Think customer satisfaction has to suffer as a result of recessionary cutbacks? Think again. A recent article in the Wall Street Journal stresses the importance of recognizing and protecting areas of company spending that impact customers.

Writers Michael Sanserino and Cari Tuna explain that in light of the current economic downturn, successful businesses are working to protect the spending that affects customers. Right now, it’s important to hold on to your customers and keep them happy. Your employees play an integral part in creating positive, longstanding customer relationships, so it’s critical that you recognize and reward them for being customer centric.



We’ve listed some of our tips on how to drive customer service in a recession. To read Michael Sanserino and Cari Tuna’s full article click here.

1. Incent employees to drive cost savings

To boost morale during a recession, engage them in the cost-savings effort. Staff are on the frontlines of the business and are oftentimes in the best position to determine where money can be saved, so make them part of the solution! For more information on this read our blog entry "Employees can save your company $$ ".

2. Motivate employees to live customer centric values

Ensure that employees share common values and goals within the organization. If customer service is key to your organizations success then communicate it to your employees on a consistent basis. Create metrics to gauge employees' success at living customer service and reward them for it. There has to be an element of cohesiveness, whereby company and employee goals are aligned to ensure exceptional customer service is at the forefront of everyone’s minds.

3. Retain your “A Players”

In any recession the goal is to do more with less, and this applies particularly to your workforce. You’re top performing employees are your greatest resource, so take the time to identify them and determine what behaviours they exhibit that drive their success. By determining what these key behaviours are, you can then strive to ensure that they are recognized and repeated throughout the organization. Excellent customer service is a byproduct of great people, so get to know who they are!

4. Recognize your workforce

Employees want to know that what they do contributes to the bottom line and makes a difference. By recognizing employee successes you will encourage them to repeat positive behaviours and better their performance. A motivated and driven workforce has a huge impact on customer service so it’s important for managers to focus on making employees feel valued.