Let me pose one, important question: Do you think clients believe your firm is the “happiest firm on earth?” Taken literally, do clients love your firm so much that they will never go elsewhere for
We are at the beginning of 2015 with a fresh, new year and a fresh, new start. Although many accountants may already be face down for busy season, it’s never too late to work on improving client service. In fact,
If you’re wondering where the random reference to Disney came from, I spent a week at Disneyworld over the holidays. The trip was great, but I spent a lot of time waiting in line for my favorite rides, so I had a lot of time to reflect on how well Disney really sticks to its client service model.
Just yesterday, I had a conversation with a colleague who took her family to Six Flags over the holidays. She had been to Disney before, so she was able to compare the two experiences. Hands down, Disney won – which should not be a surprise to most people, even those who have never been to Orlando or even Anaheim. Putting aside the fact that Disney is cleaner, more attractive and more fun, the “cast members,” as they are referred to, truly seem happy to be doing their jobs.
There were a few missteps. Not everyone is fit to be upbeat all the time. I remember one young woman who scowled at me when, just after our arrival to our resort, I asked her to check my backpack at the bell stand so we could head to the parks instead of going to our room to drop off the backpack. She wasn’t too happy about that. Turns out she was the same person I asked to check the same backpack on the final day of our stay so we, again, could spend the day at the parks instead of dragging around a backpack with us. She scowled, once again.
Most of us remember excellent customer service experiences, but we tend to talk about those that are not up to par rather than the positive ones; hence, my story about the baggage person. Perhaps she didn’t drink the Disney Kool-Aid or had not been on the job for very long. Regardless, her attitude totally reflects on to the guests. By no means did she ruin our vacation, but it’s still a moment I really didn’t want to remember.
Accounting firms can learn a lot from companies such as Disney and others that spend an inordinate amount of time focusing on the customer experience. Truth be told, I originally included Apple just after Disney in the previous sentence, but edited it out. I love Apple products, but the last few times I bought something in their stores, I did not have a very good experience.
Perhaps Apple doesn’t care … and perhaps Disney believes it has so many customers that a few bad experiences won’t affect their stock prices and bottom lines. However, if your firm or any other accounting firm, regardless of its size, felt that way, where would we be?
I stated earlier that tax season is a great time to focus on client service. There are several reasons for this. First, if you offer mostly tax prep, then you have the attention of your clients more so than any other time of the year. Second, it’s a good time to demonstrate to them the kind of client service you would expect if you were the client instead of the provider. When they call, return the call promptly. If they email, get back to them right away.