@zappos + #LasVegas = #TheHighLife!
Okay fellow #insiders, here comes more about my #zappostour with @erika_svea, and I am pretty certain businesses everywhere should be taking notes on this:
CustomerService.
I was truly dumbfounded. Let me remind you that this is all IMHO, and not sucking up to anyone. I've just spent years in customer service and never seen anything like what they're doing. Here are the 3 main points of interest:
Customer service culture shock #1:
Anyone who has spent any time in customer service knows what AHT is. Unless, of course, you work at @zappos! AHT (or, Average Handle Time) is something closely monitored by most (if not all) other companies. As an agent, your AHT is a reflection of how long, on average, it takes you to complete a phone call/live chat/email interaction with a #customer. They want you giving good service while being with the customer the shortest time possible. Truthfully, these two goals are not compatible. Zappos knows that and kicked AHT to the curb.
Yep.
The customer truly comes first. They don't time you & punish agents for personalizing calls. In fact, Zappos holds the world record for the longest ever service call: 10 hours. I'm not sure what they talked about that whole time, but I bet they are besties for life. Efficiency is obviously an important goal, but not before service.
Customer service culture shock #2: Everybody...
(let me emphasize that again...,)
...EVERYBODY who is hired at @zappos spends at least 4 weeks ON. THE. PHONE. Yep. Doing customer calls. Why? Well, because Customer Loyalty is the prized jewel at this company, and they know that to maintain that, all of their employees need a firsthand understanding of what amazing service is about.
Also, a taste of how difficult it can be. Ever had a boss that was trying to coach you on something they had never done? (Psst...I have.) Doesn't happen at #Zappos. Customer loyalty is everything, and so that's where everyone starts.
Customer service culture shock #3, and my fav:
At @zappos they walk the walk.
Anyone who has worked in a call center has heard the same dissertation on how customers come first, service is number one, reputation is everything, blah, blah, blah. Yeah, I said it: blah, blah, blah! Because with the majority of companies, that's all it is! In these same speeches, they will also regale you on not "giving away the cow" just because one customer is unhappy. You often need to get returns or discounts of any kind approved through a supervisor, and what agents can actually do for customers is extremely limited.
You guessed it: not at #Zappos! Simply Google "zappos customer service stories," for tale after tale of extreme lengths agents have gone to, with encouragement, for customers. This picture is from those old YouTube videos...the ones where puppets act out real phone calls? Yeah. Awesome. Check them out. But these true stories are just a handful of the great interactions that take place every day. This post is already too long, so I'll save some of my favorite examples for another day. But in closing, the #zappostour made me want to shout their business model from the rooftops!
Why is everyone not doing this?
A.ma.zing.
(Ps: #1800contacts is another company that walks the walk with customer service. They totally deserve a shoutout for that.) ❤️
(Pps: they modeled their business after Zappos. Figures, right?)
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