Customer Service – A Plan

When we set out to start Monarch Media, we made a plan. It was a rough outline of the services we wanted to provide, markets we felt comfortable working with and a timeline to a launch date. In essence, it was the first draft of our business plan. We did eventually formalize this initial plan into the business plan we are using today, but it all started with a few thoughts. I hope if you are in business you do have a business plan that you review quarterly, amend annually and use as your guide to grow your business.

So, the internal plan is in motion. How about the plan for external customer relations? Do you have a customer service plan? You may not have heard of such a thing, but really a customer service plan guides you every day with each interaction you have from business to personal. Do you have standards for what makes good customer service? Do your employees or coworkers know these standards and follow them?

One basic customer service rule that I try to adhere to every day is our quick response standard. When an email arrives in my inbox, I respond immediately letting the sender know I received their message. If I’m able to respond to their request, then all the better! If I need some time to respond, I’ll let them know that in my initial email. Maximum time to respond is 24 hours. This same time frame applies to a voicemail. Yes we’re all busy, but your customer has a question and they took time to contact you, so you need to do the same.

I’m convinced that if you respond promptly to your customers they will notice, and they are more likely to stick with you as a customer (and maybe even tell others). I encourage you to add a section for customer service to your business plan and review it quarterly right along with the other sections.

— Chellie Thompson, Cofounder, Monarch Media & Consulting, Inc.