Tag Archive for: customer service

Throw a Party: Celebrate Company Milestones

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AQ turns 15 this year.

That made us think. A lot. About where we started, where we’re headed, and how best to celebrate company milestones.

When you’re little, birthday parties are the best thing in the world. I was always convinced that I’d get a pony for my tenth birthday, my thinking was that I’d obviously be ‘growed up’ enough by then to harness that sort of responsibility .

Then, of course, you realize that 10 isn’t really that big a deal and it’s really your thirteenth birthday you should be looking out for. That’s when life really starts.

Companies go through this too. A business needs to learn how to crawl, then walk, and finally to run with its competitors. There are moments of great joy, absolute panic, disillusionment, and massive pride – sometimes all at once.

A young company dreams too – not of ponies perhaps, but of industry domination, great piles of money, many awards, that sort of thing. The difference being here, that a company can actually do something with all those things, whereas a 10-year-old would likely get bored with a pony and all the work involved with keeping one. Give a 10-year-old a goldfish or a guinea pig; much safer.

If they’re lucky and smart, companies eventually reach a point where they’re wearing their big-boy (or girl) pants, and the playground rules have changed. They’re no longer just growing for their own sake but in order to stay ahead of the rest of the field.

We might think that once we reach that point in time we’re set for life, but that’s not really true is it? The Roman Empire’s collapse really only started when it stopped expanding…

“In this world, if you’re not growing, you’re dying so get in motion and grow.” – Lou Holtz

Sustainable growth is a great thing, though difficult to achieve. Several statistics – such as those in this article – suggest that the average lifespan of companies has dropped below 20 years, this means that any milestone is now a cause for celebration!

Anniversaries, like birthdays (and dreams of ponies), remind everyone what they’ve worked for and what they’ve achieved. It’s important to take a moment and look back on where the company’s come from, and where it’s going next.

It’s also a good reason to have a party, pat ourselves on the back and acknowledge that we’ve done good. Nods all around. And drinks, confetti, cake.

We’ll be having some of that here actually.

This month marks the point in time where, 15 years ago, Jan-Willem Smulders and his business partner founded AQ Services International. Graduates of The Hague’s Hotelschool, these two men set this company on a path that has lead right here. We’ve learned to crawl, walk and run; we’ve taken some tumbles and got right back into the saddle.

And guess what? We’re still here.

This in no small way due to our hardworking team across all our offices. AQ has grown from an idea to a full-fledged company that can hold its head up high and say:

“We’re here and we still believe in what we’re doing. We’re going to keep making it happen. Here’s to another 15 years.”

Here’s to our clients, our secret shopper, our people: thank you for the last 15 years. Let’s create more magic in the many years to come, and let’s let people experience great service.

Here's to you, AQ

Have a pony party, you all deserve one.

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Mystery Shopping Scams and How to Avoid Them

Many people believe that all mystery shopping is a scam. This is because of the way mystery shopping has been misrepresented by those performing the scams. Often it’s been set up as a ‘get rich quick’ scheme, or a way to “get cash quick”; people are told they can make a comfortable living off of mystery shopping, which isn’t necessarily a lie but when something looks too good to be true, it often is.

Mystery shopping scams have detrimental impacts on both mystery shoppers and mystery shopping companies, both of whom are simply trying to make an honest living the world of market research.

Types of Mystery Scams

On the whole, there are a variety of different scams, but all of them aim at one thing: stealing money from unsuspecting people.

The most common scam is the ‘fake cheque’ one. This one has been discussed on many occasions, and while there are many warnings about how it works it still occurs today.

Briefly, this scam functions as follows:

  1. You express interest in what you believe to be a legitimate company’s recruitment drive for new mystery shoppers.
  2. A ‘you’ve been selected’ congratulatory letter arrives in the mail, accompanied by a cheque that for all intents and purposes looks very real.
  3. The letter goes on to instruct you to cash the cheque, and then send money via wire transfer to a specific account elsewhere, usually overseas.
  4. They add further pressure, but telling you to do so within 48 hours or the offer expires and generously tell you that whatever percentage is left in the cheque is yours to keep.

Awesome! Free money! Right?

Wrong.

The catch here is that the cheque is fake and you’ve wired money you didn’t have to another account. If you’re extremely unlucky and lack the ability to properly explain what’s happened, you may also be liable for cashing in a fraudulent cheque.

That particular scam comes in all shapes and sizes, but at the core always remains the same.

All in all, not a fun experience, least of all because of the financial impact. Unfortunately, where there is an opportunity to exploit people, scammers are there to take advantage.

It would be easy to apply a blanket rule and say: “all mystery shopping jobs are scams”, but this simply isn’t true. There are plenty of legitimate companies out there providing honest opportunities, and it’s important to recognize what a scam looks like.

What does legitimate mystery shopping look like?

Real mystery shopping is designed to analyze certain elements of an industry, and one of the best definitions comes from Wikipedia:

“Mystery shopping or a mystery consumer or secret shopper, is a tool used externally by market research companies, watchdog organizations, or internally by companies themselves to measure quality of service, or compliance with regulation, or to gather specific information about products and services.”

Earlier this year, I wrote about how mystery shopping really works, giving a basic explanation of how it’s accomplished and what might be involved.

How to tell legitimate mystery shopping companies and mystery shopping scams apart:

As a rule of thumb, it’s good to keep the following pointers in mind and avoid companies that:

  • Require that you pay for “certification.”
  • Guarantee a job as a mystery shopper.
  • Charge a fee for access to mystery shopping opportunities.
  • Sell directories of companies that hire mystery shoppers.
  • Ask you to deposit a check and wire some or all of the money to someone.

Mystery Shopper Scams, The Federal Trade Commission

Not all companies that employ any or all of these tactics are necessarily scams, but err on the side of caution and understand what a genuine mystery shopping company looks like.

Most legitimate companies recruit their shoppers directly from their website, or through legitimate channels such as their social media accounts – only very rarely will they use newspaper ads or direct emails.

In addition, legitimate mystery shopping companies don’t require you to pay a registration or certification fee; they simply ask you to sign up to their platforms so they can keep you apprised of any open visits.

Further, they have a screening process: just because you’ve signed up doesn’t mean that you’ll automatically get a visit. Most companies will use a type of test, to make sure that your language skills are up to scratch – after all, you’ll be recording data for them, it helps if everyone knows what you’re saying – and I know that here at AQ, we also require our shoppers to complete a questionnaire that proves a competent understanding of the visit manual (the guideline that tells you how exactly to complete the shop in question). Any company that guarantees you work straight off the bat, is likely to be a scam.

Legitimate mystery shopping companies won’t charge you to access their shop boards; this beats the point for them after all, they recruited you to fill their shops, why make it so difficult for you to do so easily? Nor will they ask you to deposit cheques or wire money. At most, there’ll be a restaurant shop in which you pay for your meal and get a reimbursement up to a certain amount.

Another good thing to remember is that most mystery shops don’t pay heaps. Depending on the type of shop, you may get $5 to $20. Most mystery shoppers do their visits beside their day jobs to earn a little extra cash.

Can you make a living as a mystery shopper? Yes, I suppose it’s possible, but you’d have to be very motivated and very patient. I imagine that a dedicated mystery shopper would be able to make ends meet, if that was all they did, but on the whole, I wouldn’t suggest it be used that way. For further illustration, I stumbled across this article on Forbes that explains how it’s been done successfully, and an article on I’ve Tried That where it was less successful.

How to check if an opportunity is legitimate?

The biggest rule of thumb you can remember is that companies use mystery shoppers as a tool to gather research data. No company is going to pay you $2,000 (for example) simply to cash a cheque and wire $3k to Australia, it’s not a realistic business plan. It’s it’s one thing you can really trust, is that business won’t send themselves broke.

If you’ve no mind for business management then just remember this:

If it looks too good to be true, it probably is.

Another good thing to do is check if the company is listed on the MSPA (Mystery Shopping Providers Association) website. Not all legitimate companies are members, but it’s a good place to start!

And if you’re in doubt at any point, then don’t sign up. Scammers are creative and often it can be tricky to tell one way or the other; if you think something doesn’t look right and you can’t get a clear answer anywhere then it’s probably a good idea to steer clear. Remember, a real mystery shopping company will be easy to find and be listed in legitimate databases, and you can get in touch with them to ask, whether by phone or by email from their website.

Only doom and gloom then?

Hardly, just like you could swim in the ocean your entire life and never experience a shark attack, anyone can enjoy mystery shopping. If you keep your wits about you you’ll never have to experience the frustrations and financial repercussions from a mystery shopping scam. Mystery shopping is a great way to earn extra money doing what you love.

For more information about AQ’s mystery shopping program, or to sign up for our shops, visit www.ilovemysteryshopping.com.

If you’re a business looking to see how mystery shopping can help you improve your customer service and sales, please Get In Touch!

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Why can Improving Empathy help me Improve my company’s Customer Service Experience?

Empathy is one of the driving factors of good customer service; without it, it is impossible to imagine what a customer’s position is. Why are they upset about something? Why are they shouting at you over the phone? What is it that they really want? Why do they respond to your smile?

What is Empathy?

Some of you may be sitting there wondering what this video has to do with customer service and when I’m going to get to the point; others among you may be nodding your head. That’s fine; we’re all here to learn.

What this video does is explain ‘empathy’; we can deduce that empathy comes in a variety of different forms but on the whole is reflective of how well we understand each other’s emotional responses to situations.

Most of us are capable of imagining what another person is going through. We have a certain level of empathy; some of us have more than others, but mostly we’re all capable of it to some extent.

Also read this article: Retail Customer Service: Reality of Retail Industry

For example, if my best friend won first prize in a competition and was bubbling over with excitement I could well imagine what that might feel like. When you read a story about someone who is diagnosed with a terminal disease, you might feel sad for that person but it’s not until you imagine what it must be like to be that person that you’re acting on your empathy.

What role does Empathy play in Customer Service?

Empathy allows a good customer service agent to read between the lines. As customer service agents it’s important that we know how customers feel – but there’s a distinction to be made here between imagining what a customer wants and assuming to know what a customer wants.

Picture a little girl named ‘Sally’. Sally comes into an ice cream parlour with her mother for ice cream. It’s fairly simple to come to the conclusion that Sally is there for a treat and will now go through the process of choosing what flavour she wants for her one scoop of ice cream. There’s very little imagining to be done here.

Next, picture Mickey, a young man with a skateboard who’s come into a shoe store, presumably to buy new shoes. An bad sales consultant might just make a snap judgment and try and sell Mickey a pair of sneakers that might go with his current look. A better consultant would ask Mickey what he’s after – apparently Mickey has his first job interview at a tech company and he needs a pair of dress shoes to wear. That’s great stuff, that sales consultant now knows what Mickey wants and needs. What next? Sure we could just sell him a pair of shoes, but what about the next time Mickey needs shoes? Or if his friends need a pair? We want Mickey to tell his friends about our store and what a great experience he had when he bought his swanky new shoes.

This is where empathy comes into play.

Imagine what Mickey is going through. He’s off to his very first job interview at a tech company. Is he nervous? Is he confident? Does he think he has a good chance at landing the job? An empathetic sales consultant will pick up on Mickey’s mood and be able to talk with him about what he’s going through.

Empathy is the key to making good customer service a great customer experience, two vital sides of the coin and the differences between which I’ve explored here.

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Customer Service & Customer Experience: The Difference You Should Probably Know About

Customer Service? Customer Experience? What are these two terms we talk about all the time?

On the phoneCustomer experience and customer service are two prominently used terms, but many of us don’t really differentiate between them. Probably best explained in this article by Elizabeth Clor, these two terms are not interchangeable, which is how they’ve often been used.

Customer service is just that: it deals with the service elements of the overall sales process: How friendly is the staff? How quickly do they see to a customer? What’s the procedure for processing customer complaints? Are they dealt with quickly?

Customer service involves the direct contact that customer-facing employees have with the customer. What type of contact is it? How good is that contact? How quickly are issues resolved? What options of service do customers have?

Customer experience is the experience that the service provides. What is it like for a customer to contact staff? How easy is it for them to give feedback or use the system? Is the store clean and easy to navigate?

If we were in a restaurant, for example, the customer service would revolve around the quality of service: does the waiter smile and answer questions cordially? How quickly does the food arrive? Whereas the experience can be defined by how pleasant the restaurant is: good atmosphere, good quality of food and beverages, prices appropriate for that quality.

Customer Service Experience

waiter
There’s a word in the Dutch language: gezelligheid. There’s no perfect translation into english, but Wikipedia offers this as an accurate:

“…depending on context, can be translated as convivial, cosy, fun, or nice atmosphere, but can also connote belonging, time spent with loved ones, the fact of seeing a friend after a long absence, or general togetherness that gives a warm feeling.” [Gezelligheid, Wikipedia]

Why this tangent?

Any other business can make the greatest attempts at good customer service, but without the gezelligheid the customer experience will be severely lacking. Vice versa, you can have the coziest most ‘gezellig’ business in the world, but if the service is awful no one will come back either.

Creative Customer Service

There’s a restaurant in Melbourne that we tried out a few times before giving up. The decor was wonderful, and the food fantastic, the trouble was that the service was terrible. The few times we went, we were always made to feel like we were inconveniencing the staff when we placed orders, they almost never raised their eyes to look at you and they smiled even more rarely.

A year after they’d opened, they were shut and there was a rumor floating around that the owner took the forced shutdown as a surprise, complaining that the neighborhood just didn’t support his efforts to provide great food.

“The food was really good,” my mother-in-law said, “if they’d just been nicer we’d have gone there more often!”

We’ve all experienced in some shape or form: where either the service was so bad that we didn’t go back, or, even though the service was great, the experience left something to be desired. As customers, we have the right to choose what we want; and we want good everything, both service and experience.

Secret Shopper Companies that have that figured out, are virtually unstoppable.

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What we need to know about Negative Experiences

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More often than not, we hear about bad customer service experiences. It makes you wonder if the world revolves around negative experiences. Apparently, people are far more likely to share their grievances publicly than they are to share compliments. According to ClickFox’s second annual benchmarking survey, Consumer Tipping Points, only 8% of customers are likely to make public posts or share a positive experience, whereas this percentage doubles in the case of a bad experience.

Think about that for a moment:

One of your customers has a great time, and they don’t tell anyone about it, but a bad time and suddenly their entire world knows about it.

Forget that it’s completely unfair; human nature isn’t about fair, unfortunately.

What do we do about it?

If you’re dealing with a specific negative review, make sure you reach out to that customer straight away. You’ve let them down somehow, best to dive straight in and apologize, perhaps offer them something to express your regret for the bad service they received; while you’re at it, why not ask for their input? If you can figure out what it was exactly that frustrated them, you can better address the problem. Maybe it was something that was said, not done — get the details so you can avoid the same issue in the future!

1. Identify the problem. There’s no point in plunging headlong in trying to solve your issues if you don’t know exactly what they are.

  • What section of your customer-facing department is letting the customer down? Are your customers complaining about something specific?
  • Is your sales team doing something ‘wrong’/not doing something ‘right’?
  • Are you meeting customer expectations in general?

Questions like this need to be answered before you ca begin to isolate the issues and deal with them. This can be tricky if you don’t have checklists in place, and some businesses find they need external help from customer improvement companies or other consultancies.

2. Isolate the problem. Don’t try and tackle everything at once. Which problem is the most pressing? Is it the way your staff greets customers, or is the long waiting periods that are creating negative feedback?

3. Fix the problem. You know what the problem is, you can take steps to make sure it never happens again. Are your customers waiting for half an hour before they’re served? Perhaps you need more staff. Did one of your sales consultants say something that generated the negative feedback? Time to discuss this with that consultant and have a general discussion with the entire team.

The goal here is to learn from the mistakes you’ve made. Don’t think of a customer’s negative review/complaints as a setback, think of it as an opportunity to do better.

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