SimpleBiz360 Podcast

Mirrors fill a board room during an inter-company meeting. Edicts are laid down, and attendees are told to reflect what the C-level demands. Imagine what would happen if companies abandon that reflective mindset, and exchanged it with an outward-looking mindset? If customers pay the bills, then why don't more companies look through the windows that lead to discovering what customers need and want!Support the show

To some companies, servicing really kicks into high gear after the sale. Why then? Because those companies realize that the repeat and referral pot of gold awaits them, when their paying customers feel they are being cared for after the sale. We encourage you to inject this mindset into your business models.Support the show

We have all witnessed companies that aren't flexible. They defend their legacy procedures as a badge of honor, and claim they have been doing business the same way for decades. For some companies that is their hallmark. For others, it is going to allow the competition to zoom by them. Where do you stand? Do you have some stinkin thinkin that needs to get eradicated?Support the show

Imagine if you and your team went hunting for ways to become more streamlined with customers? After all, time is the currency of the experience economy, and saving customer time converts to money saved. Have fun on your hunts! Be bright. Be brief. Be done!Support the show

Does your management style look like this: “Your hired. Come in tomorrow at 4:00, and you can start waiting on those tables of hungry people.” Why do so many brands manage this way? Are you sure these employees know the mission, and all the mechanics that support the mission? Maybe it's time to reprioritize the order in which we teach, train and delegate.Support the show

Is failure always traceable to employee ineptitude or carelessness? Or, is failure the result of risk takers who stick their neck out to try something new? No company gets better unless they fail first. How will your corporate culture process future failures?Support the show

Review. Sort. Pile. Then, when you have time, manage the task later. Or, imagine managing each task as you encounter it? Imagine how much time you would save by steam lining task management?Support the show

This sounds like a funny question! However, the reality is sad. So many companies don't train their associates to be greeting initiators. When we bypass the chance to greet first, we are often starting the transactional experience as thought the customer is an intruder! Why would we do that? Why do so many of us do that? Imagine if your company deliberately started saying hello first?Support the show

Our surroundings are filled with observations and conversations that can reveal potential improvements for our businesses. All we have to do is look, listen, and think! Are you in? If not, you are possibly missing some cool, easy, and impactful change agents that are tucked inside everyday life!Support the show

One. Just one. Today. There is low-hanging improvement opportunity fruit all around us. We invite you to grab a pen, paper, find a quiet space, and we are confident you can find an easy, customer-pleasing improvement in 30 minutes of thought. One. Just one. Today.Support the show

Like it or not, consumers are gauging the purchasing process through the lens of experience. Every word, motion, action, or inaction, seems to be subject to an experience scorecard. If your company is not buying into this, you are most likely losing potential sales to the competition.Support the show

Be the customer from time-to-time. Thank about how your products, and services affect the buyer. As you peer through the user lens, ask yourself what you would want to know. This periodic exercise can be fun, and beneficial to your bottom line! We encourage you to embrace this mindset. Think. Fix. Deliver. Create more repeat, and referral customers.Support the show

Do you give customers detailed information? How often? Is it vital information? Are you bypassing the release of pertinent information the customer is wanting to receive? What formats do you use to communicate information. Is this information written with internal company-speak, or is it presented with simplicity, and clarity that customers can understand?Support the show

Solving customer problems requires a rolling up of the sleeves, managing the details, and finding a workable solution. This can be hard work requiring patience, diligence, and research. Is this your company? If not, should it be?Support the show

CIT units are a valuable corporate component that can offer insight to necessary changes. As many athletic coaches have said, “if we are not striving to always get better, we are getting worse.” Why? Because competitors who use CIT units will surpass stagnant mindsets. Complacency breeds mediocrity.Support the show

Most customers like it when vendors display good listening skills. Vendors have heard plenty of customer feedback, and many times the feedback is very similar. As a result, the vendors start to finish the customer sentences in hopes of speeding things up. If this is you, maybe it's time to slow the train down, and let the customer finish?Support the show

Very few customers admire vendors that talk over them. Humans have two ears to listen, and only one mouth to speak. If over-talking is overtaking your customer interactions, then maybe it's time to let listening overtake talking?Support the show

Business writing skills are deteriorating quickly. As we drag societal norms into business, our letters and emails are filled with cryptic acronyms, incomplete sentences, and confusing messages. Where are you in this mix? Where is your team in this mix? Maybe it is time to revamp our writing skills?Support the show

Customers rely on vendor product knowledge like a car driver depends on headlights in the dark. As vendors, we are called on to share our knowledge in a professional manner. Are you being professional, or is the art of condescending auto-correction the tenor of your conversations with customers?Support the show

The true cost of creating unhappy customers is crippling. Let the next 60 seconds tickle your ears, and improve the ways you are servicing customers.Support the show

Scripted, and teleprompter utterances are overwhelmingly rejected by the most recent generations of buyers. Authenticity is the desirability of modern consumers. So, what are you doing to answer the call?Support the show

Often times, customers are much smarter than we give them credit for. In fact, customers usually know when we are shoveling them word-dung. What if you started telling customers what they deserve to hear?Support the show

Making outlandish claims is a huge shortfall in the business world. What if you could use seven, simple tools to covert your statements into provable claims. Tune in for 60 seconds and we will share the Magnificent Seven!Support the show

This “give and take” world needs more professionals who invest in the future of business. We spend our careers learning our crafts, and then earning the rewards. Yet, many of us stop right there. What if we were to add a RETURN chapter to our careers?Support the show

Simply put…do you teach CSR mechanics that emphasize getting to the customer, before they get to you? Imagine the depth of customer satisfaction if your company aimed at this target?Support the show

Red Zone Tugging (RZT) is one of the largest contributors to customer defections. Perhaps today is the right time to investigate if your business is infected with RZT?Support the show

Continuous Improvement can be fun and lucrative. All it takes is a mindset that hinges on asking, thinking, identifying, researching, listening, observing, trying, applying, or frying.Support the show

This mindset personifies a customer-centric culture that delivers excellent satisfaction. Buyers reward vendors who deliver customer-first service. Want more repeat and referral business? If so, then start reshaping your service model today!Support the show

Does your company culture contain a mindset that values vendor relationships. Today might be the perfect day to turn your purchasing team into a Vendor Relations Team!Support the show

Putting customers on a service merry-go-round sews seeds of discontent, and many times leads to permanent customer defections. Maybe it's time to stop the gamers in exchange for instant servicing?Support the show

Technology now provides tools that allow us to read, respond and react to customer issues with lightening speed. However, so many companies have leaders who cannot answer a simple question for 2 weeks. Why? Because they are traveling. How lame! If this describes your business, maybe it's time for some changes, and some Technology Tool Training!!!Support the show

Does your customer know where to turn to get an answer? Maybe it is time to consider ways to stop keeping customers in the dark!Support the show

Sometimes we make doing business harder than it needs to be for our customers. Maybe this is a good time to pick up a shovel, and streamline the tasks we require from our customers.Support the show

Random audits are a great way to discover, and fix mistakes you don't want to keep passing onto customers. The bottom line…never allow your deliverables to look like wilted mint in a mojito!Support the show

What if something “OLD SCHOOL” could be considered “FRESH” by our customers? Maybe it's time to take a trip to the post office!Support the show

Well over 50% of our customers expect less service than our businesses advertise. Today could be the perfect time to start exceeding those customer expectations?Support the show

Tough situations deserve leaders that don't shy away from managerial duties. Maybe it's time to take inventory on which managers avoid management duties because they fear confrontations!Support the show

Societal trends are rapidly removing phone conversations from daily life. However, the phone is still important to the operation of many businesses. If you are one of these companies, maybe it's time for some phone role-playing!Support the show

Are your customers receiving stewardship service without having to ask for it? Is it time to reexamine your CSR mindset?Support the show

When was the last time you actually asked a customer what they think of your products and services? The digital age is pushing us away from talking, or visiting with customer. Maybe it's time for a REBOOT!Support the show

Imagine rarely measuring your actual production costs against the estimated costs on paper? Far too many businesses suffer from this lack of detail management. Don't wait until year end to find out. We invite you to start measuring and managing today!Support the show

Getting into the weeds of business details is not sexy, or fun. However, customers love vendors that do the gardening to ensure seamless transactions. What say you?Support the show

As we do life, continuous improvement ideas are all around us. How often do you dissect a situational observation, and then relate it to improving your business practices?Support the show

Not sending invoices is a spotty illness that affects many small, medium, and large businesses. Maybe this is the perfect time to do an invoice audit at your company. You might be surprised with the results!Support the show

Calculated profitability is usually much different than what actually hits the bottom line. Is it time for your company to investigate, and correct costly variances?Support the show

Customers get sick of the same old…same old. Price…quality…delivery…blah…blah…blah! Consumers want differentiation, and they will pay for uniqueness. What attributes separate your company from the pack of competitors?Support the show

Many customers see through false, and exaggerated claims. Becoming a truth detective is a common practice for consumers who have been burned too often. How does your company prove claims?Support the show

Bad transactional experiences often result with customer defections. Are potential repeat customers never coming back for seconds? If so, how are you going to fix it?Support the show

Humility is a trait that customers don't often see from companies. How often do you eat some humble pie, and actually apologize to a customer when you made a mistake?Support the show

The epicenter of the Experience Economy is how well we respect customer time. To be good stewards of customer time, we must be doctors of detail, and we need to put customer needs above our own. How do customers score your level of care?Support the show

The Experience Economy begs companies to understand what customers want, need, and deserve. If we believe this, then why do so many companies operate without customer service protocols, or training?Support the show