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Drop The Ball....And Score a Touchdown
Michael Boone & Associates Newsletter 
September 2005

DROP THE BALL....AND SCORE A TOUCHDOWN!

In the service business - especially the staffing business, there are going to be service failures. We never like to have them but they do offer us an opportunity to remind our customers why they're doing business with us.

We know they're going to happen, so we are always ready with a Damage Control plan. All of us on the sales side of the company
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know the high price of landing an account and we know the high cost of losing one; so every time there's a service failure, everybody in operations knows that we in sales want to know about it NOW!

Once we know we have a problem, we will: (1) see if we can help if we don't yet have a solution (2) when we have a solution, get all the facts then (3) inform the customer of the problem, the solution and the new controls that have been put in place.

Suggestion #1: When a damage control program has been initiated, how can we be sure the staff will remember the plan weeks or months later? We know of one company that named their plan the "5-11" Alert - the "5-11" being a king sized fire in most fire stations. As a visual reminder of the "5-11" Alert, minature fire engines (could be any emergency vehicle) were placed on desks in the operations area with "5-11" banners.

Suggestion #2: How you inform your customer will, of course, depend on the nature of the problem. It may give you an opportunity to get your management involved with the customer management....A way to demonstrate your management's commitment to quality service.

So, when you learn you have to contend with a "service fumble", give attention to the problem keeping in mind that this just may be your opportunity to score some big points with your customer!