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CAPITAL IDEAS capi ta l id e ase d m o n to n .c o m
P R O J E C T L E A D E R : K A R E N U N L A N D , 7 8 0 - 4 2 9 - 5 5 3 0 ; h e l l o @c a p i t a l i d e a s e d m o n t o n . c o m
COMMUNITY QUESTION:
UPCOMING:
What’s your biggest customer service challenge? Entrepreneurs share what they’ve learned about serving customers well
Business Basics for Innovators
SEPT
19-20
Workshops to help entrepreneurs identify areas that need focus and create action plans Where: TEC Edmonton (4th floor, 10230 Jasper Ave.) When: 9 a.m. Friday to 4 p.m. Saturday Admission: $500. Details at tecedmonton.com
SEPT
Subculture
SEPT
NEBA Launch
22
30
A new event series held in conjunction with Mobile Monday Edmonton and Factori Where: El Cortez Cantina (8230 Gateway Blvd.) When: 5 p.m. to late Admission: $35 to $50. Details at subculture.factori.com/edmonton
The official introduction of the North Edmonton Business Association, including a business mixer and tradeshow. Where: One 31 Restaurant, Century Casino & Hotel (13103 Fort Rd.) When: 4:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. Admission: Free. Details at neba.ca
Have an event that Capital Ideas should know about? Contact us at hello@capitalideasedmonton.com
PHOTO BY SAM BROOKS/CAPITAL IDEAS
Chelsey Smith, marketing and communications director at Benefit Strategies Inc. (benefitstrategiesinc.ca), shared her biggest customer service challenges at Capital Ideas’ Earned Media Workshop, which kicked off E-Town on Sept. 11. “The biggest challenge is keeping lines of communication open with companies — we rely on working hand-in-hand with human resources. It is often frustrating for employees to try to communicate with designated toll-free lines, or troubleshoot independently. We can alleviate that frustration, and provide a transparent, and timely response.”
More Answers From E-Town “Identifying the key decision makers that will say yes to your product or service; that’s a challenge for all entrepreneurs. You need to find the right people in order to make a sale.” — Usukuma Ekuere, vice-president of global operations at Alpha Global Experts — alphaglobalexperts.com “Trying to serve our diverse population with limited resources.” — Frances Kilgour, special projects manager at Alberta Women Entrepreneurs — awebusiness.com
“When an organization asks us to hold several dates for a seminar or event, then fails to get back to us in a timely matter. This results in having second and third holds for the same date, which turns into a juggling act when another client asks for the same time frame.” — Joanne Blake, president and owner of Style For Success — styleforsuccess.com “A challenge that we’ve addressed is managing our growth rate, which is a good problem to have. We’ve addressed that by bringing on some tremendous talent onto our team that have complementing attributes. We want to ensure that we provide followup service to the clients of our team.” — Desmond Chow, senior financial adviser of ATB Securities Inc. — is.atb.com/poitraschow “When it comes to customer service in a small business, being all things to all people has to be our biggest challenge. In small corporations, often times the same person functions as tech support, design, quality control, accounting, finance and even the customer service department. As small business owners, we often take tremendous pride in every aspect of our business … and focusing on solving a customer complaint, rather than defending our design decisions or quality control, can often be a major customer service challenge.” — Anuj Gupta, president of Anu Homes — anuhomes.ca “My biggest challenge is to see my potential customers as potential paying clients rather than seeing them as someone I could help out of the kindness of my heart without any money exchange.” — Rayne Johnson, owner of Tear Cups — tearcups.com
“Getting your customers to be honest, even if there are customer service issues. Sometimes if a customer has an issue, they don’t want to talk about it because it’s awkward or they don’t feel comfortable, but if they’re honest and open, we can fix the problem.” — Ian MacGillivray, vice-president of business development at Glacier Media Inc. — glaciermedia.ca “Really understanding your customer’s business so you can meet their expectations and provide them with customer satisfaction.” — Roberta MacGillivray, president of The Filter Shop — thefiltershop.com
“I would say the biggest challenge is satisfying every client’s needs in a timely fashion, while still making them feel like they are your only, and most important, client.” — Teresa Kiyawasew, owner of Kiy HR Solutions — kiyhr.ca “The No. 1 challenge is to stay connected without being in the customer’s face. How much is too much? The second challenge is understanding cultural differences. Different cultures mean different customs and different expectations.” — Mariana Konsolos, owner of Princess Florence Handbags & More — princessflorence.ca “Our best learning experience was from a customer who kept draining our team with new requirements and a constantly changing scope. While the customer provided us with great revenue and was willing to pay for the changes, the drain on the team was just too much. We had to fire the customer so that we wouldn’t lose our team. It was a hard decision to make, but one of the best ones we’ve ever made. Don’t be afraid to fire a bad customer.” — Ashif Mawji, CEO of NPO Zero — npozero.com “The biggest service challenge is consistency. Not just execution, but hiring, training, understanding and [managing] expectations — the source from which customer service begins. The problem is that everyone has a different perception of what service excellence is, so it all starts with your team. Look for excellent service consistency within the people you hire and the people you trust with your business.” — Darryl Moore, vice-president of marketing and communications at Executrade — executrade.com
“The biggest challenge is dealing with the myth that the customer is always right. We are dealing with human beings and, in this day and age of entitlement, there are many customers who disappoint you, who lie to you, who let you down, who don’t pay you, etc. And that is not right. Entrepreneurs (ourselves included) make every effort to attract and work with ideal clients, but that’s not always the reality.” — Pat Mussieux — founder of Wealthy Women Leaders — wealthywomenleaders.com “When my calendar is fully booked for a given week, and a client makes a request for immediate service that will consume a large part of the week’s available hours. The challenge is how to provide customer service without major impact to schedule, health, staffing or extra costs.” — Elaine Parker, CEO of Analysis360 — analysis360.ca These answers were in response to a question posed by Capital Ideas member Tema Frank of Frank Online Marketing (frankonlinemarketing.com). Visit capitalideasedmonton.com/ask to pose your own business-related questions.
CAPITAL QUESTION: What should you know before entering into business with family? In keeping with today’s Capital Ideas panel — “Family Matters: How to run a business with loved ones — Wellington Holbrook, executive vice-president of ATB Business, is asking you to weigh in on the following: What should you know before entering into business with family? You can answer the question in two ways: • Open today’s Capital Ideas email if you’re a member, or • Visit capitalideasedmonton.com We’ll publish the best answers, along with your business name and website address, on Sept. 24.
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