Iain Banks CEO blog

Next week is National Customer Service Week.

You may be surprised to know that as an event, National Customer Service Week is almost 40 years old now, with the U.S. Congress passing a resolution in 1984, that the first full week of October should be dedicated to recognising and celebrating the importance of customer service and the people who work in customer service roles.

Now a global event, this year’s theme is “Team Service”. That’s a subject I could spend many hours discussing in the context of Ventrica. I am reminded that no matter what clients our frontline brand ambassadors are partnered with, what their job titles are, or how even they serve customers (e.g., via phone, chat, text, or email) everyone is on the same team. Our team. The Ventrica family.

You may not be familiar with the term ‘brand ambassador”. We use the phrase at Ventrica because it accurately reflects the role our team members play when representing their clients. They are the face, voice, and words of the client. They are truly the heart of their customer brand and Ventricans are highly trained to ensure they get that brand’s tone of voice right.

I genuinely think it is right to celebrate the dedication and hard work of all customer service professionals, wherever they are and in whatever role they play. At this time of the year especially, as we move into peak trading (known as the Golden Quarter by the retail trade) the volume of activity ramps up through Christmas and the New Year.

Our partner Zendesk wrote an excellent blog about the value of Customer Service Week, why customer service matters, and that it is worth an investment. Excellent customer service is a crucial competitive differentiator, even over price, and a key component of customer loyalty.

But happy customers won’t happen without happy employees. Unhappy staff can lead to poor job performance and a high team turnover rate—and customers can tell when someone is struggling or unhappy. EX does affect CX, as our whitepaper outlines.

So today I pay tribute to all my colleagues here at Ventrica and thank them for their enthusiasm, skill, dedication, and willingness to go above and beyond for our clients.

Happy National Customer Service Week.