What Companies in the Customer Service Hall of Fame 2014 Do Differently

In the realm of the customer service industry, there are those who do good customer service and then there’s the game-changers.
Recently, 24/7 Wall St. collaborated with the research survey group Zogby Analytics to ask 2,500 adults regarding America’s famous companies across 15 industries and the quality of their customer service. Respondents who gave companies “excellent” rating made it to the roster of Customer Service Hall of Fame 2014.
Let us look at some of these companies and find out what they did differently to stand out in their customer service delivery.

Amazon, Inc. – No entitlements, just pure customer service.

Amazon has held onto the number one spot of this list for 5 consecutive years now, which only means that they are consistent in providing outstanding customer service to their clients. There are countless of great customer service stories of Amazon but the one that tops it all is the email reply that one customer received from Jeff Bezos, Amazon CEO himself.
Amazon is not daunted by customer complaints, instead they show empathy to their customers and do everything they can to appease the situation. It is also important to mention that they have made online shopping very convenient to their consumers and provide impressive customer experience. Amazon considers customer service not only a department but the bloodline of their company, which means every person working in Amazon—from the least to the highest position—provides a personal touch to every customer encounter.

Hilton Worldwide – Innovation in customer service goes a long way.

Tagged as the hotel in the United States with the best customer service, Hilton earned this claim because of the long years (since 1919—that’s 95 years!) they have been offering excellent service to their patrons. Hilton also provides a global service culture in every establishment they have all over the world. No wonder they garnered 41.4% excellent rating from the survey because they follow through with their company value “Hospitality: We’re passionate about delivering exceptional guest experiences.
Hilton has always been ahead of the pack. They offered in-room television at Roosevelt Hilton in New York back in 1947 before any other hotel did. They also pioneered the world’s first airport hotel in 1959. In 1989, Hilton made sure their customers’ stay at the hotel is superb by establishing their customer satisfaction policy where their customer service approach is founded. This forward-thinking has established standards where hotels would follow suit. Hilton would look for innovative ways to make sure every customer feels right at home in their hotels.

American Express – Big Data establishes customer’s trust.

As a credit card company, their customer satisfaction rate varies not because of their performance but most of the time due to their association with banks they partner with. Regardless, American Express sees to it that they connect with every card member through excellent customer service.
When a card member calls the tollfree, they speak with a customer rep and have a real conversation . This is quite different from the usual “let’s-get-down-to-business” tone of most credit card companies. AmEx’s Big Data helps ensure that their reps have ample information to make that personal connection with every card member. They make sure they get to know the person behind the card details. One customer writes about how he has become a lifetime AmEx card holder  and has this to say, “My dad has an Amex card, I have one, and you know my daughter will have one.” That’s customer loyalty right there.

UPS – Customization wins customers.

Since 2010, United Parcel Service Inc. (UPS) has been in the Customer Service Hall of Fame for maintaining their record for excellent customer service in spite of the increasing number of daily shipments. UPS makes sure that customers will have convenience in arranging shipment and assurance that their parcels arrive to their destinations in good condition.
This is attributed to UPS My Choice, where it enables consumers to customize how they want their packages to be delivered and it has attracted nearly 7 million users since last year. Due to the quality customer experience it has provided, UPS’ increased its market value at more than $13.7 billion in 2013 and will most likely see more growth this year as it continually enhances its customer service delivery.
Customer service is really about going the extra mile. Whether it is being accessible to your customers regardless of your position, devising a new approach or technology, or just plainly making more personal touches to your encounters with customers, you can be certain that it will gain you more loyal patrons and might earn you a spot in the most esteemed Customer Service Hall of Fame.

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