Solutions' blog
The environment has been all over the news lately – and we are very glad about that!
For a long time it has seemed that ‘man’ has been getting away with ‘murder’ when it comes to our planet, and the vast majority have closed their eyes and ears to this growing epidemic. They sit soundly in the ‘it is not my problem’ camp, naively forgetting that it is most definitely the problem of all of us.
The tide is turning though, and let us hope that the impetus towards a greener, cleaner mindset continues.
Blue Planet has brought the subject to a wider audience – the real facts that conservationists, scientists and those ‘green’ minded thinkers, like Green Solutions, have worried about for a long time.
Yet, Blue Planet has highlighted just one subject – plastics in the oceans. Now, whilst this is of vast importance, it must not be forgotten that it is merely one of the siblings of environmental destruction, sitting with its sisters in a maelstrom of environmental degradation. What about the massively growing waste stream of electronics? What about the
depletion of natural resources – especially those used for energy and power – and the consequent harm of digging ever deeper to find new resources? What about emissions to air and pollution? Famine and drought caused by global warming, or the disasterous impacts of changing and ever more aggressive weather? What about the mountains of waste with nowhere to put it? What about the destruction of forest lands – not, I must say by the paper industry but by construction, infrastructure and the increasing call for food as our numbers expand?
These, and many more, environmental concerns are just as important as plastics in the ocean, and whilst we applaud the fact that the issue is making people take notice and talk – in the pub, at school, around the dinner table, and even at governmental level – we must not forget that this is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to environmental issues.
Green Solutions
I was chit chatting to someone the other day about good old fashioned customer service.
This conversation was about banks and the fact that they have all jumped on the bandwagon with their advertising to talk about all the wonderful things that they do – mostly with a CSR angle. My ‘chatee’ was saying that yes, it is great that banks do have a heart somewhere, but rather than focusing on teaching people how to use computers, or learn about poetry, or get an in with the local gym, wouldn’t it be great if instead they focused on what they are, let’s be honest, pretty useless at – giving good service to their customers!
Then, fast forward to us ‘chitting’ on the Island, where we decided to change
broadband supplier. Yes, the sales people were good and it all sounded brilliant.
he system was better and our existing supplier was not that great, so let’s make
the change.
All wires twiddled. All ready to go. And, there was a problem – fairly major. Nothing
worked (so if I didn't reply to your important e-mail that is why).
Now, it is not that there was a problem. We all have those. But how it is dealt with – and unfortunately the customer service was appalling. Really terrible!
This got me thinking about our own industry. How many times I meet companies who tell me they are customer focused? How many times I hear that customers come first?
Sales people are taught to sell. Good sales people are very good at what they do and interact well with customers. But, what happens then? Are your customer service people as good as sales? They should be even better!
A customer makes a commitment to use your company and they really should be the most important element within that.
Even if you are already good at customer service, do more. Even if you have good relationships, make them great. Even if you think you have a focus on the customer, ask them what you could do better. A mall change could make a world of difference.
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Print Solutions
