Jacquelyn Lynn, Business Writer, Speaker

When You Have to Tell a Customer No

I was always taught that you never tell a customer no, and if the answer is no, you offer an alternative instead. So if the customer asks, "Does this come in red?" and it doesn't, your answer should be, "It comes in blue and green."

But sometimes the answer is no and there's no getting around it. Here's a way to make that work for you.

If you subscribe to the Flashpoints newsletter (which I produce) or my own e-mail list, you may have noticed that I use Constant Contact to send those publications out. I recently had a question about something I wanted to do with mailing list management. I couldn't find the answer online, so I submitted a help ticket. Within a few hours, I had a personal answer that essentially said, No, we're sorry, our system isn't set up to do that. However, we think it's a great idea, and we're sending it to our product development team to see if it's something we can implement in the future. (Not an exact quote, but that was the gist of it.)

What a great lesson! If a customer asks for something you simply can't provide, don't just say no and let it end there. use the question as a way to improve your products and services -- and let the customer know that's what you're doing.

I was already loyal to Constant Contact, but now I'm telling others about what a great company they are. Do you have customers who might do the same for you if you turn their questions into product improvements?

Kay Morris-Robertson vs. Westfield Corp and Stanley Duncan: Lessons in employee relations

It’s understandable why employers want their workers to leave their personal problems at home, and certainly it would be wonderful if we could turn our feelings on and off as we walk through the office door. But when Kay Morris-Robertson couldn’t do that, she says her employer, Westfield Corporation (also known as Westfield Holdings, part of the Westfield Group ASX:WDC), an international retail property group, harassed her, denied her unpaid leave, and provided false information to police that led to her being handcuffed and held against her will in a psychological detention unit. You won’t be shocked to know that she has sued.

 

Morris-Robertson worked for Westfield Corp. in Los Angeles. She and her 31-year-old husband of six months were sailing off the coast of Southern California when he suffered cardiac arrest and died. Morris-Robertson was ultimately diagnosed with post traumatic stress syndrome (PTSD) and was seeking treatment. But according to her complaint against Westfield, she was never advised of her rights under the Family Medical Leave Act or the California Family Rights Act, was denied the unpaid leave to which she was entitled, and by the actions of company managers, was prevented from receiving treatment by her provider of choice and instead was involuntarily held in a lock-down facility with patients suffering a wide range of mental illnesses.

You can read the entire story athttp://morrisvswestfield.com/

 

The lesson for business owners and managers is this: While indeed you have a business to run, you also have moral and legal obligations to treat employees with respect and compassion. What’s more, it’s just smart business to help good employees through challenging times. When you do, you retain their experience and earn their loyalty. When you don’t, you risk lawsuits such as the one Westfield is facing, negative publicity, and possibly the loss of other valuable staffers.

 

This case bears watching. I’ll keep you posted.

Give Publix a Break on the Calendar Issue

Full disclosure: I am a loyal Publix customer. But on the rare occasions when the company does something that makes me unhappy, I let them know. I’m also a fan of Bud Hedinger (local talk radio host) and Neal Boortz (national talk radio host).

 

The Publix calendar issue is a non-issue, and Hedinger, Boortz, and other talk show hosts need to look at the situation for what it really is and stop trying to inflame their listeners.

 

If you haven’t heard, Publix has produced a calendar listing holidays around the world for several years. The 2010 calendar notes that the Islamic new year begins on Dec. 7 but it doesn’t mention Pearl Harbor Day.  The calendar didn’t mention Pearl Harbor Day last year, either. And the Islamic new year doesn’t occur on the same day each year.

 

In a news report, Publix spokesman Shannon Patten was quoted as saying, “We have great diversity in our customers and wanted to include as many of them as we could, which is why we included the Islamic new year along with Passover, Palm Sunday and a number of the national holidays of our customers. Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day wasn’t included because it’s not a holiday.”

 

Makes perfect sense to me. There’s no pro-Muslim or anti-American conspiracy going on at Publix, and certainly no intention to offend anyone. This company is a wonderful American success story that consistently delivers superior products and services to its customers. I repeat: this calendar thing is a non-issue. Let’s focus on things that matter.

How can we boost job growth?

I received an e-mail from Chris Hurn, cofounder and CEO of Mercantile Capital Corporationin Altamonte Springs, FL. He was commenting on President Obama’s “jobs summit” and offered these suggestions to boost job growth:

1.  Implement a meaningful payroll tax holiday for both employers AND employees (January 1st to July 1st, or better yet, ALL of 2010). 

2.  Permanently abolish the capital gains tax on any investments made in eligible small businesses (fewer than $100MM or under 500 employees) during 2010.

3.  Repeal or drastically modify Sarbanes-Oxley, as it has only hampered business growth and hasn't done nearly as much good as was intended (I call it the "Accountant Full-Employment Act"). 

4.  Get health reform RIGHT -- the plans in circulation are still missing two very important things: tort reform and the ability to purchase health insurance across state lines.

I couldn’t have said it better.

Make it Difficult for Your Customers to Leave

Some customers are loyal; others will leave you on a whim. What can you do to keep those customers who are buying from you because it’s convenient but would switch to a competitor for a slightly lower price or because you have service failure?

 

Consider making it so hard for them to leave that they won’t because it’s not worth the effort. It’s what banks do—their strategy to is get customers to have at least four different accounts (checking, savings, investment, consumer loan, mortgage loan, vehicle loan, safe deposit box, etc.). You might get mad at the bank or even find a better deal somewhere else, but when you think about moving your accounts, it’s just too much trouble—so you stay. Communication companies (phone companies, cable companies, etc.) are doing the same thing when they offer discounts if you bundle your service. If you have your cell phone, landline, television, and internet access all with the same company, you’re going to think long and hard about switching providers for any reason because it will be a huge hassle.

 

What can you do to make it difficult for customers to leave? Can you put together product and service packages? Offer loyalty programs that reward long-time customers? Discounts for repeat business?

 

Ideally, of course, your customers should be staying with you because they want to. But in the real world of business, that’s not how it always is. In addition to offering superior service and excellent products, it makes sense to set up barriers to leaving you so that customers have to think twice before they do. Do what you can do to make your customers want to stay and, at the same time, do what you can do to make it hard for them to leave.

 

AT&T U-Verse Service Failures: The Business Lesson

Yesterday I ranted about the incredibly poor customer service I had received from AT&T U-Verse and how for several weeks, I have been trying to upgrade my service, and U-Verse has been failing to deliver.

Here's the business lesson: Everyone in your organization who deals with customers must have ultimate authority to solve the problem. Don't just pay lip service to that authority, which is what AT&T U-Verse does.

Several people told me they were going to take care of the problem, but they couldn't. They couldn't because other AT&T U-Verse employees who are insulated from customer contact were simply saying no--or worse, saying "I don't know." Yesterday, for example, one representative, who began our conversation by telling me he could do "anything" a supervisor could do, ended it with telling me he had no idea when the system error would be corrected and I could expect the service to be installed. And he would have ended the call right then, except that I asked to speak to an actual supervisor.

I truly understand, as do most reasonable people, that mistakes happen, equipment failures happen, "stuff" happens--but when those things happen, someone who is actually dealing with the customer needs to have the authority to take care of it. In this case, someone should have said, "We'll get someone out there, even if it means bringing someone in on overtime to do it," and then had the authority to actually do that.

So that's the business lesson here: If the employees who affect customer service are going to be shielded from contact with the customers, the representatives who are dealing with the customers should have authority to tell those employees who are providing the actual service.

  

AT&T U-Verse: Great product, lousy customer service

When AT&T's U-Verse service became available in my neighborhood, I was one of the first on my block to sign up. The television, DVR , and internet service is significantly superior to our previous cable provider. So recently I decided to upgrade my service package and make some other enhancements to my phone service.

I've been trying for nearly three weeks, and AT&T U-Verse keeps canceling and/or rescheduling my installation appointment because of an internal service problem. The few times they've had the courtesy to call me, it's been calls from people with accents I couldn't understand based in overseas call centers who were clearly not well-trained in the company's products.

In the past two weeks, during the calls I have initiated, I have talked with at least 15 people at AT&T U-Verse, and while they have all been very nice and seem genuinely sorry that their company's service is so poor, they can't seem to do anything about it.  Today, when they didn't show up at the scheduled time, I spent two hours and 55 minutes on the phone, only to be told that they wouldn't be coming out until next week.

It appears that the people who have the power to take the steps to fix the problem are hiding behind a complex telephone system and refusing to actually talk to customers.

I'm trying to turn this situation into a lesson to share, but at this point, all I can manage to do is rant. But if you're considering a switch to U-Verse,  you might want to hold off until AT&T gets the bugs worked out of its system.

 

 

What's wrong with your website?

If your website isn't performing as well as you think it should, the fixes may be very simple. Take a look at "Five Things I Hate About Your Website" by Carol Tice and seek how many of those mistakes you're making.

How to Use Keywords to Pull Journalists and Consumers to Your Press Releases

Are you making the most common mistake online press release writers are making? 

 

Over the years, I have enthusiastically recommended Joan Stewart, the Publicity Hound, for great advice and information on various aspects of publicity and promotion - and I'm doing it again.

 

If you write press releases and post them online, are you making the #1 mistake that 9 out of 10 other press release writers are making?

 

That mistake is this: They aren't using keywords within their releases. Keywords are the same words people type into Google and the other search engines when they're searching for the answer to a problem, or they want to buy something.

 

Not using the right keywords - or any keywords - means consumers might never find your press release. If journalists are using the search engines to look for sources on a particular topic, or news about your industry, they won't find your press release, either.

 

Publicity expert Joan Stewart, who has been the source of many profitable ideas I've used, is hosting a teleseminar on Wednesday, Oct. 21, that will cut through the often confusing issues related to press release keywords. One lucky person who registers for the call will win a free press release, written by Janet Thaeler, Joan's guest expert. I'm planning to attend, and I hope you'll join me.

 

For details, or to register, click here. 

Kids are Never Too Young to Learn About Money and Financial Management

A while back, I reviewed a CD for kids -- Mission 1: Celebrate Saving! (click to read the review), a music CD by Sammy, a cartoon rabbit that serves as the spokesperson for The "It's A Habit!" Company, Inc. After I posted the review, I passed the complimentary review copy of CD along to my grandson.

He's now six and Mission 1: Celebrate Saving! is one of his favorite CDs. His mother (the world's number one daughter-in-law) tells me that he loves to listen to it and to sing along with it. More important is that he's asking good questions about money, saving, and spending. There's a song on the CD that warns kids to be wary of advertising claims, and Jeremiah now watches television commercials with a very critical eye.

It's time to start thinking about Christmas. If you have youngsters on your gift list, that CD or some of the other products featuring Sammy Rabbit and his financial lessons would be great -- and they're very affordable. Visit www.itsahabit.com for more information.