Margie Dana

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Signs of Great Customer Service

Bunny. Karen. Fifi. Katherine. No, these aren't members of a girl's band. They are the names of great customer service reps from my own career as a print buyer. I mostly dealt with the service reps - not the sales reps. On more than one occasion, they were life savers. Looking back, I have no idea what projects we worked on together, but I sure as heck remember the CSRs.

Top-notch customer service can make all the difference to a print buyer. Since most printers today can print well enough, the difference between two print providers can rest in their customer service. While customers may select a printer based on such criteria as price and turn times, they'll stick with a printer for another reason: service.

The best printing CSRs have exceptional skills. Here are just a few:

Technical Knowledge
CSRs have to know printing. Every print job comprises a mountain of details. From paper to inks to folds to mailing requirements, each job is a custom job. What the print customer doesn’t know about print manufacturing, the best customer service rep should. Through adroit questioning, the CSR will help a client prepare a job to be printed so there are no problems on press.

Most people haven't a clue about the critical aspects of getting anything printed well. This puts the onus on the printers to make sure their sales staff as well as their customer service staff has thorough technical knowledge. Smart printers invest in their CSRs through intensive training. Although a salesperson makes the initial sale, it’s often the CSR who deals with customers during the production and delivery cycles. A CSR's familiarity with printing processes, scheduling guidelines, and good file preparation is critical.

Client Familiarity
Print company CSRs should be fast learners. The best ones familiarize themselves with top customers' industries, so that they can ask relevant questions about products that are unique to a particular industry. For example, CSRs in a financial printing firm are well versed on financial products like shareholder reports, prospectuses, and proxies. This common language serves their customers well.

Detail Oriented
Could any manufacturing industry be more detail heavy than printing? Great CSRs remember details from a customer’s entire print-job history. They remember every customer's preferences. Their ability to recall details of these preferences is remarkable. They become an extension of the customer's staff. The end result is confidence and comfort - on the customer's part - in your printing company.

Flawless Follow-Through
The best CSRs are always on top of your job, whether you have one job or 10 jobs on press. They call back as promised with updates. They keep customers informed, even if the news isn't good. In fact, customers are more apt to forgive delays, problems, and printing mistakes when their service rep is forthright about the problem, quick to respond, and determined to help solve whatever problem crops up.

Seeing Around Corners
Printing a job is doesn’t end when it's shipped. Finishing and delivery details can be complex. Whether a job goes to a finisher's, a bindery, a mailing or fulfillment house, or to the US postal service, the post-printing details must be coordinated. Clients often fail to think through all of the final production steps, and the best CSRs ask the right questions and ensure that the materials get where they need to be.

Bona Fide Professionalism
The printing industry depends on well-trained CSRs, who are in close contact with customers and who represent the company in a very visible role. They’re on the front lines, juggling multiple jobs for multiple customers.

A great customer service rep is more than a polite receptionist. Admit it: you can look at a dozen printed pieces from a dozen different printers and not know who printed what. But a customer never forgets who helped them produce tough jobs, or who prevented mistakes by asking questions and making suggestions. Oftentimes, it will be a CSR.

Hats off to the CSRs!

©2007 Margie Dana. All rights reserved. You're free to forward this email to friends and colleagues: please do! However, no part of this column may be reprinted without permission from the author.

Comments? Do YOU have a CSR you'd like to CROW about? Talk to me at

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