Here’s a perfect example of why companies should hire smart people who care.

Recently an AT&T customer was talking with their customer service service department. He started having symptoms of a heart attack and eventually passed out during the call. Rather than hang up (because the customer became non-responsive) the AT&T employee (Kelly Hart) knew something was wrong so she called 911.

In MetroNews.ca today, Charles Davies proposes a radical change to how organizations handle their customer service. He says they should ditch the automated phone technology and go back to having real people on the phones:

“The idea is simple: Get rid of automated telephone systems and bring back the switchboard.”

He makes a good point. Though technology can offer certain productivity gains, we all know how much frustration it can heap on customers trying to get things done. But then he goes on to make an even better suggestion:

Jim Logan, chief marketing guru at TeamLogan.com had some useful comments recently about interruption marketing that relate perfectly to what we talk about here at AmazingServiceGuy.com. First, he debunks the myth that cold calls are always a bad thing. He does this by focusing on the reason for the call rather than the delivery channel. His example is priceless:

A lot of companies make their employees use scripts as they work with their customers. This is a major pet peeve of mine. Rather than keeping customers I believe it drives them away. When I know the person I’m talking with is working from a script, I question how able they are to help me. Because life does not conform to a script.

So if you use scripts and your customer deviates from it, then your employee is

Too many managers think they can plan and script and train employees how to handle every customer situation. It’s even worse with offshore call centers. As a customer you can tell when these people are forced to use scripts. It can be a painful process to participate in.  And it’s a massively ineffective way to give customers the experience they want. It does not work.

What if you met a new friend and everything they said was

Here is your Daily Dose of Amazing Service:

Forget scripts and steps

And here are some additional thoughts on this topic…

General George S. Patton liked to say: “Don’t tell people how to do things. Tell them what to do and let them surprise you with their results.” And he was right. In the world of customer service, this produces much better results. Because every person is different and will find a different path to the outcome for which they are responsible.

The secret to improving customer service (and therefore, increasing customer loyalty) is simple: Hire friendly people and don’t make them use scripts.  In the past few weeks I’ve experienced both sides of this coin.

I’ve had to deal with my share of customer service robots.  Too many of these people use scripts like life-support. They’ve erased all traces of personality from their souls (at least when dealing with customers.) Dealing with them satisfies my customer expectations no more than a plate of baked cardboard would appease my appetite.

But there’s good news!