Delivering service above and beyond expectations requires continuous improvement on behalf of the customer. When employees are your biggest fans, it’s easier than you think. The right improvements come naturally. In this guide, you’ll learn how to address the challenges of a disengaged workforce by baking a long-term, customer-centric company culture into everything you do. From hiring and training to motivating your staff, discover industry-proven steps to build your customer service dream team.

2. How to Hire and Retain Customer
Experience Champions
Delivering service above and beyond expectations requires continuous improvement
on behalf of the customer. When employees are your biggest fans, it’s easier than you
think. The right improvements come naturally. In this guide, you’ll learn how to address
the challenges of a disengaged workforce by baking a long-term, customer-centric
company culture into everything you do. From hiring and training to motivating your
staff, discover industry-proven steps to build your customer service dream team.
Alex Hisaka is a Content Marketer at Desk.com
Follow her on Twitter at @alexhisaka
Table of Contents:
1. Embrace Customer WOW
2. Fill Your Roster With Motivated
Employees
3. They’ve Got the Will, Train the Skill
4. Do Your Team a Favor: Make
Support Easy
5. Teamwork Makes the Dream Work
After reading it, your business should:
• Develop, implement and commit to your
core values.
• Understand the principles of strong
customer support.
• Boost team efficiency with smart
workflows.
• Create opportunities for advancement
and appreciation.
To get the most from this guide, take notes. Think about how you can use the ideas, concepts
and strategies inside to evolve your company culture and make your dream team a reality.

3. Embrace Customer WOW
And news of bad customer service reaches more than
twice as many ears as praise for good service. With
word of mouth spreading like wildfire over social, your
reputation is in customers’ hands.
So how do you ensure customers get the star
treatment when they contact support? Zappos CEO
Tony Hsieh was talking from experience when he said,
“If you get the culture right, other stuff like great
customer service or building a long-term brand will
happen on its own.” When Zappos shifted focus from
selling shoes to pleasing customers, employees
became more engaged and passionate, customers
were happier and sales went through the roof. Other
customer service powerhouses such as Amazon
(Zappos’ owner since 2009), Google and yes,
Desk.com have also found a winning formula in
making company culture and brand two sides of the
same coin.
Awesome
Company Culture
Company Brand
85% of consumers have quit doing business with a company
because of bad customer experience.
Customer WOW is the philosophy at the core of everything we’ve done since our early days as Assistly. Every
day, every employee works to be better than expected. We strive to “wow” our customers through amazing
service while perfecting the experiences they have with us. The basic principles below have contributed to
our success, guiding our teams to be the best at what they do.
“Customer service should be part of everybody’s job, from
the c-suite to engineering, from marketing to finance.
There is no better way to orient your business for success
than connecting to the customer more effectively.”
Desk.com Founder, Alex Bard

4. Embrace Customer WOW
Here at Desk.com, we’ve created
a product and culture that’s
focused on the customer. Our
company follows the philosophy
of Customer WOW, consistently
being better than what you’re
expected to be, is how we
provide the best possible
customer experience. Creating
this experience is at the core of
what we do and since our early
day at Assistly we work every day
to perfect the experience our
customers have with us. We’ve
found some basic principles that
have contributed to our success
and ways to empower our team
to be the best at what they do.
We believe that it’s really
important to come up with a set
of core values that your business
lives and breathes by. Ask yourself,
“are you willing to live by your
core values in both good times
and bad?” If the answer is yes,
then that’s the strongest start
to building and maintaining a
company culture that you and
your employees actually want to
work in. When you hire, train and
motivate your employees based
on your core values, everything
will fall into place on its own.
Volunteering at a
local small business
Our company
values at the
SF office

5. TO WOW, you must:
Empower employees
Each of our team members is hired with the
expectation of working in the best interest
of our customers. Everyone is given the
tools and authority to make decisions.
Create trust
There’s no finish line when it comes to building
trust with employees, customers and partners.
Honesty, transparency and accountability are
the guideposts for every decision and action we
take in delivering quality customer service.
What’s your WOW factor? What core values
does your business live and breathe by? Are
you willing to live them in good times and
bad? If the answer is yes, you have a strong
start to creating a company culture you
and your employees want to work in.
Embrace Customer WOW
Dream big
Unbounded imagination, genuine
passion and the right attitude
will take us to the wonderful
places we want to go. We aspire
to make the impossible possible.

6. Hire Motivated Employees
When you hire, train and motivate
employees based on core values,
everything else falls into place.
Finding competent people with
the right skills isn’t enough. They
need the right attitude, too. It’s
essential and non-negotiable.
Attitude is the the foundation
of good culture and
outstanding customer service,
the driving force behind:
Skills being equal, employees
with the right attitude have
an easier time fitting in, better
job performance and they stick
around longer. To identify strong
candidates and weed out those
looking to collect a paycheck,
ask questions that align with
your company’s core values.
What your employees
say and how they say it.
The service goals your
employees set for
themselves.
How much your
employees are
willing to do for
your customers.
Overall job satisfaction.
Why are you in customer service?
Always ask this one first. Customer service is not
just resolving one issue after another. It’s satisfying
customers’ needs, putting smiles on their faces and
inspiring them to do the same for others. Employees
who excel have a natural desire to help and express
genuine empathy. Bonus points for a sunny disposition
and willingness to go the extra mile.
Are you familiar with what we do?
Ideal candidates walk into interviews with a basic
understanding of your company. Have them list what
they believe to be the value of your product or service.
Fill in any blanks and discuss how you make a difference
in customers’ personal or professional lives.
How would you handle ...?
Personality is part of the hiring game. To see if a
candidate has what it takes, create a custome support
scenario. Don’t be afraid to throw a few curveballs. Is he
or she empathetic? Asking appropriate questions? Being
proactive? Did you feel the issue was resolved? Provide
feedback and give candidates the chance to talk about
what they’d do differently.

7. Hire Motivated Employees
In the end, you’re looking for a good blend of operational and personal
skills. Here’s a simple checklist to have on hand for interviews:
Able to escalate the
issue with style and
diplomacy.
Collaborates with
team members when
challenges arise.
Known issue: Can
identify what’s
wrong and fix it.
Unknown issue:
Has an inquisitive
approach to
researching unknown
issues to resolution.
Picks up emotional
distress signals.
Puts him/herself
in the customer’s
shoes.
Able to quantify
the pain the
customer feels.
Always treats the
customer with
respect.
Empathy Functional Excellence The WOW Factor
Enthusiastic about
a customer-facing
role.
Good team fit.
Exhibits qualities
that align with
core values.
That extra
something
(what makes this
candidate stand
out in the crowd).
Hire hard workers with a positive attitude, passion for customer service and focus on supporting the
customer. Then train new employees on how to live your core values. If your business can do that, you’re
likely to notice a quick return on human capital investment.

8. They’ve Got the Will, Train the Skill
At Desk.com, all employees—
including managers and senior
staff—go through a week-long
boot camp learning how to
use our product and practice
Customer WOW. Everyone
becomes part of the company
culture right from the get-go,
understanding what we do
and how to commit to our core
values. An essential lesson:
Always deliver more than
expected. This philosophy,
inspired by Google Founder
Larry Page, is the key to earning
customer loyalty and referrals.
Consistently being better
than expected is what breeds
customer advocacy and brand
evangelism. That’s why the Desk.
com agents on the Customer
WOW team (our support team)
don’t stop at addressing questions
and concerns. They proactively
reaching out to customers, finding
ways to help them be more
successful. We know we’re doing
the job right when customers
say, “Wow, I didn’t expect that!”
Customer WOW
Bootcamp
Training support agents
“Always
deliver
more than
expected.”
Google Founder, Larry Page

9. They’ve Got the Will, Train the Skill
Be Empathetic
Put yourself in the customers’
shoes, especially in tough
situations. Your empathy will
show and they’ll appreciate it.
Talk Among Yourselves
Accept that you’ll never have
a perfect grasp of every issue
coming into the support center.
Keep up with the big picture
by maintaining open lines of
communication with your team.
Improve as You Go
Seeing the same issues time and
again? Dig into what’s unclear
and update your knowledge
base or FAQs. By clarifying your
messaging, you can reduce
contacts for many repetitive
issues. Be sure to track any drop in
service load and share your results.
Listen to the Customer
There’s nothing like talking to a
support agent who really listens
on all cylinders. Take time to
understand issues and how they
affect the customer’s business.
When people know you value
their needs, they’re more likely
to stay with your brand.
Be Human
Robots are cool, but people
would rarely choose to have a
conversation with one. Show
the customers you aren’t a
machine. At the end of the
day it’s how you make people
feel that matters the most.
Be Honest
Nobody likes being lied to. A
customer can’t expect anything
more than the truth. When you
maintain an open dialogue and
keep your customer informed
at all times, you’ll earn their
commitment to your company.
Your new and long-term agents can stand out by going the extra mile. Here are 10 ways:
Respond Quickly & Accurately
Customers gain confidence when
you respond quickly and solve
their problems for good, and are
more likely to have an ongoing
relationship with your brand.
Always Follow Up
Checking back in with customers
isn’t just good manners. It
gives you another opportunity
to build the relationship.
Relationships over revenue
Focus on the success of your
customer. Understand pain
points and how you can
alleviate them. When you make
customer success your priority,
improving your product, company
and bottom line follow.
Ask Questions
The more you know, the more
likely you are to resolve an issue to
the customer’s satisfaction. Don’t
hesitate to ask more questions to
get all the information you need
to recommend alternate solutions
and advocate for the customer.
“The goal as a
company is to
have customer
service that is
not just the best
but legendary.”
Sam Walton, Founder
of Wal-Mart

10. Have a Solid Game Plan
61%
less likely to
repurchase.
Shore up your defenses by developing a plan to execute hassle-free,
friction-free experiences. What causes friction? Here are eight factors
known to drive customers to competitors:
1. Taking too much time to resolve an issue.
2. Broken promises (you’ve over-promised or under-delivered).
3. Treated rudely or with suspicion.
4. Transferred from agent to agent, having to repeat the issue each time.
5. Having to check several times to see if an issue is resolved.
6. Being left in “support purgatory,” not knowing what, if anything, has
been done to resolve the issue.
7. Pushed to buy something, even before a support issue is been
resolved.
8. Support Center information is unhelpful, incomplete or outdated.
47%
of consumers expect a
response within 24 hours.
22% 19%
of consumers expect a
response immediately.
of consumers expect a
response within an hour.
The Importance of Customer Service
In a recent customer satisfaction survey, ClickFox reported that 47% of consumers expect a response within
24 hours, 22% of consumers expet a response immediately, and 19% of consumers expect a response within
an hour. Keeping customers happy and resolving their problems are of vital importance; money talks, and
customer dissatisfaction will eventually show up in the bottom line.
Forrester Research
Research shows
customers who
feel they work
hard to resolve
their own issues
are

11. Have a Solid Game Plan
Stay on top of your support
Empower your team for success by
encouraging them to track cases religiously
and treat each one as a priority. Assign
every issue a status, level of urgency and
owner.
Know who’s working on what
A shared dashboard encourages accountability
and reduces ambiguity by creating an airtight
system to track cases and keep customer
conversations in context. At a glance, see which
agent is assigned, which cases are still open
or pending, and which have been resolved.
Today’s customers expects you to value them for more than their money. The easier you
make issue resolution, the more loyal they’ll be to your business.
Easy collaboration with your team
If you don’t have the answer, quickly transfer
the customer to someone who does. When you
involve your entire team in customer support,
you improve the speed and quality of responses.

12. Have a Solid Game Plan
Operate as a cohesive team
Your system should aim to assign cases based
on priority, agent availability and expertise. A
recent survey from American Express found
that three in five Americans would try a new
company to get a better service experience. To
keep them with you, make sure the first person
a customer talks to is the most qualified to
address the issue at hand.
Know about your customers
Reduce support time by building a profile for
each customer, including information about any
prior interactions. Agents can use it as a cheat
sheet if the customer reaches out, providing
immediate attention to the issue, and addressing
it in a more efficient and personal way.
Organize your customer conversations
How can you label a case that’s both urgent
and from a VIP customer? Create work
“queues” or folders to help you organize
your cases into categories. Add notes for
your team like “more info” or “call back”

13. Teamwork Makes the Dream Work
Keep your best talent by moving beyond basic checklists and scripts. Here’s how:
Create opportunities
Nobody wants to feel stuck in a dead-end job. Job
progression keeps agents inspired and motivated,
so provide plenty of opportunities for professional
growth and promotion. If caseloads allow, consider
loaning agents with the interest and aptitude to
other departments. It helps keep them engaged
while growing their skills and value to the company.
Take suggestions
It’s up to every employee, not a few people in
management, to build and strengthen company
culture. Ask for suggestions and keep your team
involved in helping the business grow and thrive.
Provide positive feedback
Employ­ees who receive frequent feed­back from
management feel they have more con­trol over their work,
which increases job sat­is­fac­tion. Definitely one of the
easiest and quickest ways to boost engagement and
performance.

14. Teamwork Makes the Dream Work
Embrace “Whole Company Support”
Stop thinking of customer support as a crew of
responsive hole patchers who deal with problems
as they arise. At Desk.com, everyone has an
opportunity to fill a customer support role. It creates
an incredible opportunity to get to know our
customers on an intimate level, gaining insight into
their needs and their relationship with the product.
Recognize individual talents
Give rewards tied to specific actions so
employees know you sincerely appreciate
their efforts. Encourage individuals to
use their talents for team success.
Celebrate success
The level of service you give customers
is fundamentally rooted in your
staff. When employees are happy
and care about doing their jobs, real
WOW happens. There are dozens of
ways — big and small — to celebrate
personal and team achievements, from
parties to thank-you gifts to hoopla
in company-wide meetings. Do what
feels sincere and right for your team.

15. Conclusion
So how can you take these tips outlined above and make them work for you? The evolution towards
becoming a customer-centric company is both complex and long. But your company should not be
discouraged. Small changes in policies and processes can help drive transformational change in both thinking
and behavior. All it takes is one step, one change, one right hire, one system, one policy at a time and a
complete focus on your customers and their satisfaction. An empowered customer support team, where
employees are armed with responsibility and feel that they are making a contribution to the company’s
success, soon translates into customer loyalty.
Desk.com has an unlimited amount of great resources ranging from more information about our product
to thought leadership content. Here are some suggestions:
• The Desk.com Library
• Desk.com’s Blog