Are your clients satisfied with your service?
Randi Busse is the Founder and President of Workforce Development Group, Inc., a training organization that specializes in improving the customer experience. Randi coaches business leaders and employees to think of innovative ways to take care of their customers. The company’s mission is to make the world a better place for customers and employees!
Aside from running Workforce Development Group, Randi is a well-renowned author, media expert, and dynamic public speaker. She has been published in Newsday, the Long Island Business News, and several other publications. She has also appeared on television and radio, most recently on FIOS TV.
“The simple truth is that the more engaged your employees are, the more motivated they will be to deliver an outstanding experience to your customers.”- Randi
Learn more about how Workforce Development Group can help your company cater to your customer's needs by listening to this episode of The Thoughtful Entrepreneur above and don’t forget to subscribe on Apple Podcasts – Stitcher – Spotify –Google Play –Castbox – TuneIn – RSS.
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0:01
Welcome to the thoughtful entrepreneur show, I'm Josh Elledge, founder and CEO of up my influence.com, where we turn entrepreneurs into media celebrities, grow their authority, and help them build partnerships with top influencers. So we believe that every person has a unique message that can positively impact the world, even you stick around to the end of this show, where I'll share info on how you could be our next guest, three times a week, five to 15 minutes each learn from successful business owners and professionals. It's time to get inspired. Let's go to Randi Busse, you are the founder and CEO of Workforce Development Group. Thank you so much for joining us.
0:46
Thank you for having me. I'm excited to talk today.
0:49
So one thing that you do a lot of is you do a lot of workshops. And so I'm really curious how you built up business? How did you get to be such a preeminent workshop speaker first. But also, please share the topic that you normally speak on to i didn't i didn't introduce that. That's
1:12
okay. So my passion, if you will, is on the customer experience. And it's a little bit selfish, actually, because I'm a customer myself. And I want to improve the experience that I receive, as well as the experience that others received from businesses that we want to do business with. So customer service, the as well as the employee experience, because I- I believe, Josh, that if employees are not happy, that's going to have a negative impact on the experience that they're providing to customers.
1:46
Oh, clearly, if you have a if you have a negative culture in your company, and you think that that's only going to stay internal. Yeah, good luck with that, you know, it's like, you know, even like so much as like going into, I'll give you example, like public versus Walmart. Now locally, there's a very, very stark difference between the two places that I shop at, you know, Publix, it just, it feels like employees are completely disempowered. And you just feel it. And as a result, the customer experience isn't as great.
2:16
Sure. And and we actually make our buying decisions based on not just price, as a lot of businesses would like to think we do, but on how we feel when we do business with a company and ultimately the employees that are representing that company.
2:32
Oh my gosh. So now, Randi, how long have you been roughly working in this field? or How many years have you been serving, you know, at the helm of your own company.
2:42
So I started my own business in 2008. So we're in 2019, right now. So I'm on 11 years, which is pretty exciting, especially since I wasn't an accidental entrepreneur. I never, I never said when I was younger, hey, I want to start my own business. But I was working for a large telecom company, in a customer service, you know, managerial role, and really felt like I My hands were tied in in the work that I was able to do, and the help that I was able to provide. So I left the company, and set up my shingle, if you will. And I was I was fortunate that I got my first client within a week of starting my business.
3:31
Yeah, I'd say that's pretty fortunate. How'd you do that?
3:34
Well, you know, before I tell you how I did that, you know, those buttons that they sell at Staples? That, what do they say that was easy. And so I- I wanted to get one of those buttons, because Holy cow, that was so easy. I happen to be in the right place at the right time, and provided the white commentary to a gentleman that was happened to be sitting next to me at a presentation. And I chimed in and made a couple of comments. And afterwards, he said to me, You know, I think you can help me I've got a problem in my business. And so he became my first client. And I'm really excited to say that 11 years later, he's actually still a client. And not not because I wasn't effective at, you know, helping change behavior and, you know, technique within his organization, but because he's grown and added people, and every time, you know, he gets a new client, excuse me, a new employee, he brings me into, to train them and, you know, give them the right mindset that they need to think and act like an owner of the business.
4:47
Yeah, yeah. So um, it now it's wonderful that Randi right out of the gate, you had some success? And sometimes that happens. I would say most of the time it doesn't, is that you know, we decide we want to do something. And then maybe we have this paralysis, like, what where do I get customers? Randi, how do you get customers?
5:06
Yeah, that's a good question. And so a lot of my customers have come because they have seen me speak. I did a lot of speaking, I continue to do. But early on, I was, you know, speaking anywhere that anybody who would ask me, would you like to speak? Yes, I would. And so I developed some expertise in a couple of different industries or verticals, if you will. And that got me invitations to speak at conferences and events that were specific to that industry. And so that was a big help and boon for me, if you will. And I've since expanded to, I don't want to say all industries, because I certainly don't want to be a jack of all trades and Master of None. However, when you think about customer service, every business, no matter what industry you're in, is only successful if they have and can keep customers. And so I have, I started with limousine companies, and I moved into Pest Control companies and oil companies and air conditioning and heating companies. And the thing that all of those industries have in common, Josh, is that they are typically B to C organizations. And they're in a very commodity environment, where, you know, if you're talking about limousines, everybody's got a black shiny car, everybody's going to take me to the airport on time, and everybody's going to cost about the same amount of money. So how do I differentiate myself from you know, the 400 or 4000 other companies that are that do the same thing that I do. And so what I was able to help these organizations do is not make it about price. Because you know, think about it, if you needed to get to the airport, you would call up a limousine company and say, hey, how much is it to go, you know, from here to here, for two people, and they would say, Oh, it's $110, plus tax and gratuity. And so if you made another phone call, and somebody said it was $100, instead of 110, you probably going to call the other company back, because they've only given you the price. And so you don't want it to be about the price. Because you can be one, you can be the lowest cost today. But if another company opens up their business next week, and they undercut you for five or $10, you now lost your edge of being the cheapest. And so what I am, impart to my workshop attendees is how to have a conversation with a customer, not an interrogation, but a conversation, so that you're finding a way to connect with them before you get into the new gritty of how much something costs. Yeah.
8:04
So I mean, if you remove the price barrier, I mean, ultimately, you want to get paid. So I mean, explain to me, I mean, what does the conversation sound like? Or then, you know, the communication? I mean, how does this? What does this sound like? How are you getting paid? Like? How are you eventually going to talk about, you know, where the money comes from? How you gonna, you know, grow your business? Take me on the next step?
8:27
Sure. So the wrong way to do it, is when you answer the phone, and somebody says, How much is it, you give him the price? And you do? And you give them nothing else? The right way to do it, is by the way you answer the telephone. So I've one of the things that I do in my business is I make test calls into companies acting as if I am a prospective customer. So I called one company, and this is how they answered the phone. You're ready
8:56
limousines? And I was like, I think I I have the warm number.
9:03
So that's not the company that I want to do business with. And so what I would recommend is, you know, thank you for calling Randy's limousine service. This is Randy, how can I help you? Yeah. And then when you say Hi, I'm calling because I want to know how much it is to go to the airport will sure I'll be happy to help you with that. Who am I speaking with? And so what I'm doing is I'm giving you an assurance of help. And I'm wanting to connect with you by asking your name. And so that's going to allow me to say okay, Josh, tell me a little bit about the trip that you're looking to make. And let me see, you know, what kind of solution I have for you. So it's about a conversation. What happens a lot of times, in the first scenario where we're just giving the price, you know, we might be saying, you know, what's your name? What's your address? What's the pickup time on? The 17th? Right, and they started Harrogate. And so that you feel very good. And so there's no, you know, people think, well, I don't have a lot of time, or I can't spend time on the phone. And I say, Well, here's the thing, you're not spending time, you're not wasting time, you're investing time, so that the person that you're speaking with feels comfortable with you as a person first. And then they're going to be open to doing business with you, because you've already differentiated yourself by not just giving the price.
10:29
Yeah, you know, and this sounds like common sense, I think, to a lot of us that are pretty business savvy. But, you know, as many service providers as I call and having just hired painters, roofers, contractors. It's amazing. How many of them are obviously not following you, Randi. It's out there. And it's not a high bar, I think what you're talking about, you know, really, but here's the thing, it's like, if you didn't learn it, you didn't learn it in college. And I'll say there's a lot of professionals like it might be a dentist office. And so, you know, a dentist, you know, she may have gone to college and got her degree in dentistry, and now opened up a practice eventually. And they didn't have a class on customer service, I don't think and so that's why I really love what you're doing. And I boy, this time went by so quickly, we only have like about 60 seconds left. What are some things that now I know you've got your website? It's at workdevgroup.com? What are some things that people that you would recommend? Let's say it's a business owner, they've got a very small business, maybe just you know, maybe they've got some contractors that are working with them, maybe one or two employees? What's something maybe they can get started? You have a book, right? I'm just looking for things that someone could get started with and kind of get a kind of a one on one in Randi and what you teach.
11:58
Absolutely. So I do have a book that thanks for asking, it's turning rants into raves, turn your customers on before they turn on you. That book is actually on amazon.com. That book is a great primer for helping employees to be more engaged, and then giving them the skills they need to delight customers.
12:22
Hmm. You know, so I'm on your website right now. And just a little ninja hack here. So if you go to work dev group com, you click on the book, and it says download a sample. So I'm actually going through this, it's a 30 page sample. So thanks so much for putting that out there. It's and it's a I'm going through it right now. It's kind of workbook format. So very cool. I I'm very I love that, like I love giving away stuff. Because then it just shows a lot of trust. In you know, in what you do, that you're willing to give away so much for free.
12:57
Yeah, I'm about I'm about educating, not about selling. If something I says resonates with you, and you think that I can help you, then you know, I'm all for it. But I'm not going to sell you anything. I know that I have a solution. And once you see the problem, which is not always easy to see, you sometimes need to bring somebody else in to show you what's going on in your organization because oftentimes Josh, the leader is part of the problem. The way they're treating their employees could be having a negative impact on how the employees are thinking and acting. So take a look in the mirror.
13:36
Mm hmm. Well, Randi, thank you so much for joining us. Again, I'm Randi, the founder and CEO of work dev group on the web, at work dev group. com. It's Workforce Development Group do workshops for organizations, helping them turn rants into raves. Thank you so much for joining us. Thank you Josh. Appreciate thanks for listening to the thoughtful entrepreneur. If you are a thoughtful entrepreneur or business professional who would like to be a media celebrity and be on our show. Please visit up my influence comm slash guest. And while you're at it, take our free quiz and learn your authority score that's available for you right now at top my influence. com slash quips and please do us a favor. If you liked the guest that was just interviewed. Would you share this episode on social media? Also in your podcast player right now, please give us a thumbs up or a rating and review we promise to read it all and take action. See, we believe that every person has a message that can positively impact the world. Your feedback helps us fulfill our mission to help create more media celebrities. Make sure to hit subscribe, binge listen to our previous episodes, and we'll send you the next episode three times a week. Awesome, radically five to 15 minutes exactly what you need to inspire yourself just a little bit more, learn from others and grow. With that. Thanks for listening and thank you for being a part of the thoughtful entrepreneur revolution.