Following in the Footsteps of Starbucks: How Content Writers Help Customers Escape Customer Service Hell

Daniel J. Cohen January 15, 2013
Starbucks Mug

A sophisticated brand speaks a sophisticated language to its customers.

When I was a rebellious, snot-nosed 16-year-old punk my fellow rebellious, snot-nosed 16-year-old punk friend and I used to talk about our own personal teenaged pet peeves and why we didn’t like people to “tell us what to do!” and whatnot.

For him, the issue was authority. No character of that breed usually loves authority, but he really disliked it.

But for me, it was red tape. That one stuck with me, too. I don’t like to wait in lines, on the phone or in person. I don’t like filling out forms. Basically, I don’t like activities that involve little to no freedom of expression.

So when it comes to dealing with a company that has done me wrong, I REALLY dislike the concept of making your complaint a “file” or a “ticket”. Being a number instead of a person is just unpleasant, no matter how you slice it. It makes you think of officialdom.

Social security numbers. Driver’s license numbers. Tax ID numbers. All rather unfriendly stuff.

A lot of companies still use the ticket concept because they find it “orderly” and bureaucratically friendly. Some of these companies use tickets for both customers and employees. There’s nothing like calling your employee’s input a “ticket” to boost morale, right?

This is an area where companies can improve and content writers can help. I’ve already seen some companies lead the charge. For example, UserVoice, a feedback software, allows customers to submit “feedback” or “ideas” to a company. That’s “feedback” and “ideas”, not “criticism” and “concerns”. UserVoice understands that you shouldn’t address your customer audience with disdain.

Hopefully, this is the overall continuation of a positive trend. There was once a “complaints department” at companies, inherently dubbing customers as “complainers”. Now they are “customers” being “served”.

Reexamine your own company language. How do you handle customers? Do you give them credit or see them as “complaints” waiting to happen? Are you the IRS or are you Starbucks?

Starbucks has great customer service. They defend the taste of their coffee, but they disown a bad batch of coffee as you would a bad date. They send you a free Cappuccino or Frappuccino if the one you buy has stuff floating in it. I know this from experience. And their customer service section on their website has the most classically polite question in the world on their website: “How can we help you today?”

It doesn’t end there either. The language they use in the context of serving their stakeholders internationally discusses the empathetic understanding of the background of other people:

“With more than 5,500 coffeehouses in over 50 countries, it’s clear that our passion for great coffee, genuine service and community connection transcends language and culture.”

And if Starbucks has good customer service, what with all the coffee hoopla and people at the counter and maintaining a coffee clean enough to convey luxury while simultaneously playing to the comfortable element that is essential to its brand, then so can you.

More than that, you will have to. You don’t have the goodwill and business capital that Starbucks does, so your service has to be that much better.

We have infused this into our company, too. When you need customer service assistance, or have questions about what we are doing for your company, you can contact us easily. RedShift has a true heart for customer service, and we always respond quickly to questions. We use our experience to create content that portrays that same level of service so our customers can benefit by serving their customers better— and keeping them longer.

Let us be your dedicated content strategists and we’ll improve your service and sales strategies immediately. By the time RedShfit is done, your customer service scripts will work so well it will blow your customers away. Email RedShift today.

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Daniel J. CohenFollowing in the Footsteps of Starbucks: How Content Writers Help Customers Escape Customer Service Hell
writersblock.jpg

One Incredibly Simple Reason Your Business Needs a Content Writer

Daniel J. Cohen December 29, 2012

Admit it:

You don’t want to write.

You know how I know that?

Because I know that you aren’t as passionate about writing content as I am. You haven’t started a business dedicated to content writing, or learned the most important aspects of creating effective business content, or practiced for hours and hours, knocking out pages upon pages of content every week.

The flat fact is, you don’t want to write. You and I both know you would rather run your business than stare at a keyboard.

Blocked content writer.

Just one more game of Farmville before I write this web page. I promise…

But us? We love to write.

There’s a certain cross section of people (content writers, like us) that don’t mind staring at a screen until they figure out exactly how to phrase something, then hunt down and zap grammatical errors, reassess, edit again, add some secret sauce and deliver to a client.

And you need those people (content writers, like us).

Because content writing is incredibly important. Everything you put out for your business is part of your sales effort, which means that everything written for your company is standing in for a sales rep of your company.

So what does that mean? It means you better have an excellent content writer.

Look at it this way: If your content is standing in for a sales rep, then the way it’s written and the words used are the way your “rep” is speaking and the words your “rep” is using.

And if you had the choice between a well-spoken, inquisitive, communicative, eloquent sales rep who could describe in detail every benefit, every feature, every advantage of your product and why it blows the competition out of the water… or a bumbling, slurring, mispronouncing shlub with mayonnaise on his shirt, which would you choose?

Exactly.

Now maybe I’ve misjudged you. Maybe you’re a good writer. Maybe you’re the second coming of David Ogilvy, and your sister is J.K. Rowling and your great-great-great-great-great third cousin is Shakespeare.

Maybe.

But more than likely, even if you are a good content writer—heck, even if you’re a great content writer— you don’t want to sit in front of a keyboard and pound out characters until you’ve hit your deadline. You want to hang out with your friends and family and enjoy your life.

So stop doing it. Go out there and take care of the rest of your business. We’re happy to write content that will boost your positive numbers and decrease your negative ones. And we’ll give you better service than other firms, too. Reach RedShift today to discover how your company can improve its copy at [email protected].

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Daniel J. CohenOne Incredibly Simple Reason Your Business Needs a Content Writer