Happy employees beget happy customers. What happens to your customers when your employees are unhappy?

A poll conducted by Tickbox.net of more 2,700 European office workers from Britain, France and Germany found that workplace dissatisfaction increased significantly with the age of computer equipment.

British and French respondents said working on outdated computers was the most irritating aspect of office life.

Read the rest in The Age.

Originally by way of The Chronicle.

Technorati Tags: employees, morale, customer service

PC Magazine’s print publication recently underwent a significant redesign and readers, as they do, spoke up. New sections on automotive technology and home media (TVs) have been added. In addition, the typeface styles, sizes, and colors have been modified. Some readers like it, some don’t. PC Mag editor Jim Louderback responded in the May 23 issue:

We received a lot of feedback about our new fonts. They are, in fact, bigger, but some still find them less readable. Sorry! We’re increasing the font size, and revisiting some of our color choices to improve readability. We’ll continue to cover PC-style computing in all its forms, but don’t worry. Getting the most out of Windows- and Intel-compatible systems remains at the core of what we do.

How do you win a loyal following? Listen to your customers.

Technorati Tags: customer service, PC Magazine

James Stoup at AppleMatters offers some thoughts on the Apple store experience in contrast with the Wal-Mart shopping experience:

No, Apple is so successful because [it] is the anti-Wal-Mart. It has small stores, staffed with very responsive (on average), well trained, happy people. And the products it sells are [always] of high quality. In addition, Apple offers a wide selection of free services to anyone who walks in [the] door. These services include the [extremely] helpful “Genius Bar” along with lots of kid-friendly activities for busy parents. The results speak for themselves.

The implication is that the profitability of Apple’s stores suggests that its retail model is better than that of Wal-Mart. On the other hand, Wal-Mart is quite profitable as well. Sure, the service at W-M is lousy but the stuff is cheap. At the end of the day, consumers appear to love their everyday low prices irrespective of how they get treated.

Technorati Tags: Apple, Wal-Mart, customer service

Ask someone for their experience with a product or service and they’ll tell you, good or bad. This past week, for example, I switched my homeowner’s insurance to a different company after asking a friend about his experience with them. In some cases, opinions are offered unsolicited. The truly interesting stuff happens once the conversation moves to the Web.

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Last week I wrote about my positive experience buying a tandem trailer at Decatur Bicycle Shoppe. Today I received a postcard from the fine folks there, thanking me for my purchase. Little things like thank you notes are so easy to send and so often overlooked. The next time I’m in the market for a bicycle, you can bet I’ll make another trip to DBS. If you’re in the area, check them out and tell them you heard about their business on 5customers.