Like so many people, I am heartily sick and tired of BREXIT.

If the recent election tells me anything, it tells me I am not alone.

No matter what each of us voted in the referendum and the election, there is a majority that wants to leave the EU. For whatever reason!

I have always been open in saying that I voted to remain. However the country has now said we should leave. Twice! That is what we should now do.

Be proud. Be positive.

I believe we should not fear this change.

The United Kingdom is a fantastic place. We have so much to be proud and confident about. From history, pomp and pageantry to high tech. Creativity and skill. Grit and determination.

Whilst it is true that we need Europe, it is equally true that they also need us. This means only one thing; a deal will be done. Business will continue. Life will continue.

Let us go into this with a positive attitude. Positive that we will succeed. I believe we will.

Be embarrassed

I have been embarrassed to be British over the last 3.5 years. Not because we made the decision to leave, but because of the way we have behaved.

Our leaders in the house of commons have much to be ashamed of. On all sides! Our EU friends have been immensely patient.

We have seen legal challenges. Dubious policies. Actions that have been deemed illegal. Protests and frustration. Families have split. This is all so very sad.

This is surely not the way we want to be seen by the outside world.

Change

There will be change that we will need to get used to. Some of this change will be good and some bad. Change may be easy or hard. If we all come together, these changes will be better than if we don’t.

We must remember that even if we stayed in the EU, there would still be change to cope with. There is always change. Change is the only constant in life.

Now is the time to embrace change to help us move forward. Leaving the EU is going to happen. We need to make the most of it.

Come together

Now is the time to come together as a country.

The argument and divisions of the last 3.5 years must now be a thing of the past. We must unite behind the democratic decision. There is zero room for infighting and arguments.

Together, we must move forward.

What does the future hold?

No one truly knows what the future holds. We all know that the best laid plans sometimes fail. Outcomes are not always what we plan. Oddly enough, that would also be the case if we stayed in the EU.

What we do know, is that if we provide a united and positive front with no internal fighting, we stand a better chance.

Positivity, determination, united. These are the attitudes that we need.

Let us not kid ourselves however. There are going to be bumps in the road. These bumps should not deter us. They should not divide us. Sensible and constructive discussions are what will get us through.

I want a United Kingdom that is prosperous, happy and healthy. Personally, I wanted that to be in the EU. The majority wanted it out the EU. So be it.

We can do BREXIT. Believe!

References

More Rants can be found at https://thegrumps.co.uk/category/rants/

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Should getting good customer service be a battle?

I find it hard to believe in this day and age and with so much competition between companies that this can even be a topic for me to rant about. Why is Customer service so patchy?

I do sometimes think it must be me. Do I cause the problems? Am I expecting more than I should?

Before I really start this particular rant, I would like to say that I do stand up for myself when I think I have been wronged. Equally, when something is better than I expect, I make sure to leave the appropriate review or express my appreciation in other ways. I think this is fair and balanced.

In the last couple of months, I have had two shocking customer service experiences. It has really made me think.

I will not name the companies or services for obvious reasons.

In both instances of poor customer service, the individuals who I was dealing with had clearly never had any customer training. One of them was titled ‘Technical Director’ and I really have no idea why he was even near a customer service email account. In both these instances, they failed to even listen to my complaint so it was obvious that they were not going to do anything about the situation.

It comes from the top.

In general, I believe the main culprit causing such poor customer service is the leadership of the organisation. Not the individuals answering the phone or email. I generally feel sorry for those taking the calls in this instance.

Looking after customers and putting them at the heart of everything the organisation does is the key to great customer service. The empowerment has to be provided from the top, as does the culture.

If a customer service agent is empowered to take ownership of an issue the results are impressive. In fact, the issues can be sorted out before it becomes a complaint.

Complexity

How many times have you been told to contact another department? Perhaps you have been advised to call another number. You may even have been told you can’t speak to the team that you need as they don’t talk to customers.

I am a simple soul. I really have no interest in understanding the corporate structure of a company. All I need is just one number or email and for the person on the other end to take ownership. Simple. Very Simple.

Voice of the customer

It is a constant curiosity to me as to who represents the customers needs in an organisation. The needs of the customer must surely inform the service and product – right? Listening to the customer and trying to give them the service they want must surely be pivotal to success. Indeed, they say that ‘Word of mouth’ is the single best form of advertising.

Research suggests that it takes 10 good experiences to repair the damage from 1 bad experience. If this is indeed true, then doing right by the customer, even if that transaction does not make money must surely be the right thing to do. Call it a loss leader.

What does good look like?

I read once that good is-

• Considered – The offering to the customer has been thought about. It is what the customer wants ( Customer Service, Quality of product etc.)
• Consistent – Service and product offerings should be consistent. For large companies this means that the same answers/products are available no matter which store is visited. No matter who is spoken to.
• Simple – Customers just want a simple, easy transaction. No Hassle and little complexity.

Look after the hand that feeds you

In summary, organisations must surely recognise who it is that pays them. Guess who that is! Yep, it’s the customer.

Listen to the customer. Do the right thing by them. Show them good will. It is the customer that determines if you succeed or fail. They have a choice!

Remember that when something goes wrong, it is often not the fact that something has gone wrong that is remembered. It is how you deal with it that will be talked about – good or bad.

To the customer

Remember that the person helping you is often constrained by poor internal policies. Don’t have a go at them. Be Polite but firm.

Should you not get the answer that you are looking for, politely ask for it to be escalated. Be persistent and don’t be ground down.

References and resource

Image by Lesly Juarez on Unsplash

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