Customer service

When terrorists attacked the Indian city of Mumbai in 2008, employees of the Taj Mumbai hotel displayed uncommon valor. They placed the safety of guests...

Extensive study of the world’s best service companies reveals the principles on which they’re built.

The notion that companies must go above and beyond in their customer service activities is so entrenched that managers rarely examine it. But a study...

The quality of customer service is often as important as the quality of the product. A company can evaluate its customer service by performing a customer...

A refresher on customer churn rate.

Although reviled in the business press as short-term fads, rewards programs are gaining popularity. Rewards can and do build customer loyalty. Unfortunately,...

Your strategy should be driven by relationship-building — not shiny new tech.

Since its introduction, in 2003, the Net Promoter System, which measures how consistently brands turn customers into advocates, has become the predominant...

A thoughtful message can make the difference between a lost customer and a loyal one.

Takeaways from an analysis of millions of consumer data points.

Shoppers once relied on familiar salespeople to help them find exactly what they wanted--and sometimes to suggest additional items they hadn't even thought...

While management skills can improve service systems, a manager is better off if he or she first has a clear understanding of the operating characteristics that set one service system apart from another. This author offers one view of services, which, if followed, results in a “rational approach to the rationalization” of services. His view, […]

The author left the Boston Consulting Group to join Ozon in part because she had once been an entrepreneur and missed the excitement--but mostly because...

Rene Carayol of Cass Business School explains how First Direct's commitment to customer service saved a life on 9/11.

A new tool radically improves marketing research.

There's a link between happy employees and happy customers.

The industry needs to choose one keystone habit to focus on.

Not long ago, I visited a Trader Joe’s in Boston’s Back Bay. As I went to pay for my goods, I found a seemingly endless line for the cash registers. Well over 40 people were waiting to check out. It was “rush hour,” so perhaps I had no right to be surprised. But startled I […]

A stage-by-stage guide to supporting your customers.

The middle ground creeps us out.