Overview:

Culture can be defined as the set of beliefs, norms and values which forms the basis of collaborative human behavior . This makes human actions to some extent predictable and directed towards a set of commonly held purposes or the maintenance of some commonly accepted state.

The creation of a consumer-oriented culture requires the production of commonly held purposes. This means that the organization’s strategy, its definition of its activities in relation to its environment, is an essential element of the development of culture.

The generation of an appropriate set of beliefs, norms and values in an organization which is providing services which consumers need or want will produce a real consumer orientation. Many companies claim to be customer centric, but few are. A customer-centric firm will be resourced and organized to understand and satisfy customer requirements profitably.

• Here are the eight Keys to Creating a Customer Service Culture in Organizations:
•  Management must make the measurement of service quality and feedback from the customer a basic part of everyone’s work experience. This information must be available and understood by everyone, no matter what their level. The entire organization must become obsessed with what the customer wants.
• Be very clear about specifying the behavior that employees are expected to deliver, both with external customers and their coworkers.
• Explain why giving excellent customer service is important — not only for the company, but for the world. What does your company do that makes life easier for everyone? What does your product or service add? Be sure to include this in the reasons for achieving customer service excellence.
• Create ways to communicate excellent examples of customer service both within and outside the company. Institute celebrations, recognition ceremonies, logos, and symbols of the customer service culture and its values. This is where you want the mugs, buttons, and banners. Have a customer service bulletin board to feature service incidents that were special. Seize every opportunity to publicize the times when employees do it right.
• Train everyone in the culture as soon as they are hired. Your orientation program is a key part of the ultimate success of your customer service efforts. Make sure that it contains more than an explanation of benefits and a tour of the facilities. It can be an important element in planting the customer service culture of the company so it can flourish and grow.
• Encourage a sense of responsibility for group performance. Help employees see how their performance affects others. Emphasize the importance of “internal customer service.” Help everyone to see that if you don’t serve each other well, you can never hope to serve your ultimate customer.
• Establish policies that are “customer friendly” and that show concern for your customers. Eliminate all routine and rigid policies and guidelines. Knock yourself out to be a company that is easy to do business with. Never let your customer service representatives say, “Those are the rules I have to follow; there’s nothing I can do about it.” There is always a way to satisfy the customer. You must give your employees the power to do so.
• Remove any employees who do not show the behavior necessary to please customers. Too many companies allow frontline service representatives to remain on the job when they are not suited to a customer service position. If employees don’t want to serve the customer in the best way possible, document their behaviors and use this information to help them change or to move them to areas away from customer interaction.

Above all, remember to value and thank your employees regularly. Do this and you are on your way to an outstanding culture, which in turn means better service for your customers. Happy employees that understand and embrace company values will become exceptional advocates.

Excellent customer service often comes down to consistently checking in with your customers and making sure they are happy with not only the products and services you’re selling, but also the process of purchasing, ordering, working with you, etc. If you do that successfully, you are on your way to becoming known for providing excellent customer service.

Well, there are few cons as well in Customer centric services. Here we go.

• Disadvantages of a Customer-Focused Company:
• Financial Cost.
• Not All Customers Are Equal.
• Customers Don’t Always Know What They Want.
• Loving the Customer Doesn’t Mean They’ll Love You Back.
• A Damaged Reputation.
• Leads Don’t Convert.
• Your Customer Lifetime Value Drops.
• You Lose Your Best Employees.
• Summary:

In order for a culture of customer service excellence to grow and thrive, management must have a burning desire for it to be that way and the energy to ensure that this desire spreads throughout the organization and remains there permanently. You must become a totally customer-focused organization. Everyone, from the top down, must believe that they work for the customer.

“Assess the requirements, Explore the opportunities and Implement the changes and Succeed – Sky is the limit”.