We have all spent time in cumbersome phone systems, hopelessly navigating complex menu options only to reach a dead-end and a dial-tone. We have probably all spoken with unprepared, scripted call center staff who, though friendly, are unable to answer our simplest questions. Most of us have, at one time or other, waited with increasing frustration for an email response to a support question or complaint only to receive an automated response hours later which begs for our patience.  An unlucky few of us have even had the IM moment with a customer service representative where you are sure they have gone out for a mid-chat smoke.

These irritating interactions with companies bother us, but they have become so expected that we have come to accept them. We set aside hours for a call to the cable company. We have no real expectation of useful answers from the gas works service rep or from their supervisor. If someone we know calls a software company for support assistance, we generally steer clear of them for a few hours afterward to avoid being the target of their vented aggravation. It is this persistently dismal performance on the part of most companies that makes the exceptions so remarkable.

Remarkable, worthy of remark, something to tell others about. In this age of marketing, where word of mouth and peer review has become so important, being talked about (in a positive manner) can be vital. Consumers increasingly rely on the advice of others to make purchasing decisions, and a small effort to be remarkable can produce great results.

Our company, Universe Point, produces an excellent product and provides a unique service (would you expect me to say anything less?), but much of our positive feedback actually comes from our responsiveness. Calls are handled by knowledgeable individuals, emails are answered quickly (often within minutes) and our chat line is equally well-attended. Now, before I sound as if I am bragging (which I am), I will admit that some of this responsiveness is due to our startup status and relatively small staff.

Since we are still small enough that each member of the team has multiple roles and a broad understanding of the product and company, it is relatively easy to assure that the individual interacting with the customer is well equipped. In addition, we have yet to develop a customer base large enough to stretch us to the limit of our support and sales capabilities. Our size also pretty much guarantees that the person interacting with the customer has a vested interest in the success of the company.

So, how does one maintain this remarkable responsiveness as the company grows? What steps can we take to assure that years from now, when our company has grown to gargantuan size (a man can dream), our interaction with our customers is still something that people talk about? Too often we see large companies fail in this area, or at least fail to impress. How can we avoid such a failure?

Remarkable responsiveness needs to be an ongoing priority. Training and staffing need to reflect this prioritization. Employees need to feel valued both in pay and treatment in order to be expected to pass that valued feeling on to the customer. Does it cost more to be remarkable? Of course, but the benefits seem to be worth the investment.

Help a Neophyte:
How do you maintain remarkable responsiveness? What other elements of your business causes people to say nice things about you?

In the spirit of moving forward I am returning to old form by pointing at things I like. Take a minute to click on a link or two and enjoy the wisdom, wit and/or oddity of others.

Who Answers The Phone from Seth Godin’s Blog
Seth, a regular in the Friday 5, talks about the importance of the inbound phone call and those people who answer them. Inbound calls represent some of the best opportunities to connect with your customers and yet the employees answering those calls are typical under-trained and under-valued. I think this posts calls for more than just an improvement in phone policy. It also seems to suggests an increase in the attention paid to each and every employee.

Article Marketing: How To Be an Article Marketer Like No Other  from Marketing Pilgrim
Some great tips from Shannon Lilly on how to market your site through writing articles. This is a direction I have been meaning to pursue for a while and this post has pushed me to finally start. Look for some expert articles on data backup and marketing from yours truly in the near future.

Thinking On Your Feet With Anil Dash from Servant of Chaos
This one made the list because it features a video of a game I really want to have a go at . . . Battle Decks. Basically, you take the stage in front of a room of people and improvise a presentation to slides you have never seen before. The video features some fine work by Anil Dash.

Are You Saying Too Much? from Drew’s Marketing Minute
This one really hit home because I discovered that many of the materials I had produced were doing just that . . . saying too much. Not a big surprise to those that know me (let’s say I tend to talk), but something I am definitely keeping an eye on now.

10 Annoyingly Brilliant Office Interiors from Deputy Dog
As we at Universe Point anticipate growth in the coming year, we have talked a bit about the kind of office environment we would like to create. This post illustrates some inspirational extravagances and is bound to induce jealousy in anyone foolish enough to view them. Is it worth it to spend on office design? Positive PR and the increased ability to attract and keep top notch employees suggests that it is. (Thanks to Goose for this one)

So, it appears I will have to move forward without the benefit of my old posts for now. While I have them all in a handy text file right here in front of me, I cannot find an easy way to get them into this WordPress database. In the words of one of my favorite authors (a shout out to whoever can guess his name in the comments), “So it goes.”

In a way this clean slate may be kind of entertaining, and if one day I don’t have much to say I can simply post an old favorite that has been lost in this tragic transition. I will keep working to reinstate the old posts, but I’m going to stop letting my failures keep me from writing.

Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more . . .

Do you have something to say to me that the comments just won’t hold? Do you want to connect on a deeper electronic level? Or, maybe you just want to spam me in a larger variety of ways?

Try email at nicdarling@gmail.com or IM me at the same address.

You could also visit my Facebook page or follow me on Twitter.

Update: This was supposed to be the text for my contact page. I’m still getting used to WordPress I guess. Well, I’ll call it a happy mistake and leave the info here as well for those of you whose feed reading makes actually blog visits unnecessary.

In addition to the myriad other complications that my half-baked, blog-change scheme has spawned, it seems there is a problem with my feed. If anyone actually gets this post via RSS, I would love to hear about it. Either drop me a comment below or send a quick email.

Thanks for the help.

So I finally switched to WordPress . . . well, almost. We are only about halfway through the process and, as you can see, the past posts are still absent. Hopefully, recovering them from the XML file in which they languish will not be as difficult as it currently seems.

You will also notice that the design is still a bit rough, but it will be changing significantly, so stay tuned. More importantly you will notice that the comments are back on and easier to use. Drop me a line. Tell me what you think.

Well, I’m going to get back to the template repairs, but expect plenty of posts in the coming weeks.

Help a Neophyte: Any tips on importing XML into WordPress would really be appreciated.