The best version
It's still summer and I'm in a holiday mood. So, what to write about? About sun, sea and beach? About Magnums, crisps and the two dozen cucumbers we gnawed away on that beach?
I'll just leave out the staff shortage for now, because that's an unsociable subject. We know by now. We have to wait longer for our coffee and our suitcases. There are fewer trains and you also have to wait a little longer in the call centers. All of this requires something new from us as a customer. Patience.
Fortunately, we are fully prepared for that. Nevertheless? Because we have had the holidays, have been to that beach and have taken long walks. We watched the sunset from that mountain and are well rested. Ready for the last few months of 2022.
I predict you, in the near future we can count on our luck as customers. We may practice patience and kindness. Something we may have forgotten in recent times. I call for a loving approach to all staff who serve customers. In restaurants, at the bakery, the butcher, in call centers, the delivery drivers, receptionists, stewards, cleaners and desk staff. You get the idea by now.
Be prepared for the world turned upside down. The service staff is in power. Not us as customers, but them, on the other side of the bar. Because somewhere they have disappeared. They preferred to work at the GGD. Wearing a mask, they stuck a stick in their noses and throats to test. I'd rather do that than serve us as customers. And I understand that. Because how much fun are we as customers? Those disgruntled faces, drumming impatient fingers and disapproving looks. Maybe it's just us, the customer? That has to change.
So are you ready? To be the coolest version of yourself? To call the insurance call center with a smile, while the bill for your renewal is not clear? To just add another five if you're waiting five minutes for your cappuccino and then say a happy Thank You to that girl on the terrace, who is clearly having her first day at work?
Let us as customers be the reason that everyone wants to work in customer service again. Of course, also because it is wonderfully arranged in organizations and is well paid. But mainly because customers are sweet. Because they are patient, even when things don't work out. Because customers give compliments. Be the best version of yourself as a customer in the coming months. The world needs us.
This blog was written for CustomerFirst and published on September 6, 2022
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Nienke Bloem is often called the Customer Experience speaker in the blue dress.
She's a global CX thought leader, educator and a global keynote speaker who inspires audiences with best practices and proven methodologies. She leads a speaking practice, a CX game company and a training business; she breathes Customer Experiences and is author of two CX books.
Her two-day Customer Experience Masterclass is known as the best program to prepare for your CCXP and she is the go-to person for CX leaders who want to advance their leadership and bring direct results from their Customer Experience transformation programs. Since 2020, she hosts a CX Leadership Masterminds program and helps leaders spice up their leadership and deliver an engaging CX Story including a solid CX Strategy. Besides, she is a modern-day pilgrim and found the parallel with leading customer centric transformations.
With her over 20 years of corporate experience, she speaks the business language. Her keynotes and education programs in Customer Experience are inspiring and hands-on. She is one of the few Recognized Training Partners of the CXPA and it is her mission to Make Customer Experience Work and help you deliver business results.
