"WACTEO” Works for Family Members as Well as Customers

by Nancy Friedman, Founder, Chairman, Speaker, Telephone Doctor Customer Service Training.

High on the list of every franchise certainly is customer service. That’s a given. And rightly so. We know a few things that routinely get quoted:

� “More business is lost due to poor service and poor treatment than poor product.” � “We will pay more for better service.”

The slogans go on and on and on. Sadly, so many don’t follow the plan. I believe the saying goes, “it gets lost in translation. ” This is especially true in family-owned businesses. My husband and I have had fi ve startups. We have always had family members as staff. Mother, father, son, daughter at the helm. It has worked for us for as many years as we’ve been doing it. And that’s a LOT of years.

How did we do it? Mostly with WACTEO.

A while back…we created the word WACTEO. (Pronounced WOK TAY O). It’s the fi rst letter of each word: We Are Customers To Each Other. W A C T E O

Once you agree that WACTEO is worth it, it becomes easier to work together. So many forget – We ARE customers to each other. Departments depend on departments. Timing is crucial. To lose a good team member because they weren’t treated right can be devastating.

So how do you use the idea of WACTEO?

� Know your organization’s mission and your role in that mission. Your mission statement should be POSTED ON THE FRONT WALL in your office for all to see. And in various other places as well. You probably spent a lot of time creating a mission statement. BE PROUD of IT. Show it off!

� Internal service is everyone’s responsibility. There is no “that’s not my job” statement. Nope. Not allowed.

� Respect and embrace differences. While that is often a bit more diffi cult in some situations, it can be done. And it must be done to have a cohesive environment with family members. � Understand the importance every employee should place on delivering excellent internal customer service.

� Have an understanding of the way diversity in the workforce plays an important role in fulfi lling the mission of your organization.

� Recognize the personal space of others. That not only means don’t be an inch away from me when we talk, it also means – if you’re sharing offi ce space, talk about what bothers each of you. How can it work out effectively?

� Work to resolve conflict with others. Leaving a disagreement or hurt words spoken without fixing it, with or without a mediator, can lead to detrimental outcomes. Be conscious of how you can fix things with others. You spend more time with others than we do at home. And especially if you’re working with family at home and live at home. That’s ever MORE time together. We need to work on that.

Recognize and appreciate family members and all team members. There is often a tendency to NOT put the crown on a family member for fear of nepotism. If you can recognize the family member and show appreciation to them; verbally, or in a written note; it will speak volumes and work so well. So much time and money are spent on the external customer – it appears that the Internal and/or family member tends to get lost in the shuffl e. It would be a double standard to be committed to great external customer service and not have the same commitment to internal customer service – family or no family.

Nancy Friedman is a popular speaker in the FRANCHISE family industry and a highly respected customer service expert. Email: Nancyf@telephonedoctor.com. During COVID, call her cell at 314-276-1012 or offi ce: 314-291-1012 (central time) and visit www.nancyfriedman.com. NEED A COMPANY ZOOM MEETING? Or a 30-minute RX Shot in the Arm for your team? We’d love to share our tips, ideas, skills and tech- niques with you and your team.