Defining you customer service strategy is one thing but communicating that position to the customers is another thing all together. In this article we would understand what a customer’s bill of rights is and how we can develop and publicize one.
What is a bill of rights?
The Oxford languages dictionary defines Bill of rights as a formal declaration of the legal and civil rights of the citizens of any state, country, federation, etc. This bill of rights or chatter of rights is simply the list of the most important rights to the citizen of a country.
The 10 first amendments of the constitution of the united states of America, or Bill of rights of the united states of America include rights like the freedom of religion, speech, press, assembly, and petition, rights of accused person, rights of trial by jury in civil cases etc. The point here is to show you the fundamental nature of the rights that make up the bill of rights. The purpose of these rights is to protect the citizens against excessive government infringement.
The customer bill of rights
A customer bill of rights is simply those set of rights you accord to your customers. Those very fundamental things your customers deserve and whose non respect is discriminating against them or depriving them of what they are rightfully due. While this would vary from one organization to another, there are some basic rights that every organization must accord to the customers such as the right to be listened to. The right to complain if they are not satisfied with the products or services, the right to have their privacy respected and their data protected.
How can I create a customer bill of rights?
Creating a customer bill of rights requires team effort by the organization. The starting point of this process is to access the quality of service you currently offer to the customers. There are three ways of getting this right ; knowing what the employees think, what the customers think and the getting expert opinion on the health of your customer service. Listen to the voice of the customer through feedback to know what their impressions are.
Once the areas of amelioration have all been identified. The next phase is to decide on the strategy that will be used to solve the problems raised as well as the new attitude which every employee would have to adopt. This consist of making new customer service resolutions. What we want to change. How we hope to change it. Who shall be in charge of each action.
At this point we have a clear pictures of how much our customer service has been hurting or helping our customers. Based on the resolutions made, you can now state your customers’ rights which we must respect going forward. Setting a bill of rights announces to the customers your dedication to improving their experience and defines clearly the promises you make to them. It has a big impact on shaping the customers’ expectations and serves as a measuring tool for the services delivered.
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Publication and examples of our customer service bill of rights.
The job doesn’t end with developing lofty rights for the customer. We need to communicate this to the customer. Make it visible and put it where ever customer can have access to. Make sure your team goes through these rights as often as possible so they do not forget the promise you have made to the customers.
There are many creative ways in which some companies have developed this concept. Though the appellations may change the central idea remains the same. Here are a few examples. The Ritz Carlton hotels and resorts defines 12 service values in their Gold Standard a set of pronouncements which encompasses their values and philosophy.
The herb’s auto customer bill of rights includes the promise to do free tire rotation with yearly inspection, free copying service, free lifetime emergency towing and more. They inscribe this nicely and publicly on their website.
Republic west Remodeling Customer’s Bill of rights provides a guide by which customers can set their expectations for any home remodeling project. They present 10 rights which are beautifully published on their website. These include; the right to know before customers agree to any project what the project cost will be upon contract signing, along with a true and accurate understanding of what the project will cost upon its completion.
Another great example is the Neal Tire and auto service bill of rights in which the company commits to be responsive and respectful, to sell only what customer needs, to provide clear explanation of cost before doing any work, to have trained professionals working on the customers’ vehicles, to keep customers updated on the status of their vehicle and to provide clean and comfortable place for the customer to wait.
Consumer Privacy Bill of Rights / Consumer Bill of Rights
In the United states of America in 2012, the Obama administration enacted the consumer privacy bill of rights in view of improving consumer privacy protection. These include the right to exercise control over what personal data companies collect, the right to easily understand an access information about privacy and security practices, the right to expect that companies will collect use and disclose personal data in ways that are consistent, consumers right to responsible handling of their personal data, the right to access and correct personal data, the right to reasonable limits on the personal data that companies collect and retain among others.
Just like in the above intervention by the Obama administration, in 1952 president John F. Kennedy extolled for 4 basic consumer rights in his speech to congress on March 15th; the right to safety, the right to be informed, the right to choose and the right to be heard. These rights also called the consumer bill of rights were latter expanded to 8 rights by the united nations through its guidelines for consumer protection. These additions included the right to satisfaction of basic needs, the right to redress, the right to consumer education and the right to a healthy environment.
The value of a customer service bill of rights.
As we can see in the above examples. Having a bill of rights is an assurance of the quality that would be delivered. It raises the confidence level of the customers in your ability to deliver great service. It is an indication of the quality of the products and services that would be received. Your customer service bill of rights sets the bar for the kind of service you would deliver and permit to differentiate you from competition.
Mbinkar Kpunsa F.
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