An article taken from the website managesmarter http://www.managesmarter.com/
By Scott Hornstein, May 2007

If anyone ever doubted that a customer service crisis can suck the life out of your brand in a heartbeat, examine the Presidents Day Jet Blue fiasco. Hundreds of customers were forgotten on the tarmac. Millions clamor for Jet Blue's contrition. Consumer groups, attorneys, representatives and senators all joined the fray. Is it real or is it the media? It doesn't matter. Perception is reality. Perception can take a big bite out of your bottom line.

We can learn three things from the Jet Blue experience:

1. Companies are on a short leash. Customers measure our performance but by their interaction with us. One flub can flush away years of good will.
2. Bad news travels exceedingly fast. Good news does not make good copy. Bad stuff is mesmerizing.
3. Don't let it be you.

For your consideration, here are three critical rules for avoiding a customer service meltdown:

• Rule No. 1: Customer service must be introduced and managed as a strategic product. It's got to become a key tenet of the mission and the corporate culture. That means commitment—holding people's feet to the fire regarding specific measures associated with satisfaction, retention and lifetime value.

  Customer service is a people issue, not a technology issue. We've got all the technology we need. We need strategy and accountability.

  According to Jonathan Cohen, president of The Weiser Group, a New York–based PR agency specializing in crisis communications, "A customer service crisis is among the most common, but it's the most avoidable kind [of crisis]. The key is to test your systems regularly to make sure they work. That includes making sure your communications to customers and the personnel that interact with them are clear and effective."

• Rule #2: Management must internalize the customer experience as a gateway to success. They must see it and appreciate it through the individual customer's eyes. One of the most effective processes is called "rep for a day." This means that everyone in the corporation from the CEO on down sits and takes customer service calls for one day. It's amazing how different the world looks when you're talking to a customer with a problem to solve.
• Rule #3: Happier customers stay longer and buy more. It seems ridiculously simple, but often the simplest things are the hardest to achieve. Corporations must learn to value, nurture and invest in customer satisfaction.

The devil is in the messy details of day-to-day customer service, which, in industry's short-term focus, has been viewed as a cost and not a priority. But that's the new playing field, and it's where our long-term profitability will be won or lost.

Scott Hornstein is the co-author of Opt-In Marketing and president of Hornstein Associates in Redding, Conn.