs will be very specific on a particular aspect of a subject.  Others will be more of a global view of things as we see them.   I hope to put some personal slant into the blog that reflects my years of experience in the print industry.  We welcome all inputs, suggestions, and other information that we can use.  We want to continue to be a leader in the media distribution industry, no matter what output format that media will take.  This is a very evolving industry, and we want to offer our customers solutions that best fit their unique needs.