Service in the airline industry is kind of a wash in my opinion, but I want to tell you about an exception—Southwest Airlines. Here’s a recent travel experience that I think speaks volumes about the service focused culture that Southwest has created. The line at curbside check-in was very long and the baggage handler didn’t…
Are you working to create lasting memories this holiday season? Stop and think for a minute, how are YOU feeling right now? Stressed? Anxious? Happy? Sad? How are other people around you feeling? What does the average customer feel like now? Typically this time of year people are feeling more emotional than usual. This is…
As we enter into the holiday season, I always remind myself to try and be on my best behavior and keep my patience while out doing my holiday shopping. So when I read the story about the New York City police officer who used his own money to buy a homeless man a pair of…
There’s a common misconception that customer service is all about the customer. Surprise—it’s not necessarily so. Service is definitely for the customer—internal or external—but it’s about you, the service provider. “What?” you may be asking. “No, it’s about my client.” True … kinda. But it can’t be about them until it’s about you. The service…
I love being pleasantly surprised, especially when it comes to customer service experiences. I had one of those experiences a couple of weeks ago when I was visiting my son at college. Let me share what happened and what I learned about the impact of empowerment as a result. My son goes to school in…
Trying to keep your internal (employees) and external customers coming back? Maybe it’s time to engage diversity, embrace new and innovative ideas from all of your customers, and be a learner with everyone you meet. Last week I was with a client teaching a session on the topic of Legendary Service. There were people in…
When I was 16 years old, my first job was serving ice cream at a Baskin-Robbins store. Not only did I love ice cream, but I was very social and felt that this job suited me very well since I loved talking to people. Unfortunately, I think I’m still trying to lose those extra ice…
Last weekend, my mom and I went shopping for her upcoming cruise. We went to lots of stores and encountered many levels of service providers. From the very cranky at being alive to the “I live to serve” type—we got ‘em all. But a young woman in the shoe department at Macy’s stood out from…
When my husband came home and informed me that his company party was at the zoo this year, I had mixed feelings. In one way, it would be nice to visit the world-famous San Diego zoo (and not have to pay for it!) but it’s been so hot recently that the idea of walking around…
Every now and then you hear a story that immediately brings a tear to your eye and renews your faith in mankind. This is one of those stories. I was in the airport in Calgary, Alberta, waiting for a flight home and started talking to an elderly man who was waiting for the same flight. …