One of the biggest stumbling blocks to good communication is the absence of context.  Context is defined as a set of facts or circumstances that surround a particular event, situation or communication.  At best, that information can help the listener put things in the proper perspective.  It can also be a persuasive tool to influence with integrity.

I recently watched an early Ryan Gosling film called, "Half Nelson."  In the film he plays an engaging and inventive teacher who also struggles with his dark side.  One of the ways he decides to get his students involved in history class is by giving them random dates in history.  Their job was to not only find out what happened on that day in time but to also provide context.  In one minute or less, they had to describe what happened, why it was significant, the impact it had and how it influenced the future.  It was amazing to listen to how the students so clearly defined and described a point in time.

This is a great exercise for all business presentations.  When you think of any of your key positioning statements  ("Our banking retail experience is solely focused on the customer…").  Respond to why is this significant (no one else is doing what we are doing in XXX  XXX); what impact it has on the customer (in recent JD Power Surveys, our bank was rated XXX);  and how you will influence the future ("we predict this trend will continue and we will remain at the front end…").  Asking yourself these questions is also helpful in determining the strength of your arguments and where you may need to fortify and/or explain.

If you are not influencing as powerfully as you’d like, consider context.  Give your audience the full picture so that they can let down their defenses, open their minds, engage in the conversation, feel confident in the information and be open to you as the speaker.

3 Ways to Eliminate “Corporate Speak” in 2011

"“Corporate speak” is the gobbledygook that slows down progress and understanding in companies across the world. This problem is not just limited to large corporations; it also runs rampant among small businesses, entrepreneurs and lawyers. It is often a symptom of your environment. Could you imagine telling a loved one about the synergies of red wine complementing the innovative marinade on your steak dinner, not to mention having the bandwidth to sit down and commiserate with your counterpart? If you did…you’d often be eating alone.

So let’s make a resolution to ban corporate speak in 2011. But how? Here are three questions to ask yourself when successfully merging action-oriented planning steps to directives…I mean…when you actually write something:

1.Who is my audience? Yes, your audience may use corporate speak. However, your message may be more effective by avoiding corporate speak in such an environment. Go through your writing and identify any words that your loved ones won’t understand. This doesn’t work in technical documents, but it will in 99% of everything else. If you can use plain, short language in a land of corporate speak you’ll be amazed at the response.

2.Why am I using that word or sentence? Many people use corporate speak because it makes them sound smarter. Most people assume “sounding professional” is the same as “sounding smart.” It’s not. Let your intelligence shine through your ideas. People often use complicated sounding words simply to sound intelligent. Don’t be that guy (or girl)!

Less is more. People seem to think that the longer something is, the more intelligent or important it is. This is especially important in email. Many people glance over long emails. Can your entire point be summed up in three regular sentences? I bet it can. Try it and watch how soon you’ll be able to sum up everything in one single sentence."

The words we use shape the relationships we have and the experiences we create. Take the extra step to ensure the words you use have meaning not only for our audiences but for yourself as well. 

I wonder what has happened to all the customer feedback surveys I have filled out in my time on the planet?

I believe in providing feedback to companies and services I do business with.  So, as a customer, when I’ve been asked for feedback – whether over the phone, online or through a mailed survey – I do my best to take the time to respond.  I am one of those people who will also write a letter if deserved.  It has been my way of giving back – as in, feedback is a gift.  I believe in the value and importance of a great customer experience – and I recognize that it is a two-way street.  To get it, you have to give.

What I’ve experienced, however,  is that 95% of the time, I never hear a single word about my feedback.  What do I expect?  In my opinion there are a number of things businesses can do to let you know they appreciate your time and comments.  Among them are:

• A thank you and a word about how your feedback will be used.
• A follow-up call that might address specifics you wrote about (I am one of those people who provides substantial detail).
• An e-mail stating what changes in policy or procedure are occurring due to customer comments.
• A gesture or gift (voucher for a free "something")
• An invitation to participate on a customer board

Instead, what is more common are gestures that communicate filling out a survey will enter you into a contest where you might be a winner or even more common – no incentive or follow-up at all.  As a result, I’ve lost that fire-in-the-belly to provide customer feedback.

I don’t mean to suggest here that my customer feedback is something that should cause everyone at corporate headquarters to drop what they are doing and pick up the phone and call me.  I am suggesting, however, that if you are going to ask for people’s time and commentary you need to respond to it because if you don’t you are actually doing your business more harm than good.  Nothing is worse than asking for someone’s opinion and then dropping it into oblivion.

As someone who consults businesses on employee and customer engagement, my advice for today is don’t ask if you aren’t going to tell your customer what you are doing with what they’ve given you.  The same is true, of course, with employees. Don’t survey employees and ask for their opinion and then let it fade away – they will also lose interest in participating in the future as the message you are sending is – your opinion does NOT count.

Improving your customer’s experience is essential.  Listening to their opinion on what is working and what’s not is imperative. Following up on their feedback is a MUST.

Many of you have seen the popular new CBS series titled, Undercover Boss.  Each episode follows a senior executive of a major corporation who is working incognito as a new entry-level hire for one week.  Through the experience they discover how the company really works.  The show is well done and sends out an important message to leaders:  You need to experience your company through the lens of the employee to truly understand what is working and what’s not.

Without fail, the undercover CXO identifies corporate policies that unfairly impact employees, costly inefficiencies and unsung heroes.  The leader also discovers how far removed he is from what happens day to day in the business.

I applaud the show’s intention and I want to suggest to the producers the next iteration for this show:  “In the Customer’s Shoes.”  Viewing a business from the employee’s perspective is a crucial first step but would be incomplete without viewing the business from the customer’s perspective as well.  I started to think about this more as I viewed Sunday’s finale featuring 1 800 Flowers President and COO, Chris McCann.  I applaud Mr. McCann’s efforts to better understand his employee’s experience.  It also prompted me to recall an experience I had with 1 800 Flowers a couple of years ago that still makes my blood boil to think about it.  I have not used them since.  Following is an abbreviated version of the letter I wrote to the Head of Customer Service,  Julia Kauffman.

 Dear Ms. Kauffman,

I am writing to share a very disappointing customer experience I had recently with your company.  I contacted 1 800 Flowers on Monday, October 15^th to order a bouquet of flowers to be sent to my mother on her 84^th birthday on October 19.  I began by going to your website and had to spend approximately 30 minutes trying to order a bouquet online but every time I attempted to pay for it my credit card was rejected.  Frustrated, I went ahead and called the 1 800 number.

This time I reached a sales rep who at best I would describe as incompetent.  I found myself repeating the same information over and over to her (her getting it wrong each time and needing to start again). I requested that the flowers be delivered on the 19^th as we wanted them there for a party that would be taking place for my mother.  The rep said she could deliver them on Thursday or Saturday but not Friday.  When I asked why she simply said that was what her computer was saying to her.  She said she’d “try” to get them there on Friday.  I said, if not, Thursday would have to do.  After another 30 minutes, the transaction and order was complete.

The flowers did not arrive on Thursday, Friday or Saturday.  Despite the confirmation I received via e-mail.

When the flowers had not arrived by late Friday afternoon I called 1 800 Flowers to share my disappointment and ask for a refund.  I was told that the best they could do was credit back 20% to my account.  She shared that the only way to get a full refund was to have my mother send the flowers back on Monday.  This, of course, was not only insulting but laughable – I could just imagine my 84 year old mom packing up flowers…  As a last resort, the rep gave me your name and suggested I write a letter. 

Ms. Kaufmann, as you can imagine, this is not about the money – it is about the principle.  Businesses make promises to their customers and trust is built when those promises are delivered.  I have to assume that 1 800 Flowers’ promise is that you can order flowers easily, quickly and can feel confident that they will be delivered on time and be of quality.  Do I have that right?  My flowers were not easy to order and they were not delivered on time – the quality is yet to be determined…

The end of the story is that I did not receive a refund or credit and the flowers finally arrived 5 days late.  I would’ve loved Mr. McCann to witness my experience!

At the conclusion of Undercover Boss, the CXO brings together a large group of managers to share what he/she has learned.  It is easy to see what this endeavor communicates to the employees:

·      Our CEO “gets it”

·      Our CEO cares

·      Our CEO walked a mile in our shoes

·      Our CEO is courageous

For a boss to go undercover it does communicate caring, courage and commitment.  Taking it one step further, I encourage every leader to go undercover and experience what the customer experiences.  Without the benefit of a reality television show, I can make a few suggestions:

·      Work a day in your company’s call center and hear the issues customers have

·      Work on the front line in a customer-facing position

·      Hold a customer town hall and learn directly about what’s working and what’s not

·      Track a customer’s experience from start to finish and see where it breaks down

·      Read the letters dissatisfied customers write 

Follow-up on these activities with your customers through e-mail, blog postings or letters about what you discovered and what you are doing about it.  Just like the employee’s responses in Undercover Boss, your customers will recognize you “get it”, you care, and you are willing to walk a mile in their shoes – and that takes courage.

Leaders out there – get both sides of the picture.  Experience what your employees AND customers experience.  Communicating with your customers in this way will go a long way in building life-long relationships and loyalty.

One of my favorite customer service gurus is Dennis Snow and in his blog today  (http://dennissnowblog.com/) he talks about how to leverage the holiday season’s shopping experience to improve your organization’s customer service experience.  I wanted to share with you his recommendation – it’s simple and brilliant.  Dennis says - 

In your very next staff meeting (or via email if you don’t have a meeting scheduled soon), ask your team to be especially aware of their shopping experiences during the holidays. Even if they’re not shopping for holiday gifts, they’ll likely be doing some kind of shopping. Let them know that in a meeting immediately following the holiday season you’ll ask for a summary of their experiences, and what your organization can learn from those experiences. (Note: this is all strictly voluntary - not a work assignment. You don’t want to get into the “are you paying us for this?” quagmire).

During their shopping adventures, your team should observe:

• The quality of their interactions with employees – What are some examples of things employees did particularly well? What are examples of things employees did poorly? What could they tell about the quality of hiring, training, and accountability from the organizations they observed?

• The quality of the physical environment – What are some “good show” and “bad show” examples they observed while shopping? How effective were companies at keeping the facilities organized? If a company was good at it, what were they doing?

• The quality of company processes – What are some examples of processes your team members experienced that were designed more for the company’s convenience than the shopper’s? What are some examples of process that were impressive?

Keep in mind that the assignment doesn’t just apply to brick and mortar stores. Each of the above three points can apply to online and catalog shopping. For some of you, online examples may be the most applicable.

Ask your team to come to the post-holiday meeting prepared to share what they experienced (again, strictly voluntary). During the meeting, dig for learnings that come out of those experiences, good and bad, that you and your team can leverage in improving the experience YOUR customers have with the organization.

Because your team members lived through these situations themselves, their emotions will be engaged in the discussion, providing a foundation for frank discussion of what your organization can do to improve.

You’ll want to act quickly on getting this “assignment” out, since we’re right in the middle of the busy season. Don’t let it go by without learning from it!