Effective customer service and maintaining your client database

Managing a business is easy when your employees are real dedicated and thinks about growing up with the company. You might wonder why customer service and employees attitude with work is very important. Building a business is like building a family. Remember the old saying that “a family that prays together stays together”? Replace pray with work and you will realize the benefits of teamwork. Harmonious work relationship and harmonious work environment invites customers to stay longer. Every one wants to experience peace and harmony. When people work for one another, workflow is smooth. Ideas connect and efforts are gathered to contribute to the company’s growth. Marketing is never difficult when everybody works for it. Success is a favorable outcome of coordinated group effort than a “that is not my work count me out” work style.

Let me show you an example of how one of the branches which I was assigned progressed rapidly in three years. It was a newly opened branch in 2002. I was excited to be assigned in a branch where I would be a pioneer employee. It would mean setting up my own system and of course doing customer service the way I envisioned it should be. My manager goes to the client and market. He gets the business, we as frontliners strove to maintain the relationship. Expect that valued clients coming to the branch will sit at my front desk and request “please do this and that”. Yup a lot of it are not part of my work and not part of the work of other staff either. Marketing and getting clients comes with the product offered while maintaining clients goes with customer service. It is true that getting a client is easy but maintaining them is sure difficult. You have to have an edge over your competitors. I can see nothing to be on top of them except customer service. I went to the competitors and observe. I can’t find the old fashioned customer service I give. They all run and serve the modern way: hello and goodbye.




Getting the client and maintaining them is more important than going through the details of my duties and responsibilities. I want my manager to get his quota. I want my company to grow and be competitive in the industry. We have to make out with what we can do just to be competitive. We surely can’t compete with the product, the rates and the technology. But we sure can do it by giving out good customer service experience. That is how I envisioned customer service: a marketing arm and a good all around support. My boss is showing all his effort to accommodate some request he can’t do by helping the client look for the service through our customer base. He is even willing to drive a valued client around just to get the business. What am I gonna do when the client comes to the branch? I go to the kitchen. Bring the cup and saucer. And personally make his coffee. What did I accomplish? My boss appreciation that I am backing him up and my client’s gratitude I did the work of practically preparing his coffee for him. They haven’t experience that with anybody yet. So I became sort of a legend. Unique customer service style eh ha ha ha I didn’t know if some copied but it was the remark I received from a lot of clients at that time.

Your manager’s problem is your problem too. Haven’t you thought of that? If your manager can’t meet the branch quota then your branch is under hot water. You need to help and back him up. Consider every request of your client. If the request is not part of your job but it can be done please immediately deliver result. A lot of other benefits can come to that. You will be the first in their list of referrals for businesses. You get discounts in their businesses. And most of all you gain their trust and appreciation for the great work you’ve done. The feeling of trust is not easily obtained. It takes time. It takes months. At work you will encounter people with different level of moods and attitudes. Customer service means flexibility, patience and tact. Respect and do your work. And by the way, please mind the tone of your voice and your facial expression. This is very important if you are doing a face-to-face customer service encounter.




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