Marketing and Sales 101

 It's actually One on One, but also 101, as it's elementary stuff.

We have been observing it since we were kids. The sethji who sold us the annual wardrobe in raw unstitched form always smiled, and after showing us reams of the stuff, said, Aapko purani rate se deta hai (will give it to you at the old-and lesser- price). We fell for it.

The kirana was from Jeetmal Moolchand, a Marwari businessman in deep Andhra Pradesh. Again, knew his business. Went through a long list made by Mom meticulously, and kept us engaged through the long process of packing.

Single-window processing. I once bought a Subaru in the U.S., second hand from a dealer, with a loan too. Was amazed, I just sat in a chair, signing papers and he took care of everything- loan included- in around 30 minutes using a fax machine and a phone. This was pre-internet! Probably my best experience as a customer till date, except on Jet Airways a couple of times, and Air India once. And Sri Lankan Air once.

One to one is easy, actually, if you know the basics of human interaction- give importance, smile, and say sorry if something goes wrong. Scaling this up is a different thing, when you have thousands of customers- one reason Indigo goes wrong, maybe. And banks and credit card companies.

Customer Service in Hospitality

I admit it's tough getting everything right in customer service. But the idea is to try. These are some instances at a hotel chain (reputed) that offer scope for improvement.

The hotel has a room key card that is used in the lift to access the floor that you stay on. The problem is, the card is not read easily, and several attempts have to be made to get the lift to start. Easily solveable, in my view..get a better reader. Since you have to do this several times a day, it's frustrating.

Another level of service is expected from this kind of a brand. We were corporate clients on a business, and our business was at another floor (not where we stayed). But the card did not give automatic access to that floor, even though the hotel knew what we were there for, and where we would have to go. And when this was pointed out, the staff was not apologetic about it :) So much for reputation!

Service at the dining room was patchy, and erratic. Lots of times waiters were around, but it was difficult to get their attention. Tables were not cleared promptly, in a crowded situation.

There were instances of good service as well, particularly at the frisking at the entrance, but many more things could be better.

Good Service at GRT Grand

I have been staying at this hotel in Chennai for about three years now..while attending a conference each time. The service is excellent, and it makes you feel welcome. Small things, particularly, like asking for your preferences for various services through a small card, one touch number for all hotel services, and quick response to room service requests, a fruit bowl and a chocolate in the room, and a hot chocolate at bed-time, are nice touches. Even the TV input ports are all facing you, rather than somewhere at the back- a great touch! Design thinking, before anyone thought of it.

Last year, with Dheeraj Mohan, in their restaurant.

Driving on the Wall

Top 10 Things that can drive me up a wall- next time you see me up there, you know why I am..

1. Seepage through the wall- I am yet to see a house in India (or a building) that does not have water seepage. The size of the painting on the wall varies, but it's there. Makes me wonder if the same civil engineers are building our bridges- we'll cross that bridge when we come to it. Other pet peeves for now-

2. People who call, and don't message/text after or before when the call is unsuccessful. It is common sense, if not good etiquette.

3. Rudeness of many kinds. Not caring what you may be doing to someone, something- there are too many manifestations of this to list here. Unless your name is Rudy, you have no right...

4. Customer service of most companies in India today. This phrase is actually an oxymoron, and most people in it are morons..sorry guys, you just have to improve.. a lot.

5. Corporate jargon. I try to figure out what it means, and fail each time.

6. Change-the-world posts on social media. I mean, the word "social" should ring a bell...

7. Know-it-alls on any subject, clubbed with no. 3 above..positively obnoxious.

8. Humourless people. This doesn't require explanations, I suppose..or does it?

9. People living beyond their means, to impress someone ..

10. People who judge others by the cars they drive.. I don't know even one nice guy who owns a Merc..am I judgemental, or just mental?

Kejriwal's Win and Lessons From It

The 'wal' has arrived. When Rahul Dravid retired, we were not sure if anyone would take his place. We now have a strong number 3 player (after BJP and Congress), at least in Delhi.

It was a stunning win, almost like BJP's national victory in 2014. If it means what I think it does, it's a good tiding. Perform or perish, or think differently. Connect with your constituency- the people. Be honest. Admit your mistakes, and you will be forgiven. All these are things even marketing and customer service people need to learn, to stop themselves from becoming irrelevant. Customers (like voters) will express themselves when they get a chance, and you might not get a second chance after that.

Not taking people for granted is a great lesson, and Kejriwal deserves accolades for teaching us. Now for his fulfilling his own promises. Like he said, it's scary, given the high expectations. 

Customer Service Excellence

Is good customer service a result of attitude, or can it be taught/learnt?

I think the answer is both. I have had hundreds of good and bad experiences with it. Some, like a five star hotel that I stayed in (only a couple of times, on work- I can't afford it otherwise), seem to make a special effort for their employees to learn it. But some others who don't have the good fortune to work for such an employer also seem to have a great attitude towards serving customers well. Not all the time, I might hasten to add.

It could be a small tea vendor at the corner, or a mid-tier restaurant such as a South Indian one serving simple fare, usually the attitude shows during service. The waiter can be very easy-going, and friendly, and intuitively knows when to ask something, and when to stay away. A salesperson in a retail store, ditto. Over-aggressive sales guys are almost as bad as ones that ignore you when you are 'crying' for attention, handwaves and all.

Our bank tellers used to be rude in the extreme, when the public sector banks had a monopoly. Now, such instances are far fewer. One of the reasons Flipkart has done well, I am told, is due to excellent customer service.

May the tribe grow- A Customer and a Maketing Teacher.

Customer Service- Good and Bad

We live and learn. I learnt a lot from two instances of customer service today.

First, we were out trying to fix a punctured tubefull (for lack of a better descriptor) tyre. The first couple of guys were either not at their station or ignored us. The third guy condescended, but after he learnt it was not a tubeless one, nochalantly asked us to get the tube removed at "a showroom" and get the tube to be worked on. He would only work on the puncture, but not remove the tube. Amazed, we moved on to try our luck at the fourth. After giving us dire warnings about the tube quality (trying to sell a new one), he fixed the puncture and we moved on in life.

Immediately therafter, we had a delightful experience of some great service. At the restaurant called Haveli, we asked for food, and we asked him to make it quick as we had something to do in 45 minutes (he must have heard that from our talk too). We were literally out of the restaurant, bill included, in less than 30 minutes! Amazing, this time in a positive way.

As I said, one lives and learns.