It's What's Inside That Counts, So Put Your People First

By Dan Moross | Date Published: February 07, 2017 - Last Updated August 22, 2018 | Comments

When you ask someone their reasons for choosing one brand over another, how many times have you heard, “Because their customer service was fantastic”? People really value great customer care, and getting it right can be what sets you apart from your competitors.

Legendary and remarkable service can lead not only to repeat business, but life-long advocates for your brand – and you should never underestimate the power of word of mouth!

If you get the people side right, then you’re onto a good thing. All the other elements only work if you have good people who are excited and passionate about your brand. At MOO, we're always very selective in hiring people who align with our brand and values.

Moo.com customer service team

Previous experience in customer service isn't always the most important thing - finding people who mirror your customer base (somewhat) and are empathetic "people persons" is invaluable in my experience. Once you've got the right people on board, keeping them happy and engaged is paramount.

Much like the saying "happy wife, happy life", I think if your customer service team is happy it usually means the customers are, too. Here are a few inside secrets about how we keep our agents feeling all warm and fuzzy inside, helping us to win a host of contact center and customer experience awards in 2016.

Spend time getting induction and onboarding right

Hire slow and fire fast. Having “bums on seats” might meet your needs today, but might cause a headache in the future. Our selection process is pretty rigorous and includes typing tests, shadowing agents and meeting culture leaders from the wider company.

Career progression and development is key

We provide continuous coaching and training for agents, helping them to identify the necessary skills and behaviors for future opportunities. We’re proud to say all senior agents, leads and supervisors in our team started as agents at MOO. We’ve also successfully placed some customer disciples in marketing, sales, desktop support and creative.

Use technology to reduce agent effort

In our ticketing system, we have a feedback button for agents to notify our CS Technical Lead of any sticking points with our call center technology. We work tirelessly to improve the agent experience by removing cumbersome process and user interfaces. Small changes can lead to marginal gains, making it easier for your team to wow customers (saving you money, too).

Empower your team and listen to their ideas/feedback

Giving agents an opportunity to share feedback on their manager, work environment and the process they follow is key, but it means little if you don’t take action. Our managers have 2 quarterly objectives tied to the feedback we receive via surveys and 1-2-1s.

Keep them fed and watered

Free fruit, cereal, toast, soft drinks and an endless supply of ice cream help our agents through the day. Also, every Friday, the entire company gets together for a catered lunch - from burgers to pizza to katsu curry - it's on the house. To help burn off some of that MOO weight we also have table tennis, pool, foosball and run the odd yoga class, too.

Foster agent creativity

Our agents worked with our in-house creative team to make a fun Instagram video. We run after work creative sessions, too, like bookbinding, knitting or calligraphy. Allowing people to get involved in activities outside of talking with customers keeps their minds fresh.

Reward them for going the extra mile

MOO award-winning customer service team

We award spot prizes for shout-outs on social medal, Trustpilot or our NPS survey. We also recognize those who are highly productive and ace quality reviews. Our monthly rewards range from $60 vouchers to simply spinning our wheel of wow.

Celebrate your success and hard-work

Even for the smallest victories, we try to treat our team at every turn - from lavish drinks and parties after every site-wide sale, to baby-showers. We celebrate Customer Service Week every year - making a big point across the business to champion and show appreciation for the team.

Fancy dress, duvet days and ad-hoc games like the MOOlympics help to keep spirits high.

Want more ideas? If you’re attending Contact Center Expo & Conference in May, MOO will be sharing best practices on Tuesday, May 23rd, in a session titled “Building an Award Winning Customer Experience”.

Dan Moross is Director of Customer Experience at moo.com, an online print provider, making it simple for companies of all sizes to create beautiful, expertly crafted business stationery and promotional materials that’ll help start conversations, open doors and strengthen relationships. Since joining MOO as their first customer service agent, Dan has built a highly engaged team of over 70 support specialists across two locations (London and Rhode Island, USA).

Dan's principal responsibility is to ensure customers are delighted with their entire MOO experience - from creating their personalized products online through to the final package they receive. Armed with the MOO Promise, which is aligned with the company's overarching brand values, it's clear that MOO understands how important it is to have a customer focused team that sits at the heart of the company, committed to helping customers along their journey.

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