Wow your cu ers 3 ke,ys tb amtingcustomer service

By Dennis Snow and Teri Yanovitch

lf-f REAT service feels like a gift. lt \fmakes us want to continue to do business with an organization over the long haul. And that alone is the secret to business success-retain customers by providing great customer service.

More than two-thirds of customers who defect do so because of poor service. So what can your company do to achieve customer loyalty? Assuming your products and prices are competitive, here are three simple steps to help ensure your customers stay with your company.

1. Look through the customer's lens

Because customers have a choice of where to obtain goods or services, a business must convince the customer that it truly cares. An engaged, caring employee raises the customer's confidence that the business is looking out for the customer's interests.

When that employee suggests a new product or service, the customer trusts that his or her best interest is at heart. On the flip side, if the customer senses a lack of caring, he or she will question the motives behind any recommendation.

Every business has its jargon, so be careful to speak in a language that customers understand. Successful businesses speak the language of the customer.

Complaints can be frustrating for customers and employees alike. As employees, we often can't understand why a customer is making such a big deal about a particular issue. Didn't the customer read the contract?

(Probably not.) Doesn't the customer understand that researching a problem takes time? (No. They don't.)

Remember, it's not the customer's job to see through the business's lens; it's the business's job to see through the customer's lens and show an understanding of their frustration.

2. Everything speaks Imagine visiting a fine dining restaurant for a special occasion. You've been looking forward to the meal and you've heard good things about the restaurant. Then imagine noticing something crusty dried to your silverware and old lipstick marks on your water glass. Wouldn't you begin worrying about the cleanliness and quality of everything else in the restaurant? Everything speaks.

Now imagine a customer entering your place of business. She notices trash in the parking lot. Inside, she sees stacks of cluttered merchandise. She sees employees standing around eating and having personal conversations. It all detracts from your business's image. Consciously or unconsciously, it raises customers' antennae and makes them question, "Do I really want to spend my money here?"

The "everything speaks" philosophy means all employees understand that even the "little things" count. So pay attention to everything, including whether the physical environment is neat and clean, whether all necessary supplies are available, and whether employees are dressed appropriately. Anything that sticks out as "wrong" becomes an intrusion on the customer experience. These intrusions add up and result in customer concern. On the other hand. when customers sense an atmosphere of professionalism, care, and order, they feel a sense of confidence.

How many times have you seen employees in a business walk right by trash on the floor or a display that has been bumped out of alignment? Employees who understand that everything speaks will take a moment to pick up some wadded paper and straighten the display because they know that such behaviors have a direct impact on the customer experience.

3. Create customer tlYowstt

Small gestures can create customer wows. Remembering a customer's name is a huge wow, as it creates a feeling of family. Letting a customer know that another product may better meet their needs is another wow. Sending a a handwritten note of thanks for a large order is a wow. Some wows are small and some are large, but make no mistake about it, wows add up.

One of the most powerful ways to create wows is to share best practices with fellow employees. Hold a company meeting so employees can share things they have done that dazzled customers. Just talking about these behaviors increases the likelihood that others will adopt some of the practices or create new ones of their own. It is also likely that some wows can become standard procedure, whether it's a grocery store bakery handing out fresh-baked cookies to children, or a vendor buying lunch once a month for salespeople.

Next time you're helping a customer, ask yourself, "Will my behaviors make this customer say or think, 'wow'?"

Excellent service is not about policy manuals. It's about excellent behaviors. When employees focus on excellent service. the results can be magical. The key is to make service excellence a habit. Encourage every employee to internalize these steps so they become habits. When employees focus on these principles, your company will achieve the most powerful result of all: intense customer loyalty.

- Full-time speakers, consultants and sales trainers, Dennis Snow and Teri Yanovitch previously worked for the Walt Disney World Co. Their boo( Unleashing Excellence, is available through www. r e tainl oy alc us t ome r s. c om.

At Britt Lumber, we specialize in redwood fence posts, boards, rails, decking and balusters - made directly from the logs in our modern sawmill. We're large enough to meet your customers' needs, yet small enough to care and provide the personal service you need. ...

DMSi software provides the technology tools you need to run your building material distribution business more profitably. You'll benefit from industry specific features for:

.

Customer Service

.

OrderProcessing

.

Purchasing

InventoryControl

Warehouse & Shop/Production Management

E-Commerce & Electronic Catalogs

.

I.

$ales Analysis & Business Intelligence

Financial Accounting & much more

l:rnrrns

Fern Ridge Lumber & Landscape, Veneta, Or., has been opened by Anna Harris and her daughter, Heather Harris ...

Able Building Supply, Moses Lake, Wa., which once operated six central Washington locations, has closed its remaining stores and is negotiating their sale

Ace Hardware ooened a new store in North Salt Lake. Ut. ...

Power Townsend, Helena, Mt., has remodeled, doubled its floor space and is adding a 5-acre drivethru lumberyard, in anticipation of a Home Depot opening locally in the summer

Lake Oswego Ace Hardware, Lake Oswego, Or., has been acquired by Greg Breiseth, who had owned an Ace store in Kensington, Ca.

Ac e Hardw are, Burlingame, Ca., is closing at the end of the month with the retirement of Dom Seger, owner since 1978

Home Decorating Center, Ridgecrest, Cfl., is closing after nearly 30 years

Kings Ace Hardware, Billings, Mt., is building a larger 10,000-sq. ft. replacement store next door ...

Home Depot this month opens new home centers in Anaheim Hills; Brentwood; Madera and Moreno Valley, Ca.; Eagle, Id., and College Place. Wa.

Home Depot is consolidating its Seattle, Wa.-based Northwest division into its Western division. Orange, Ca., headed by Bruce Merino...

Home Depot has broken ground in Watsonville, Ca.; anticipates a spring 2004 opening in Ukiah, Ca.; proposed anchoring a 400,000-sq. ft. retail project in Vancouver,'Wa., and building a 118,759-sq. ft. store in The Dalles, Or.; is considering an ll-acre site in Sand City, Ca., and inked a deal with Tembec for access to larger amounts of FSCcertified SPF ...

Lowe's Cos. opens new stores this month in Kailua-Kona. Hi.. and San Marcos, Ca., and recently unveiled units in Missoula, Mt. (Kerry Naasz, mgr.); Nampa, Id. (Randy Zelnet, mgr.); SE Aurora, Co. (Jay Jansen, mgr.), and Clovis, N.M. (Mike Duguid, mgr.) ...

Lowe's agreed to buy the former Prudential Steel building in Longview, Wa., to operate as a distribution center; received a zoning change for a 17 .A-acre parcel in Huntington Beach. Ca.; abandoned plans to build at the Blue Mountain Mall in Walla Walla. Wa.. and is eyeing a former Sears site in Lancaster, Ca. ... the chain has begun repurchasing up to $1 billion of company shares

Wr o t t slt r ns/lllrr u rlcru rr ns Sierra Pacific Industries, Anderson, Ca., will permanently close its 8O-year-old Susanville, Ca., sawmill by the end of the first quarter due to a log shortage

Roseburg Forest Products, Roseburg, Or., has permanently closed its 57-year-old plywood facility in Green, Or.

Stimson Lumber Co., Helena, Mt., recently paid a $15,000 fine to the Department of Environmental Quality for violating the state's Clean Air Act

Fremont Forest Group Corp., Long Beach, Ca., agreed to act as a terminal distributor for Masisa MDF, OSB and particleboard in association with BestBoard Inc., Chula Vista, Ca.; material will be arriving from Mexico, Chile,

Brazil and Venezuela plant by break-bulk ocean vessels and railed from Durango, Mexico, and Port Arthur" Tx.

South Coast Lumber Co., Brookings, Or., and the federal government are considering an 848-acre timberland swap

Weyerhnuser Co., Federal Way, Wa., agreed to sell a 60-acre former mill site in North Bend, Or., to the Coquille Economic Development Corp. and 160,000 acres of timberlands in the Carolinas to Forest Investment Associates

Stanley Worlcs has acquired CSI (Chicago Steel Tape Co.)/Berger for $62 million ...

Masonite agreed to pay $160 million for Stanley Works' residential entry door division, with five plants including in Rancho Cucamonga, Ca.

Boise Cascade Corp., Boise, Id., has completed its $1.3 billion acquisition of office products retailer OfficeMax Inc.

Reload /nc., Glendale, Az., is now stocking lumber for West Fraser Mil/s, Quesnel, B.C.

Ace Hardware Corp. won a 2004 Enterprise Value Award from CIO magazine

NOFMA: The Wood Flooring Manfacturers Association has opened its membership to include non-U.S. based manfacturers

New Web site: Falcon Fosm, wwwfalconfoam.com

Anniversaries: Burnett & Sons Planing Mill & Lumber Co., Sacramento, Ca., 135th Shamrock Building Materials, Eugene, Or., 25th ... Tirnber Mountain Hardwoods, Orange, Ca., 5th ...

Housing starts in Nov. (latest figures) climbed 4.5Vo to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 2.O7 million ... single family starts rose 3.3Vo to a rate of 1.695 million; multi-family {5+ units) was at a 335,000 clip ... permits slipped 5 .4Vo to a | .87 4 mi llion pace.

Bennett Decides To Stay Put

Bennett Forest Industries will not relocate to Lewiston, Id., for at least two years.

Last year, president John Bennett said fewer timber sales from national forests might force him to shutter the sawmill in Elk City and planer mill in Grangeville, Id., and move them to the Lewiston-Clarkston Valley. Higher lumber prices make current operations viable using timber from company Iand and other private sources.

Oregon Panel Mill Restarts

The former Lebanite fiberboard plant in Lebanon, Or., has restarted under a new name, Oregon Panel Products LLC.

After being closed for three months, the mill restarted production Nov. 6 with a single shift. "Our goal is to get two shifts in the near future," said sales manager Clay Donne.

Donne, previously the distribution sales manager for Lebanite, is joined by several other former Lebanite employees, including general manager Robert "Skip" Walker.

Lebanite Corp. continues to own the more than 5O-year-old mill and is leasing the facility to Oregon Panel.