Watch out! The most customer centric company has arrived!

The headline news "Amazon.com buys Zappos" should send shivers to all businesses. Why all businesses you may ask. The reason is Amazon.com's number one business priority is to create a great customer experience in every product that they sell. Shoe is the latest offering (through Zappos). Will Amazon.com sell the same product as your business? (I bet they will when the timing is right). When they do, they will focus all their energy into one thing, that is, customer experience is great!

"Yes, more and more money will go into making a great customer experience, and less will go into shouting about the service. Word of mouth is becoming more powerful. If you offer a great service, people find out" - Jeff Bezos.

Both companies share similar vision :

Amazon focuses on low prices, vast selection and convenience to make their customers happy, while Zappos does it through developing relationships, creating personal emotional connections, and delivering high touch ("WOW") customer service.

Here’s a story of a wow customer experience by Zappos.

To all companies out there, Amazon.com and Zappos may be eating your lunch one day. Alternatively, you can emulate these two companies’ vision ie. make customers happy. Boleh, tak?

Tweet your customer right

Twitter has reached the corporate mainstream.

Internet savvy startups such as AirAsia has been using Twitter to provide quick and short responses to customers. Today, veteran companies such as Singapore Airlines use it too to reach out to the web savvy customers.

There is a particular group of customers that prefers to communicate through Internet than making a call to the call centre (I'm not sure if their reluctance to call is due to their limited phone budget or level of patient in maneuvering the complicated IVR).

Customer centric companies go to the 'hang out' places of its customers whereas arrogant or ignorant companies force customers to wait eternity on the line or at the counter queue.

How to ensure inconSISTENT service

Instructions :

1. Get the person in charge of the cash deposit machine to call the customer.

2. Make sure she cuts in everytime when a customer speaks.

3. Make sure she doesn't understand active listening.

4. Make sure she doesn't say 'Is there anything else?' and 'Have a nice day'.

The above was the experience I had with a HSBC bank staff from Damansara Uptown recently. This particular staff called me the following day because my cash was stucked in the cash deposit machine. The experience with her made me agree (reluctantly) with a friend's comment, "You never ask the back office employees to talk to the customer". Now I know the reason they are in the back office.

My new "rule of thought" :

Staff who is responsible to manage machines should always manage machines. Nothing else.

Staff who is responsible to manage humans should always manage humans. Anything else, sir? Have a splendid weekend!

cc. HSBC management,

Please spare us, the customers the ordeal of interacting with a 'machine staff'. Boleh, tak?

(My interaction with HSBC customer service has always been positive so far!).

A Novel Way To Complain!

United Airlines has gone so far as to praise the singer and wants to use the video "to help change its culture."

I must learn to play the guitar and sing!