Leadpile’s Blog

“Customer Service is a function of how well an organization is able to constantly and consistently exceed the needs of the customer.”    

I had to go shopping for a new car this week and went to 2 different known dealerships in town. One I had never been to before and one I had been to many times.

We started out at a Chevy dealership because of an ad that I saw in the paper that read “Employee Pricing on all new cars.” I thought I could look at the new cars, see what I qualify for and then if I needed to get a used car. I told them the model that I wanted to see then proceeded to look at 4 different makes and models of car that I really did not want and they were all used. The salesman had decided to show us all used cars even though I told them about the ad and what I wanted. We left that lot and went down the road to a Dodge dealer.

At the Dodge dealer I told the salesman exaclty which model I wanted and we went straight for the ones that were on the lot. They were the new 2009 models and I liked them all except the color. They had 1 used car in the color I liked, decent miles and was in excelent condition so I ended up getting that one.

If the salesman at the Chevy dealer would have just shown me what I wanted I may have ended up getting one of the used cars, who knows. He made a decision to show me what he wanted to show me and not what I wanted to see. He called a couple days later and I informed him that I bought another car that same night down the street. He wished me luck and I did the same. Now I know that I should just stick with who gives me great service everytime we go there and don’t try using someone else because they advertise a good looking deal.

We here at Leadpile strive to make your experiences with us easy and enjoyable and do what we can to keep you coming back again and again.  I believe that we at Leadpile have the Best Customer Service you can find!

According to DMNews, payday lender Advance America has launched a new type of marketing campaign. They are using various marketing campaigns like social networking sites, direct mail, internet marketing and more to try and keep their name in front of consumers who might be going through tough times. They are looking to generate consumers who would like to share their experiences with the company, and other potential payday loan recipients. Advance America is posting all these testimonials on the site www.whoisthereforyou.com for other consumers to be able to read and relate to. They want consumers to understand that others have been through their same type of situation, and Advance America is there for them in these tough times.
This is a great way for a payday company to bring some positive light to an industry that is not always getting the right kind of attention.
A payday lender doing this definitely shows that they do care about their customers!

I have heard reports on the news about 8 veteran US Airways pilots being called into safety training.They are being questioned why they are repeatedly asking for extra fuel to keep the planes in the air substantially longer than the planned flight time. The airline has stated that they were just attempting to understand the pilots actions and not punish them.

The airline has stated that the more fuel in the aircraft, the heavier the aircraft, and the more it costs to fly the aircraft. The pilots have stated they want to make sure that they have enough fuel for rerouting or fly around the airport waiting to land in any delays. The pilots ultimately have the last word in how much fuel goes into the plane. 

Safety experts say that there is nothing wrong with airlines holding the line on fuel – to a point. If a pilot feels that adding another 15 to 30 minutes of flying fuel to the flight then let him. It will make the passengers feel safe and the pilot feel safe as well.

This is definitely not giving the airline any good publicity. This seems to make travelers not want to fly their airline, by making them feel less safe. By making passengers think that they are thinking more about the bottom line than their safety.  US Airways needs to find a way to put a positive spin on this to take advantage of the situation, and right now I am not seeing how they can come out of this looking good.

While thinking about customer service I was thinking of ways that make customers want to come back to companies that give that Great customer service. There are several ways to accomplish this. What makes them great at what they do to retain those customers? 

•  ANSWER THE PHONE – Just by having someone picking up the phone and saying “Thanks you for calling” is a great way to make the customer feel welcome and happy that they called your business.  
• DON’T MAKE PROMISES UNLESS YOU WILL KEEP THEM – Reliability is important and keeping promises is even more important. Don’t just plan on keeping a promise, DO it. Don’t tell them you will call them on one day then forget to call them for another 2 days. If you keep your promise or don’t remain reliable, the customer will remember. 
• LISTEN TO YOUR CUSTOMER – Don’t you hate it when you have told something to someone and realize that they have not heard anything that you just said? Think about your customers and how they feel. It is just as frustrating for them as it would be for you if you were treated that way. Let them talk and make appropriate responses, but pay attention to what they are saying. Take notes if you have to. Then suggest a resolution if necessary. 
• DEAL WITH COMPLAINTS – Smile through it. This may be when you feel like throwing up your hands and arguing with your customer, but that will only turn them away. Let them know you are going to look into what they are complaining about and that you will do your best to resolve this. However, don’t ever let them know that you are frustrated at them. This can easily turn into BAD customer service. 
• BE HELPFUL (Even if there is no immediate profit in it) – Even the simplest thing can be something like opening a door, answering a simple question, saying ma’am or sir, or lending a helping hand. You never know when someone will tell another person just how nice you were. 
• TRAIN YOUR STAFF (if you have any) TO BE ALWAYS HELPFUL, COURTEOUS, AND KNOWLEDGEABLE – Either hire someone or do it yourself. Give your staff enough information and empowerment to make a decision.  You don’t always want to have your employees having to come running to you to check on if they can do something or not. It can be annoying to have the salesman in front of you who keeps running off, “I have to go check with my manager, and I will be right back.” 
• TAKE THE EXTRA STEP – Ever walk in to a store and ask where something is and someone says “it’s over there” and points in an area “over there”? How annoying is that? Ever walk into a store and ask someone where something is and someone says “its right over here, I’ll show you.” Which experience do you think will be a more positive experience to tell others about?
• THROW IN SOMETHING EXTRA – Whether it is extra information on how to use something, or even a coupon for a discount. People like to receive extra things. Give them something that the customer will remember you for, and keep them coming back. 

If you are consistent in the way that you think and use your customer service skills, you can become Great in whatever your business is doing, retain current customers, and create new customer service relationships. 

After reading an article today on DMnews I found it very interesting when they were discussing an additional way for business owners to monetize their websites more with an automative system.  For instance, there are consumers that navigate around on websites and would like to speak with a live person about questions or needs they have.  The product or service the website is offering is maybe not cut and dry like buying a new pair of shoes. Therefore, companies are now implementing a new telephone application system called TAP (telephony application provider).  This is a system that can be integrated with these website owners that allows them to put a “call” button on their website for consumers to click on.  This button does not ring the consumer to their office or phone, but instead it routes them through an answering system that filters the calls properly.

A phone system is a high expense potentially for business owners, however with this system it is rented by the business owner.  This saves some cost for the business, yet allows the consumers looking for help to be converted to potential sales.  So why not just get an 800# and have consumers call that number when they are on the website wanting questions answered?  Some websites might have too much traffic on their site and not be able to handle the calls themselves, and can not afford routing the calls to a call center.  Some website owners are simply that – website-owners not offices with a bunch of employees and an office full of people to take care of calls.  However, this website owner wants to not let potential clients slip through the cracks and not get questions answered if they are on the website.  This system can potentially save money for that business by directing the phone traffic correctly,  and this system will also help with the lead generation follow up.  These systems have the ability to be programed to answer some basic questions and properly direct the consumers.  Is sounds to me like an automative receptionsist, but costs the business a lot less money.

So how does this impact money made on the website and lead generation?  Businesses have websites because it is less expensive to run a business through a website, instead of through a regular office.  However, if there is business on the table and clients coming to the website, these companies will not always have the people just submitting the request to purchase the produce or service (lead).  Therefore, businesses must come up with cost effective ways to capture the attention of those that need additional help.  This system allows them to generate leads from their website, in addition help confused customers become sales also.  Some consumers would simply leave the website if there was no phone number to call or to get any kind of help.  Sounds like a great idea for the average small to midsize business with limited funds, but looking to make the most money they can on their website!  Every customer is just as important as the next……

Think of a time when you have had to call a company when the person who answers says “What do you want?” How about the last time that you went shopping or out to eat and that person ignored you? How did that make you feel? Did you want to hang up the phone or get up and walk out? Good customer service is hard to find some days, but it is something that we should all strive to do in our business and our personal lives. Should we be rude right back, or show a smile and say “Hi”?

 The simple things are what make GOOD customer service into GREAT customer service. When speaking with someone on the phone, if a smile is made it can change the whole outlook of the conversation. Also, by using the person’s name it makes it a more personal conversation and the person will remember that call and appreciate that someone remembered their name. Kindness can also help when someone is angry or irate if you just let them vent using “I understand that must be…”  No one can know what anyone else feels, however having a kind person on the other line just might make them feel better.

 Make sure that you treat the person on the other end of the phone the way that YOU wish to be treated. Who knows, some day they may be on the other end of the line when you are calling their place of business.

Webster’s defines Quality Assurance as “a program for the systematic monitoring and evaluation of the various aspects of a project, service, or facility to ensure that standards of quality are being” and Quality Control as “an aggregate of activities (as design analysis and inspection for defects) designed to ensure adequate quality especially in manufactured products”. Doing both is making sure that every lead and producer is of the highest quality.

 Quality Assurance should be done on a daily basis to make sure that each producer is introducing the best quality lead to a marketplace. Every company should check a select number of leads every day to check quality and make sure that everyone is doing their best to make every lead the best it can be.

 Quality Control must be done if a lead happens to get returned. By checking each one and making sure those producers get notified if there is abundance by them so that they can make assessments and/or adjustments.

 Quality is very important and is something that everyone must think about. Whether you are a producer bringing in a lead, or a buyer trying to contact a consumer, quality should be one of the first things that you think about.  

Hi everyone. Even though you can’t see our customer representatives over the phone they are here to help you.
Whether it is help set up an account, set up a campaign or reset a password we are here to make your life easier when it comes to buying leads.  We are always happy to help.

Leadpile has been know as a top notch company when it comes to customer service. To see what people has to say about us, please check our testimonials page: http://www.leadpile.com/testimonials.html