RSS Feed
TwitterIt’s been a while since I’ve done a review. Not that there weren’t experiences I didn’t think were worth sharing…I just wasn’t inspired. Considered me inspired. I’ve had a guest post on The Upsell before but never have I reviewed Sears myself. I recently bought a condo and, since the first thing you do when [...]
Posts Tagged ‘Business’
Customer Service Jekyll & Hyde: The Sears Conundrum
September 14th, 2011 
Russel 
Posted in My Reviews 
Tags: Business, customer service, Sears, Sears Delivery, Social media, Twitter, upsell 
7 Comments »Your Mission, If You Choose to Accept It: Great Customer Service is Doing What You Promise
August 6th, 2011 Russel If any one of my friends made a promise to me, and broke it…they probably wouldn’t be my friend for much longer. Whether it be a verbal or written (usually email) contract, there’s something understood in a promise made. It will happen. And if it doesn’t? It’s a betrayal, pure and simple. It might be [...]
Posted in My Tips Tags: Business, Coffee, customer, Customer Management, customer service, Starbucks 1 Comment »Tales of Customer Service: Highs and Lows of a Week
May 18th, 2011 Russel We encounter customer service every day in many different ways. From the gas station to the coffee shop, from the cable company call centre to the car dealership, the time we spend with businesses is usually more than we spend with our families. I decided to take a look at one week. One week of [...]
Pet Peeve: Too Many Staff Can Be Too Much of a Good Thing
March 23rd, 2011 Russel You know that old joke, “how many (insert relevant person here) does it take to screw in a light bulb?” I often ask myself that question when I’m in a business…though I don’t tend to laugh at the punch line so much. Here’s my joke: “How many staff members does it take to figure something [...]
A Tale of Two Student Loan Services: Solve My Problem, Don’t Tell Me My Problem.
March 14th, 2011 Russel Well, it’s tax time again. Fun? Absolutely…but of course only if you’re getting money back. Which, thankfully, I am. Unfortunately there’s a roadblock as I haven’t yet gotten everything I need to do them. Let the phone calls begin – BC Student Loan Service Bureau (BCSL) and the National Student Loans Service Centre (NSL). [...]
QUALITY CHECK: Service from the Back Nine from Highland Pacific Golf
March 4th, 2011 Russel It’s been far too long since I put a business to the The Upsell Q&A. Matt Diederichs, manager of the guest services team at Highland Pacific Golf Course said he was up for a few queries. Who am I to disappoint him? Here’s the latest Quality Check: 1) What is your definition of bad customer [...]
Head and Shoulders Shampoo Was Right: First Impressions are Important
March 2nd, 2011 Russel I recently had a Twitter discussion regarding those who judge good or bad customer service and/or food based on one visit. This all stemmed from a tweet by local bakery Bubby Rose’s Bakery. I’ve included the tweet below: So, as a critic, am I being too harsh on businesses by judging them on my initial [...]
What Does the Devil and Great Customer Service Have in Common?
February 24th, 2011 Russel It’s in the details. Sad to say that expectations for great customer service has gotten so low that even OK to moderate service blows us away. “WOW, THEY BROUGHT US WATER!” Sad, but true. In a world where your barista wants a tip for just doing their job, it’s the little things…the effort…that seem to [...]
Posted in My Tips Tags: Business, customer, customer service, Education and Training, Home, Scotch Tape, Social media, Valentine's Day 10 Comments »A Customer Service Love Letter to Business
February 14th, 2011 Russel Dear Business, Small, Medium or Large (I’m not judging), Are you trying to make me happy? Do you want this to go somewhere? Do we have a future together? Whether you want to admit it or not, we’re in a relationship. Good or bad, it’s what we’ve got. And as we celebrate Valentine’s, it’s a [...]
Posted in My Tips Tags: Business, customer, empathy, Facebook, Internet Marketing, Marketing and Advertising, relationship, Social media, Twitter, United Airlines No Comments »Great Customer Service isn’t a New Idea, But it is a Good One
January 22nd, 2011 Russel In 1936, orator and author Dale Carnegie wrote “How to Win Friends and Influence People.” I’d say this book is more relevant today than it was between World Wars. Listening, caring, engaging…these are not new concepts that came in with customer relations, sCRM, CRM, customer service, salesforce.com or social media. Below are Carnegie’s Six Ways [...]