Customer Emails
We all get buried under email. Whether it is business or personal, there is no lack of it.
However, beside our own business email there is another type email that managers tend to disregard at their own peril. Customer emails. (You could also replace this with customer phone calls.)
Most executives and senior managers have customer support staff to handle them exclusively. I used to be the same until we were short-staffed at one point so I started helping out. Since then the cavalry has long since arrived but I'm not going to stop. Why?
Responding to customer emails, has provided me their perspective and it's an eye-opener. For example, one customer brought it to our attention that an airport he flies out of was not in our drop-down list in our booking engine. Hence he booked elsewhere. We fixed that quickly and I thanked him for his input.
Another customer flagged a major usability issue we were unaware of. It's a simple fix but it made a big difference to customers. We offered her a special discount on her next booking because the feedback was so valuable.
After all, don't you want your customers to care so much that they tell you when you are screwing up so you can fix things? Customers like that are worth their weight in gold.
I'm not suggesting you do the work of others as we all have enough other priorities on our plates. However, it may be worth it to even ocassionaly to respond to your customers emails. Even when they are really cheezed off at you.
You would be surprised what nuggets you get from them. It also helps you keep your feet firmly planted on terra firma. Not to mention, giving you a brief glimpse of what your front line people go through day after day.
One can't get too comfy in the ivory tower, lest you want your business to suffer.
