Posts Tagged ‘customer service’
Thursday, August 19th, 2010
After a technical support call is received and resolved by our Product and Technical Support Services Team, we send a survey to the customers requesting they rate the quality of the service they received on a scale of 1 to 5, with 5 being Excellent. This is done with every support call logged so that we can continually enhance our internal processes and offer the highest levels of customer service.
We’re happy to share that this past July, 98 percent of customers surveyed gave our support technicians a ranking of 5 when asked about their technical knowledge and helpfulness.
You see, here’s where we do things differently. Our Product and Technical Support Services Team is comprised of technical staff, trainers and data customization specialists. That means many of our customers have the added value of working with the same ReServe team members from the time of initial installation. Certain staff members specialize in specific software modules, and the entire Product and Technical Support Services Team has a keen understanding of the hospitality industry. In addition, through close interaction and ongoing partnership, team members become knowledgeable of the specific operational requirements of each individual customer. What results is a level of service that exceeds industry standards and provides our customers with a unique support experience that keeps them productive, efficient and profitable.
And our customers agree. Here are a couple of quotes from those surveyed in July.
“Always a pleasure working with representatives from Reserve. EXTREMELY helpful and kind (patient!). Thank you for the on-the -spot assistance to my impromptu phone call. You made my day easier.”
“ReServe Representatives have consistently been helpful EVERY time that I have called. I have always received an immediate response as well as a solution.”
Thank you to everyone who participates in our support surveys! As always, it’s a pleasure serving you!
Friday, March 19th, 2010
This month, we’re excited to launch ReServe University. We’ve been working on this feature for awhile and it’s finally ready to share with our customers. ReServe University is a new tool for support subscribers that gives them access to all of the training and support services we offer, including a Training Library, Classroom, Help Desk and Support Resources area.
From day one, we’ve wanted our customers to get the most out of their software. Now, with ReServe University, our customers can easily take advantage of our comprehensive training offering. Everyone from hosts to catering sales managers, users in all areas of operations, can get advanced training for each of our software modules, including specific product features.
From downloadable documents and presentations to recorded webinars and interactive training sessions, our users will haveeverything they need; in addition to the one-on-one training and support we’ve always provided, to unlock the full potential of their ReServe Interactive experience.
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Category Corporate News, General, Product Support and Training, customer service | Tags: Tags: customer service, Help Desk, product support, ReServe Interactive, ReServe University, support, support services, Training Library,
Wednesday, March 3rd, 2010
We challenge ourselves continually to improve our internal processes so that we can enhance our customer service and support offering. One of our processes includes tracking our response time for support cases that are submitted to our Product and Technical Support Services Team. In January and February of this year, we opened approximately 1,000 support cases and more than 99 percent of those calls were for product configuration and implementation questions, new feature requests, and training and product upgrade queries. From the time the case was submitted, whether by voicemail, e-mail or via the web, the customer was contacted within 3 hours and most cases were resolved or closed within an hour. In addition, we’ve received 1,184 direct calls to our live Call Center. We think it’s important that our customers be able to talk with an actual person, rather than an automated system. Our 2010 statistics show those Call Center calls were answered, on average, in just under a minute, with 83 percent answered within 30 seconds.
We follow up on each closed support case with a survey sent directly to the customer, asking each customer to rank us on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being Excellent. Since the beginning of the year, 97 percent of our customers have given us a rating of 5 in regards to our response time. Ninety-seven percent of respondents gave our support technicians a ranking of 5 when it comes to technical knowledge and helpfulness.
In addition to ranking our service, many of our customers leave us messages or supporting comments that help us in evaluating our processes. Some of our customers just like to share how they feel about us. Holly Young, Event Sales Manager at Butte Creek Country Club, said, “Thank you! It’s especially nice to call the help desk and get a live person without having to wait or press a bunch of buttons on the phone!”
Thank you, Holly! It’s a pleasure serving you and all of our customers.
Wednesday, January 13th, 2010
I Googled the word ‘partnership’ and found this definition: ‘a relationship between individuals or groups that is characterized by mutual cooperation and responsibility, as for the achievement of a specified goal’.
I love this definition. It says what we feel about our customers and our technology associates.
We’ve been committed, from day one, to being more than a vendor/supplier to a group of nameless, faceless individuals. We work hand-in-hand with our customers to make sure they have the right solutions they need and get the results they expect. We are intimately aware of our customers’ daily operations, ensuring that the product we provide is more than just a disk they install on their hard drive.
The key to this commitment is partnership. We need to work together with our customers to further develop our software in such a way that it continues to meet their changing needs. Partnership helps us to achieve this goal.
Two-way communication is an important part of the partnership. Not only do we need to hear from our customers, but we need to listen to their input. We need to share with our customers and keep them aware of our plans as we move forward. This mutual sharing of information makes all the difference.
When we choose to work with a technology partner, like Meeting Matrix or Club Soft, we keep the same ideas in mind – communication, openness to share and a willingness to listen. We want our technology associates to share similar philosophies and business practices so that the products and services we provide are consistent on all levels.
We believe in partnership. It impacts how we conduct business and how our long-term relationships are established.
Thursday, December 10th, 2009
The headlines are as diverse as snowflakes – “restaurants are struggling”, “restaurant business is on the upswing”, “private dining business at all time low”, “private dining offers new opportunities this season”. Regardless of the range of reports, one thing is true – people look forward to the fun and festivities of the holidays.
Across the country, events have been planned and private dining and banquet rooms have been booked. Are you ready? From holiday parties to corporate luncheons to celebratory dinners, holiday events present a wonderful opportunity to let your business offering shine. With a focus on guest accommodation and superior customer service, holiday-goers can easily become long-term, loyal customers.
Begin with a plan to impress. Use the tools at your disposal to ensure the seamless execution of your customers’ events. From the technology you use to manage those events to the selection of table linens your guests can choose from, go above and beyond to cross every ‘I’ and dot every ‘T’. Shower your guests with extra attention by dedicating staff who will focus on managing your holiday event schedule. Plan carefully and you won’t run the risk of over- or under-staffing your event space or dining room.
Now is a great time to flex your consulting muscles by assisting your customers in executing a memorable holiday event that won’t break the bank. Many venues are offering reservations before and after peak hours to accommodate customers working with tighter budgets. Some have broadened or revised their party menus to include a range of items at various price points. Think outside the box to generate ideas that will impress your customers without taking away from your bottom line.
If you’re booked through the season and everything is set to go, enjoy this time of celebration and may all of your wishes for a profitable holiday season come true.
Thursday, December 3rd, 2009
In any business, a good first impression is critical to growth. You want to keep customers coming back so you can build a repeat customer base and generate recurring revenue. But what about second, third and fourth impressions? What about building a long-term relationship with loyalty built into the equation?
Does your restaurant offer a meal or an experience? Are your customers treated as if their mere presence is an event worth celebrating? What do you really know about your customers, besides their name? After their first visit, have you gathered enough information to make their next visit something special?
Have you asked yourselves these questions?
- Does my customer request the same table for every visit?
- Does my customer request the same reservation time on the same day of every week?
- Do they always order a specific entrée or bottle of wine?
- Does my customer routinely request the same server?
- Does my customer celebrate special events like birthdays and anniversaries at my establishment? What special requests are made for those events?
We know that excellent customer service is the cornerstone for the success of many of our customers. In addition to the standards they have set for themselves, they utilize the features of our software to gather the right guest information at each visit. Then they use that data to provide the level of service that only they can – the service they’re customers have come to expect.
Each guest visit is an opportunity to make another good impression, and while it may be the second, third or tenth impression, it’s just as important and can have just as much, if not more, impact as the first.
Monday, November 23rd, 2009
Since 1996, our customer service strategy has involved listening to our customers’ needs and desires to develop a software product that meets their short and long-term business goals.
As software developers, we could lock ourselves into our offices and focus on developing technologies with all of the ‘techie’ bells and whistles that we deem to be important or seem just plain fun to include. However, that would be a disservice to our customers. They have technology requirements that are specific to their roles, venues, markets and business processes. If we fail to acknowledge those needs and only build the software we want to build, then we fail our customers on many levels.
To ensure we are developing a useful software product, we combine our expertise with the customer input we continuously gather regarding all areas of our customers’ business. Through user groups, ongoing surveys, one-on-one conferences, training sessions and online contributions, we evaluate our customers’ needs and requests to enhance the software, and then incorporate that input to create new releases throughout year.
After listening to our customers for 13 years, we found early on that they needed a tool that was easy to implement and integrate into their existing processes and systems, easy for all levels of staff to train on, and easy to use. They wanted to be up and running as quickly as possible with little time taken away from their core business activities. In addition, they didn’t want to have to navigate through multiple screens and databases for the information they needed at a moment’s notice. They wanted to focus on their customers, not be focused on a computer screen trying to figure out how to locate customer data. They also wanted comprehensive reporting tools that gave them information with the click of a button rather than spending hours trying to figure out how to gather that data and pull it together into a digestible format.
Finally, users have told us over and over again that they want tools that improve, rather than detract from, their bottom line. They don’t want to invest in additional hardware, special services or pay expensive transaction fees. They want something they can easily access via the web or have installed directly onto hardware they already own.
Their detailed input has allowed us to create the software platform we have available today. But reaching that goal hasn’t stopped us from continuing to listen to our customers’ needs and develop our product accordingly. We understand that in a competitive marketplace our customers’ business needs are constantly changing. We’re committed to providing a tool that is constantly evolving to meet those ever-changing market demands to help ensure their business success.
Winston Churchill said “If we are together nothing is impossible. If we are divided all will fail.” Yes, we are a software provider, but more importantly, we are a partner and our customers’ success is paramount to our own.
Tuesday, September 29th, 2009
We have a long list of restaurant customers who offer private dining space to their patrons. These restaurants have found a way to take full advantage of the unique opportunity private dining brings to expand their customer base and boost their bottom line.
How do they do it? In addition to automating their processes and centralizing their customer and booking information with our software, they’ve mastered the art of exceptional customer service. While our products do things like help them manage their group reservations and repeat customers; control their seating inventory; or coordinate and manage labor resources, these restaurants have carefully selected customer-oriented employees that know exactly how to create unique dining experiences that include the perfect combination of service and personal attention.
While we provide an efficient way for them to manage operations, gather valuable customer data and market to their customer base, these restaurateurs have figured out how to combine the comprehensive functionality of our software with their superior customer service offering to build a profitable and growing private dining business.
