Discord…that’s how you know things are wrong with, well, anything. And that’s the first sign for you to be alert.
Gaza, maybe Malaysian Airlines come to mind. But I am talking about customer service.
Yes, when the client calls or mails to point out an issue, there is discord. But really that’s not the discord I am talking about here.
It’s about discord within me. I know I am not quite cutting it when I feel discord in me. I don’t even have to wait for a client to raise a flag. I can often feel it within me. Maybe because I didn’t put in the effort I should have. Maybe I didn’t do the things I had promised myself that I would complete.
It is this discord which probably has the potential to deliver what we are aiming at Niswey: Customer Oneness. By that we mean being one with the customer’s vision, goals, problems, emotions and thoughts. It’s a mighty goal, but then we are all for BHAGs (big, hairy audacious goals).
This discord within us, is a way for us to know that we are on the path of taking complete ownership of the project. That’s the goal we have set for ourselves. Because nothing less should do. Why? Because in these times of multiple specializations in marketing, the customer feels at sea. And what they are searching for is ownership.
This discord pushes us to listen closer, try harder, do better, learn deeper. It makes us pick ourselves up faster when we fall. It makes the rest of us rally for the one with the most discord. It shows us where we need to get help in the form of tools, specialists or mentorship.
It’s this discord that led us to have a tracker called Customer Oneness Score. We know weekly (often faster than a week) when the Score is getting hit. No, this is not a customer satisfaction score. It’s how we rate ourselves internally based on assessment of deliverables and customer interactions.
At some point, we intend to capture a customer rating as well. We do random checks with some clients, and often find the C-Sat scores higher than what we rate ourselves. Are we being too harsh on ourselves? Yes, and it’s deliberate. Be so disciplined that the customer doesn’t get to a point of complaint.
We have a long way to go. As we discover how our personalities get in the way of taking ownership, or being fully present with the customer, or with the team, we know we have a long way to go. Sounds painful. But the truth is people at Niswey are just happy discovering newer aspects of themselves as they learn to deliver exceptional marketing to the clients.