Two  of the questions we asked ourselves as we planned the 100 SPARKS project were:

1. "Won't it be hard to come up with 100 sparks over 100 days?"

2. "How do we make sure we're coming up with sparks that really matter?"

The answer to both questions is "structure."

We've been sharing our thoughts on customer service for the last few years through a workshop we call 5 Secrets of Super Service. The workshop is based on 5 service principles that are easy to understand, but not always so easy to execute with consistency.

These principles are summed up in a simple acronym:

Shift
Engage
Respond
Validate
Elevate

As we progress through the 100 SPARKS project, we'll share what each of the words in the acronym means to customer service. More importantly, we will be using the SERVE model as our structure for 100 SPARKS. Every two weeks, we'll use the next concept in the acronym as the basis for the next round of customer service sparks. By changing focus every few weeks, we'll be able to maintain our initial level of excitement, enthusiasm, and effectiveness throughout the entire 100 days.


So What Do We Mean By Shift?

Shifting is making the transition from fulfilling our own wants, desires, and needs to giving our full attention to the wants, desires, and needs of our customers. This is easier said than done because we are basically programmed from birth to make life easier for ourselves. If we truly want to create amazing customer service, we have to think about, plan, and act on the things that make our customer's life easier, not our own.

How many companies have products, processes, policies, and procedures that are very convenient and easy for the company, but actually make it harder for the customer to interact, purchase, communicate, or enjoy their experience with the company? The examples are literally too numerous to mention (although, automated phone systems quickly come to mind). Even as hard as we work to make this shift at sparkspace, we are still guilty of creating situations that work well for us internally, but are clearly not in our customer's best interest.

These are the types of situations we're keeping our eyes and ears open for this week.

By the way, thanks for following along on our progress. We would love for you to participate in 100 SPARKS. If you have any customer service stories to share from your own experience, we'd love to hear them. We also encourage you to leave a comment or story on any post at any time.