Support: A Cost Center or An Opportunity To Get Close to A Customer?

Does your company see customer service and support as a cost center or as a way to bring your customer closer?

Over the past decade a number of companies have realized that service and support is a way to build loyalty with customers.  Car dealers, cable companies (yes, them) and Apple, among others have taken this approach.

On the other hand many banks and other companies have gone the opposite way.

Car dealers: Brand loyalty is one reason so many car dealers have upgraded the service department’s public areas.  When a customer is in servicing a car its one more opportunity to sell them on the brand.  It’s all about giving them good experiences.

Luxury dealers (and even some Toyota dealers, etc.) routinely have free wi-fi, espresso and shuttle rides, etc.  Compare that to a few years ago when it was ripped stained furniture and burnt coffee.  If you have a bad experience every time you are in for service, you’d think twice about going back to that dealer or brand for your next car.

Cable companies:  Back in the early 90s they realized how bad a rep they had and sooner or later there would be competition.  Nowadays when I call Comcast I very quickly can get a live person on the phone who will help me trouble shoot the problem and schedule a technician if they can’t fix it.  Typically they get me a next day appointment with a TWO HOUR WINDOW–AND IN MY EXPERIENCE HAVE ALWAYS BEEN ON TIME!  They get it.

Apple: Read this post from the Consumerist and this one from Robin Raskin.  Both these people will probably be customers for life–and brand evangelists going forward–in fact they already are evangelizing by publishing their stories.

Apple is the technology company that is showing all the others how to act like a consumer company.  It seems like the company’s philosophy is: “Technology is complex but let’s try to make it simple.  When it’s not, lets use fixing the technology to get closer to our customers not to push them farther away.”

Filed under: Apple,Comcast,Customer Relations,Toyota

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A Model Number is Not a Product Name

Here are excerpts from articles about product updates that Sony and Apple announced  today:

The two new photo printers from Sony aimed at the average point-and-shoot camera owner are the (horrifically monikered) DPP-FP67 and DPP-FP97, updates on last year’s DPP-FP75 and DPP-FP95.

Apple at 8:30 a.m. Eastern is expected to revamp its entire desktop line, including the Mac Pro, while also introducing new versions of its AirPort Extreme and Time Capsule products, a leaked parts and specifications list reveals.

If you are a non-technical consumer (ok, even if you are a technical consumer) which company’s product names will you remember long enough to ask for them in a store?

Filed under: Apple,Digital imaging,Products have names,Sony

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Don’t Wait for Jobs’ Autobiography, Get Inside His Head Now

According to Valleywag, Steve Jobs is writing an autobiography. Who knows if this is accurate and even if it is, who knows when it will be released.

If you care about the issues I have been writing and consulting about, my recommendation is not to wait for the autobiography but to go out today and get a copy of  Leander Kahney‘s book, Inside Steve’s Brain. I have been plowing through this book and getting amazing insight into what Apple does to remain successful.

The book has been getting good reviews but I am baffaled why it is not getting more attention.  Maybe thats because it wasn’t pulled from the shelf like iCon.

Kahney’s Wired article on the birth of the iPod inspired some of ideas in my Apple Launch article.

If you have read it, I would love to hear your thoughts on the book and any insights you gained.

Filed under: Apple,Books

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Apple: “We believe in the simple not the complex”

In a recent earnings call, Tim Cook, Apple’s COO stated the company’s values in response to a question about how well Apple would run without Steve Jobs.

In its usually secretive way, Apple does not usually discuss its values.  The only other statement of values I have seen from Apple is this 21 year old document.  So, these few sentances give great insight into its approach and philosophy.

Here is what Tim said:
“The values of our company are extremely well entrenched.

We believe that we are on the face of the earth to make great products (and thats not changing).  We’re constantly focusing on innovating.  We believe in the simple not the complex.  We believe we that need to own and control the primary technologies behind the products that we make and participate only in markets where we can make a significant contribution.

We believe in saying no to thousands of projects so that we can really focus on the few that are truly important and meaningful to us.  We believe in deep collaboration and cross-pollination of our groups which allow us to innovate in a way that others cannot.

And frankly, we don’t settle for anything less then excellence in every group in the company and we have the self honesty to admit when we are wrong and the courage to change.”

Filed under: A great product is critical,Apple,Less is more

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