by Amy Woodall
Have you ever happened upon a customer service experience so good it was completely uneventful? Maria is a waitress my husband and I had several months back at a local steakhouse. Her timing was perfect. The drinks remained filled, but she wasn’t bothersome. She was just perky enough without seeming fake. Her effortless interaction would have made it easy to miss how spectacular she really was. Maria was perfectly forgettable, and it blew me away.
The magic behind Maria was how she completely got rid of herself. She was almost an extra in our dinner scene. The night wasn’t about her, or about empty drinks, or cold food; it was about sharing our day and enjoying each other’s time.
What are the everyday requests from your customers? In Maria’s case she knew that her customers ask for refills, so she’d bring them a new drink before they ever had to shake an empty glass. Let’s pretend you’re in a manufacturing or distribution role. How many times a day are you asked for shipping confirmation or tracking? Could you anticipate the needs ahead of time and give them the information before it’s requested? You’re taking away a to-do before it ever makes the list.
When the shoe is on the other foot and we’re doing the servicing we often try to get our needs met. We just want to be liked, what’s the harm in that? The problem lies in our ego. Ego keeps us from seeing the perspective of others clearly. It keeps us caught up in the “what’s in it for me” mentality, and we can lose sight of why those clients chose us in the first place. Here’s a hint: it was for their reasons, not yours.
When we can get rid of ourselves we’re able to anticipate the needs of others and tend to them before they ever realized the need was there. Become the equivalent of background noise. The experience you provide should be so spectacular that no one saw it coming, or going.
At Sandler Training, Trustpointe we teach our clients the art of servicing customers on purpose. To learn more about Maria moments, background noise, and disappearing egos contact Amy Woodall at 317-845-0041 or amy.woodall@sandler.com
Leggo my ego.
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