What Steve Jobs Taught Us

By now, we have all heard about the passing of Steve Jobs. Whether or not you are a fan of Apple, there is no denying that Steve Jobs has profoundly affected the lives of us all. In the 1970’s, Stephen Wozniak and Steve Jobs formed Apple and it soon became the symbol of the personal computing revolution worldwide. The company went public after just four years! But what made Apple different from other computer companies? Well, most importantly, Apple made personal computers accessible to just about anyone. Apple was also the first company to focus on aesthetics. An unsurpassed, sleek design has always been Apple’s trademark. However, Steve Jobs taught us about more than just the design of personal electronics. Entrepreneur Media shared an article stating Jobs’ 7 Rules of Success.

1. Do what you love.

2. Put a dent in the universe.

3. Make connections.

4. Say no to 1,000 things.

5. Create insanely different experiences.

6. Master the message.

7. Sell dreams, not products.

While we thank Jobs for the products he introduced to us, we must also thank him for the lessons he taught us.

The article of Steve Jobs and the Seven Rules of Success can be found in its entirety here.

Feature Employee October 2011- Traci A.

Our feature employee for October is Traci. Traci has now been with Accurate for 6 years; she started as a temp and decided to stay full time because she liked it so much. She mentioned, “I love Accurate. I like working for the people I work for. I love what I do.” Traci said that her favorite accounts to help are the ones that require a lot of details and research. Her favorite part about the job is getting an upset customer on the phone, helping them out, and then receiving a “thank you” at the end of the call; “I like seeing the reverse,” she says. “Accurate really encourages good customer service and courtesy.”

One funny story Traci shared is that people are often distracted on the phone by her deep, raspy voice. “It’s this way because I sing a lot at church”, Traci explains.

Last week was Customer Service Week and Traci pointed out that she tried to be more involved this year; she even wore a hat for Accurate’s “Hat Day” and pink on “Breast Cancer Awareness Day”. Thank you, Traci, for participating in the activities this week and all you have done for Accurate!

Feature Employee September 2011- Kelly M.

Our Feature Employee this month is Kelly. Kelly started with the company when it was called "Answer Omaha" 32 years ago, in 1979, and was in a different location. She likes the current building much better! Kelly is now on her third owner of the company and started back when the company had only about 3-4 agents, she said. She remembers when, “The agents and management were all in one room.” She, too, started as an agent. Kelly was an agent on the telephone for over 20 years!

Over the years, Kelly’s various roles in the company have included telephone agent, supervisor, receptionist and customer service representative. Her favorite, and most recent, position is being a customer service representative. “It’s easier for me because I’ve been an agent before. I understand how the system works from the agent’s view and the customer’s view. I understand both sides,” Kelly says about her current role. She mentions that previously, when the company was smaller, there were no CSR’s, just agent supervisors to handle issues with clients. “Now, we can take the time to look into issues and review them. Supervisors are helping the agents. We are here just for the clients.”

Join us in congratulating Kelly for a wonderful 32 years of service and an exceptional job well done!!

Accurate Communications

www.accurate800.com

Great Service is a Choice

At AccurateRSVP, we strongly believe great service is a choice. It's not something that comes without effort and we strive each and every day to provide our customers with great service.
Below is a great article about the mindset in choosing to give great service.

Great Service is a Choice

No one can make you serve customers well. That’s because great service is a choice. Have you taken a taxi ride recently? Well, I was told a wonderful story about a cab driver that proved this point. A man called Harvey was waiting in line for a ride at the airport. When a cab pulled up, the first thing Harvey noticed was that the taxi was polished to a bright shine. Smartly dressed in a white shirt, black tie, and freshly pressed black slacks, the cab driver jumped out and rounded the car to open the back passenger door for Harvey. He handed Harvey a laminated card and said:
“I’m Wally, your driver. While I’m loading your bags in the trunk, I’d like you to read my mission statement.”
Taken back, Harvey read the card. It said:
Wally’s Mission Statement:
“To get my customers to their destination in the quickest, safest, and cheapest way possible in a friendly environment”
This blew Harvey away. Especially when he noticed that the inside of the cab matched the outside. Spotlessly clean!
As he slid behind the wheel, Wally said, “Would you like a cup of coffee? I have a thermos of regular and one of decaf.”
Harvey said jokingly, “No, I’d prefer a soft drink.”
Wally smiled and said, “No problem. I have a cooler up front with regular and Diet Coke, water and orange juice.”
Almost stuttering, Harvey said, “I’ll take a Diet Coke”
Handing him his drink, Wally said, “If you’d like something to read, I have The Wall Street Journal, Time, Sports Illustrated and USA Today.”
As they were pulling away, Wally handed Harvey another laminated card. “These are the stations I get and the music they play, if you’d like to listen to the radio.”
As if that weren’t enough, Wally told Harvey that he had the air conditioning on and asked if the temperature was comfortable for him. Then he advised Harvey of the best route to his destination for that time of the day. He also let him know that he’d be happy to chat and tell him about some of the sights, or, if Harvey preferred, to leave him with his own thoughts.
“Tell me, Wally,” Harvey asked the driver, “have you always served customers like this?”
Wally smiled into the rear view mirror. “No, not always. In fact, it’s only been in the last two years. My first five years driving, I spent most of my time complaining like all the rest of the cabbies do. Then I heard the personal growth guru, on the radio one day. He said that if you get up in the morning expecting to have a bad day, you’ll rarely disappoint yourself. He said, ‘Stop complaining! Differentiate yourself from your competition. Don’t be a duck. Be an eagle. Ducks quack and complain. Eagles soar above the crowd.’
“That hit me right between the eyes,” said Wally. “He was really talking about me. I was always quacking and complaining, so I decided to change my attitude and become an eagle. I looked around at the other cabs and their drivers. The cabs were dirty, the drivers were unfriendly, and the customers were unhappy. So I decided to make some changes. I put in a few at a time. When my customers responded well, I did more.”
“I take it this has paid off for you,” Harvey said.
“It sure had,” Wally replied. “My first year as an eagle, I doubled my income from the previous year. This year I’ll probably quadruple it. You were lucky to get me today. I don’t sit at cab stands anymore. My customers call me for appointments on my cell phone or leave a message on my answering machine. If I can’t pick them up myself, I get a reliable cabbie friend to do it and I take a piece of the action.”
Wally was phenomenal. He was running a limo service out of a Yellow Cab. Wally the Cab Driver made a different choice. He decided to stop quacking like ducks and start soaring like eagles. How about you?
Excerpt from: The Simple Truths of Service,
by Ken Blanchard and Barbara Glanz

www.accurateRSVP.com

Call Center Humor

HELLO OPERATOR

Enjoy some call center humor! Actual call center conversations!

Customer: 'I've been calling 700-1000 for two days and can't get through;
can you help?'
Operator: 'Where did you get that number, sir?'
Customer: 'It's on the door of your business.'
Operator: 'Sir, those are the hours that we are open.'
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Samsung Electronics
Caller: 'Can you give me the telephone number for Jack?'
Operator: 'I'm sorry, sir, I don't understand who you are talking about.'
Caller: 'On page 1, section 5, of the user guide it clearly states that
I need to unplug the fax machine from the AC wall socket and
telephone Jack before cleaning. Now, can you give me the number for Jack?'
Operator: 'I think it means the telephone plug on the wall.'
----------------------------------------------------------------------
RAC Motoring Services
Caller: 'Does your European Breakdown Policy cover me when I am
traveling in Australia?'
Operator: ‘Does the policy name give you a clue?'
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Caller: (inquiring about legal requirements while traveling in Europe)
'If I register my car in France, and then take it to England,
do I have to change the steering wheel to the other side of the car?'

Check back in the future for some more call center humor!

And don't forget to visit our website for 24/7 call center answering service:

www.accurate800.com

Have a great day, everyone!

Owner Jeff Zindel Appointed to Universal Service Fund Advisory Board

In April of this year, Accurate Communications owner, Jeff Zindel, was appointed to the Nebraska Universal Service Fun Advisory Board as a representative of the Public on behalf of the Nebraska Public Service Commission.

The Nebraska Public Service Commission’s mission is to assure Nebraskans receive high quality, safe and reliable public services at fair and affordable rates.

This appointment is for a 3-year period. Jeff is also involved in the legislative committee for the Association of TeleServices International and has served on the boards of Downtown Omaha Inc., Park East, Opera Omaha, ASID, Fontenelle Nature Center and Sacred Heart throughout his career.

More information on the services of the Nebraska Public Service Commission can be found at http://www.psc.state.ne.us

Meet the Millennials

Many of us are hiring these millennial folks right now. If you’re like me, you don’t know, or haven’t heard, that the new young people you are hiring are Millennials (they are anyone born since 1982).

I have been perplexed about this generation for quite a while now- what motivates them, how they dress, how they communicate (or not), and even how they think.

Well, these answers and many more are revealed in Neil Howe’s “Millennials in the Workplace”.

Surprisingly for me, I wasn’t out in left field with my questions and concerns about the millennials. In fact, many of us are wondering the same things about this generation. I am just beginning the book, but highly recommend already.

- Owner, Jeff Zindel