Customer Relationships - Brad Cleveland

Empowering Your Customer Service Team

Sep 18, 2020 | Call Center, Contact Center, Customer Experience, Customer Relationships, Customer Service, Leadership, Organization and Culture

Many organizations want to do the right thing for customers, but too often put a multi-layered, time-eroding approval process in place to get there. By then, the customer is gone, or the loyalty that could arise from their experience has dwindled. That’s not effective...

Improving Performance: Two Types of Standards

Aug 20, 2020 | Call Center, Contact Center, Customer Experience, Customer Relationships, Customer Service, Quality Management

The cornerstone of an effective quality observation process is documenting specific, observable behaviors and tailoring coaching accordingly. An effective way to consider performance (quality) standards is to categorize them as either “foundation” or “finesse.”...

Make Your Customer Access Strategy Uniquely Yours

Aug 6, 2020 | Call Center, Contact Center, Customer Access Strategy, Customer Experience, Customer Relationships, Customer Service, Leadership

What access channels should be opened up? What’s the nature of service you intend to provide? Beyond applying sound management principles, these decisions are yours to make. My overarching advice: Make your customer access strategy uniquely yours — do what’s best for...

Customer Expectations of Service Delivery

Jul 30, 2020 | Call Center, Contact Center, Customer Experience, Customer Relationships, Customer Service

Service quality is defined in terms of the customer’s perception of how well your services meet his or her expectations. Simple, right? But wait, aren’t expectations always changing? What do customers expect? This can seem like a daunting challenge for...

How to Balance Service and Cost in the Contact Center

Jul 10, 2020 | Call Center, Contact Center, Customer Experience, Customer Relationships, Customer Service, Leadership

Back in December, I had the pleasure of being interviewed by Jeff Toister, a customer service consultant based in San Diego. The interview touched on a variety of topics, but was focused on issues around staffing and scheduling. We discussed how offering great service...

In Customer Service Timing Is Critical

Jun 11, 2020 | Call Center, Contact Center, Customer Experience, Customer Relationships, Customer Service, LinkedIn Learning, Workforce Management

The right place at the right time. It’s a common phrase, but in customer service, it matters more than ever. Timing is critical. In customer service, we’re like pilots or stage hands. Like them, we also work in a time-driven environment. It’s not...