Rising customer service expectations continue to keep companies on their toes.  Companies have to know how best to service consumers in a way that exceeds their expectations and brings a smile to their faces.  A challenge with this is that customers want immediate responses, so companies have to determine what practices they have that can be automated or digitized.  And the primary focus should be to keep everything as simple as possible for the customers.  Read on for feedback and ideas from author and customer service expert, Shep Hyken.

"It’s a bleak picture: Research across nearly every industry shows that satisfaction with customer service continues to fall.

According to the 2016 Global Contact Centre Benchmark Report by Dimension Data, which canvassed more than 900 respondents across 12 industries and 72 countries, overall customer satisfaction ratings have been in decline for the last four years, and this year’s average of 78.3 percent is well short of its target of 85.3 percent.

But these and other gloomy research find..."

Does your brand live up to your customers' expectations?  The focus needs to be on this because the more that we can surpass expectations, the more loyal our customers will become, as you will read below.  This article takes a unique, fun approach at determining how we can build customer experiences through 5 lessons, all discovered while eating sushi (yes, sushi!).  Here are the 5 lesson topics, and read on to dig a bit deeper into each:

1. Trust Me
2. Trust Me Even More
3. We Are Doing Our Part
4. Preparation is the Key
5. Instant Gratification is Just That

"Customer experience is all about the interactions between customers and brands. These days many brand focus on this experience across online and offline channels, but these are some thoughts on any interaction between a customer and a brand.

Brands stand for something, or they represent something in the minds of consumers, and the result of every experience is how well the brand lived up to those expectations. The more times a brand meets those expectations, or even exceeds them, the more..."

‍First learning from a sushi restaurant and now finding customer service commonalities with your BFF?  Yes, these articles are what have caught our attention—there are service lessons all around us, all of the time.  A key to excelling at customer service is absolutely to treat your customers with the respect and care that you would to someone you are close to, like your BFF.  Customers need to feel that your smile is genuine, you only tell the truth, you are good listener, and more.  So if you want some easy tips for great customer service, or if you simply want to become a better friend, keep on reading.

"As a kid growing up in Brooklyn New York I spent countless hours with my best friend. We were neighbors and always together. Whether going to the movies, playing ball or doing other “kid stuff”, we had great times together.

Moving forward many years I sat down today to write a new article on what makes great customer service. As I listed specific characteristics, I realized how much in common they have with a good friend, a BFF (best friend forever).

Here’s 8 Ways Great Service is Just as Special as Your BFF..."