Writing Matters

Six Non-Negotiable Standards for High-Quality Information Online

I was just introduced to a wonderful white paper that details six meaningful and crisply stated customer service standards for government information online. (OK, the white paper was published in 2008, so why am I only discovering it now?!)

This brief, clear document with the visionary title "Putting Citizens First: Transforming Online Government" was prepared for the 2008 – 2009 Presidential Transition Team by the Federal Web Managers Council.

Here are the six customer service standards. I think they're relevant for all types of online communication. Substitute customers for American people and company for government, and these standards should work for whatever type of content you publish online.

"When the American people need government information and services online, they should be able to:

• Easily find relevant, accurate, and up-to-date information;
• Understand information the first time they read it;
• Complete common tasks efficiently;
• Get the same answer whether they use the web, phone, email, live chat, read a brochure, or visit in-person;
• Provide feedback and ideas and hear what the government will do with them;
• Access critical information if they have a disability or aren’t proficient in English."

I suggest you download the complete white paper, as it also includes several no-nonsense recommendations that I believe are right on the money:

• "Agencies should be required to fund their 'virtual' office space as part of their critical infrastructure, in the same way they fund their 'bricks and mortar' office space."
• "Agencies should be required and funded to conduct regular content reviews, to ensure their online content is accurate, relevant, mission-related, and written in plain language..."

On October 6 and 7, I'll be teaching Writing Well for Online Readers: Essentials of Writing in Plain Language for Web Manager University, which is the training arm of Webcontent.gov. If you work on a government website, I hope you'll consider enrolling in the class. If you don't work on a government website, don't worry. I'll try to share some of the "good stuff," like this white paper, with you here.

-- Leslie O'Flahavan

Tips for Writing Customer Service Chat

A week ago, I did something very brave. I engaged in a customer service chat with Comcast, my cable and internet access provider. Why was this brave? Because Comcast is known for spectacularly bad customer service:

• In MSN Money's 2010 Customer Service Hall of Shame, Comcast was number 3 of the "10 companies we love to hate,"  and the Consumerist named Comcast Worst Company In America 2010.
• The 2006 classic YouTube video: A Comcast Technician Sleeping on my Couch (1,542,556 views)

I was chatting with Comcast because my cable service was still out one week after a 3-day power outage. I had web access but no TV. I'd had no luck getting through to Comcast by phone or e-mail, so I figured I'd give chat a try.

Overall, the chat experience was OK. It took a long time, more than 30 minutes from start to finish. Some of that time was spent waiting in the queue before the chat started, and some was spent running the stairs between my office and living room and doing various things to my cable box to try to get it working. The customer service agent (or "analyst Dean") was pleasant enough. Dean's solution to my problem didn't work, so it's difficult to consider the chat a true success. 

But I did take a critical look at the chat transcript and can offer some tips on writing customer service chat:

1. Avoid glib empathy. Before I even had a chance to explain to Dean what my problem was, he fell all over himself apologizing for it: "... I understand the trouble that this has caused you and I want you to know how sorry I am for the inconvenience. As your service representative today, I want you to know that your satisfaction is of my topmost priority..." These scripted empathy statements sound insincere. If he had empathized only half as much, he would have sounded twice as genuine.
2. Don't pitch offers to customers who need help. After asking for 1-2 minutes to pull up account information (which I'd already provided), Dean launched into this marketing pitch: "... Are you a big movie and TV fan? Comcast now has the best free online streaming and extensive video collection of television shows, movies, trailers and clips online. For you to experience this great entertainment site please visit..." I firmly told him not to provide marketing information during the chat, but he and the scripts he's given to work with could not resist. Near the end of the chat, this upsell slipped in: "... Do you want to watch full TV shows and movies online? Go to ... "
3. Respond directly to what the customer writes. The benefit of chat, for customers and companies alike, is its two-way quality. The agent should always respond to the customer, even if a time lag or a script briefly gets in the way. Dean did a good job of this. When I asked how to schedule a service call, he responded concisely: "You can chat back or call 1-800-XXX-XXXX."
4. Don't sweat the small stuff (like an occasional grammar or spelling error). While I can't excuse typos or mistakes that impede understanding, I can forgive the agent's occasional errors during a live chat. As a customer, I'm more interested in getting a correct answer or a solution to my problem than I am in copyediting the chat. Even as a "connoisseur of fine writing," I'm not bothered by minor errors in chat because I realize that the agent is probably multitasking wildly: chatting with more than one customer at a time, inserting scripts, offering links, troubleshooting, even taking control of the customer's browser. Dean made some errors. He wrote "I am glad I was able to assist you you today" and "Every information on what we have done is noted in your account..." But these errors did not alter the overall quality of the chat.

If you'd like, you can review the transcript of my chat with Comcast. I'm interested in your experiences with customer service chat. Which companies do it well? Poorly? In your opinion, what is a well-written chat? Post a comment or e-mail me your thoughts.

-- Leslie O'Flahavan 

Update: Mikasa consumer services manager phones to apologize for poor e-mail

Talk about connecting with customers (and the long reach of one little blog post)!

Last week I got a phone call from Sheila Smith, Consumer Services Manager for Lifetime Brands. She was following up on my post, "An E-Mail Question So Fraught, the Company Couldn't Bear To Answer It," in which I wondered about, and grumbled about, Mikasa's non-answer to my simple customer service e-mail question. I'd written to ask Mikasa to suggest a set of small plates that would match larger plates in the Sedona pattern.  Mikasa (a division of Lifetime) sent the following answer: "We are hesitant to recommend patterns that compliment [sic].  Tastes vary so much that we do not like to make these type [sic] of recommendations."

Sheila apologized for the unhelpful response I received. She explained that "in their role as experts on our products, Mikasa agents in fact do make that type of recommendation via e-mail all the time." They are trained to and encouraged to make recommendations. Sheila wanted to be sure I understood that a non-answer was far from Mikasa's standard for performance and that the company was very sorry I had received poor service.

Then came the kicker. I asked Sheila about which small plates she'd recommend to match the large plates in the Sedona pattern. Her answer: "We just don't have any plates that match."

So, in one way, I am a happy customer now. Mikasa values my business and opinion so much that the Consumer Services Manager called me personally to follow up. But I am still plate-less. Writing Matters readers, can you help?

-- Leslie O'Flahavan

BlueHost: Great Customer Service Starts on the Home Page

Mention customer service to almost anyone, and you’ll get a litany of complaints that include interminable wait times for phone support as well as incorrect or unsatisfactory responses to phone and e-mail queries. That’s why I’m singing the praises of BlueHost, the company I chose to host a new blog. (More on that to come.)

I considered a number of highly recommended hosting companies. But BlueHost’s website clinched the deal. It was well written, logically organized, and had a clean user-friendly design. What’s more, the website provided a wealth of help options:

• Customer support numbers featured on every page: “QUESTIONS? BlueHost specializes in customer satisfaction. Call us with your questions Toll Free 24/7."
• Live Chat button prominently displayed on the home page.
• Help Center that offered a wealth of support options: A searchable knowledge base, getting started wizard, video tutorials, user forums, and an e-mail option.
• Contact Us page with phone numbers for each department (Sales, Technical Support, Billing) as well as a mailing address.

The day I signed up, I called them five times. My first call was to Sales to clarify rates and the process of signing up. I also wanted to test out their customer support before signing on. (They passed the test.)

Four calls were to Technical Support after I signed up. Those calls dealt with installing blog software—WordPress and the Thesis theme. Each time my call was answered promptly, and knowledgeable technical support people quickly solved my problems. The person I talked with the fifth time was as pleasant and helpful as the person who fielded my first call, though I’m sure by that time I was flagged in their database as pain in the butt. 

A few days later, I tried out BlueHost’s e-mail support. My question about moving an existing blog to BlueHost was answered within a few hours. It was well-written and provided links to “how-to's.”  A follow-up question was answered within an hour. 

I know the dangers of falling in love at first sight.  But based on the first date, BlueHost looks like the model for great customer service. I’m optimistic about a meaningful long-term relationship.  

(Note: I am not a BlueHost affiliate. My only relationship with the company is as a satisfied customer.)

--Marilynne Rudick

Announcing System Outages: There's Got to Be a Better Way?

On behalf of my colleague and friend Marie DiRuzza (Assistant Director of Desktop Services at Worcester Polytechnic Institute and V.P. of Programs for HDI New England) I am reaching out to all of you to ask for your input: what's the best way to write a system outage announcement?

Marie's group at WPI is responsible for letting everyone on campus know when a system or network will be unavailable. They use a format for these outage announcements that's dictated by, in Marie's words, "an ancient (and free) posting system," which you can take a look at in the thumbnail, at left. She's less than happy with the outage announcement format and is looking for other options. If you've developed a method for writing system outage announcements or if you receive helpful, easy-to-read announcements from the service desk at your company, please let me know or post a comment. Of course, if you want to share a terrible system outage announcement, you can do that too.

I don't know how to tell Marie this, but I think her outage announcements are, in fact, quite good. They give the bare facts of the outage, the reasons behind the outage, and the details of the outage. The two-column format works because the left column presents headings for those who like to scan:

• When?    
• How long?    
• Why?    
• Groups Affected    
• Impact    
• Questions    
• Details

And the right column presents explanations for those who want to read. When appropriate, the announcements include a Frequently Asked Questions section, so those super-interested readers will get all the detail they need. Take a look at a recent announcement: "myWPI Planned Downtime – System Upgrade (3/12/10)" or, if you feel the need, scroll through eight years of archived announcements (!).

-- Leslie O'Flahavan

How the Humble Checklist Helps You Get E-Mail Right

I'm a devout list maker. I have shopping lists, to-do lists, vacation packing lists, work project lists, and lists of my lists (not yet!). I've always been a little apologetic about relying so heavily on lists. That is, until I heard Atul Gawande, a surgeon, making the rounds of talks shows (including The Daily Show) to promote his book The Checklist Manifesto: How to Get Things Right.

Gawande's premise is that life has gotten so complicated that people are overwhelmed with information. The result is that we make preventable mistakes. Years ago, Boeing found that a simple pre-flight checklists for pilots dramatically reduced crashes. Gawande applied the checklist concept to medicine. A simple pre-surgery checklist that included such seemingly obvious questions as Do you have blood on hand? cut death rates by over one-third in the first eight hospitals that used it.

While workplace writing isn't normally a life-or-death occupation, I've found that checklists have saved me from embarrassment and helped me do my job better. So I'm offering up two of my favorite e-mail writing checklists:

• E-WRITE's Before-You-Send Checklist

Does your e-mail pass the "blush test?" Use the Before-You-Send Checklist to keep yourself from sending embarrassing e-mail. (If only Governor Mark Sanford had used the checklist!)

• E-WRITE's Customer Service E-Mail Checklist

Would you like to make sure all of your customer service e-mails are great? Use this checklist when answering your customers' e-mails. 

Do you have a "life saving" writing checklist? E-mail it to me and I'll share it with our readers.

--Marilynne Rudick

Help for a French Rep Writing to a Chinese Customer in English

When I asked for suggestions of what to include in our upcoming revision of Clear, Correct, Concise E-Mail: A Writing Workbook for Customer Service Agents, a number of people suggested adding content to help non-native English speakers who respond to customer e-mails in English.

Sheila Wilson, a teacher of business English in France, framed the problem particularly well: “Many of my students have to send e-mails in English to customers around the world. It is no mean feat for a French customer service agent to keep a Chinese client happy and informed, I can tell you! Conditions are ripe for misunderstandings on both sides.”

We do hope to address this issue in our revised workbook. But in the meantime, I thought I'd share some ESL—English as a second language—resources to help non-native English speakers write better e-mail.

• Dave’s ESL Café
  A comprehensive ESL resource for students and teachers. The website includes extensive material on idioms, slang, confusing words, and grammar. 

• Stickyball.net
  Includes handouts, worksheets, and lessons for beginner, intermediate, and advanced adult ESL learners.

• The Internet TESL Journal
  A comprehensive resource for ESL teachers that includes:

• A lesson in which students write a complaint letter
• Practical guidance on using e-mail as an ESL teaching tool
• Learning materials for native speakers of 19 languages

• ESL Mania 
  A comprehensive ESL resource with content specific to business English, including:

• “Seven Tips for Emailing in English”
• Lists and explanations of American business idioms

• ESL Business Writing Video: E-Mail Tune Up 01 
  YouTube video that reviews and discusses mechanics, style, and tone of e-mail.

And don’t forget to take a look at my previous post Idioms: Should You Bend Over Backwards to Avoid Them? Both native and non-native English speakers will enjoy the Idioms by Kids website, which features kids’ drawings of the literal meaning of idioms.

-- Marilynne Rudick

Give Us Your Feedback and Get a Free Copy of Our New Clear, Correct, Concise E-Mail Workbook

We need your help! We’re revising Clear, Correct, Concise E-Mail: A Writing Workbook for Customer Service Agents. We need your real-world input. Give us your suggestions for what to include in our revision, and we’ll give you a complimentary copy of the new workbook.

Workbook Users
If you’ve used our Clear, Correct, Concise E-Mail Workbook and/or E-Mail Writing Skills Competency Exam, we’d welcome your feedback:

• Which chapters or activities did you find most helpful?
• What new subjects or topics would you like to see included in a revised workbook? (We’re planning to include new chapters on formatting e-mails and writing useful subject lines, plus exercises specifically for help desk support staff.)

Contact Center and Help Desk Managers
If you haven’t used our workbook, but you are a seasoned customer service or help desk manager, we’d welcome your input:

• What writing problems or issues do your agents struggle with? 
• Download the workbook Table of Contents. What’s missing? What other topics would you like to see covered in a writing workbook for customer service agents?

And Finally, Customers! 
We’d like your input too:

• What writing problems do you find most prevalent (most annoying!) in the customer service e-mails you receive?
• What suggestions do you have to improve the writing of customer service agents?

Give us your suggestions as comments on this post, send us an e-mail, or give us a call. We’d love to chat with you about customer service e-mail writing.

Thanks for your comments and suggestions!

--Marilynne Rudick
[email protected]
301-986-9627

Customer Satisfaction Surveys: It's All in the Writing

Well, maybe not all in the writing, but many common mistakes made in developing surveys come from inexact wording of questions. This is according to Fred Van Bennekom, principal of Great Brook Consulting, who gave an excellent presentation—The Dirty Dozen of Common Survey Mistakes—at this month's meeting of the Capital Area Chapter of HDI, a membership association for people who work in IT support.

Here are some of the common writing-related survey mistakes Fred described:

1. Double-barreled questions. Here's an example from a local government's land use survey: "Our town should ensure the protection of critical natural resources and wildlife habitats in land use decisions and policies." If a respondent agrees we should protecting resources but doesn't think we should protect habitats, he's stuck. With this double-barreled question, he has to answer yes or no to both.
2. Overuse of open-ended questions. These questions invite, and require, a lot of writing. Too many of them will tire respondents out. Besides, the information you gather in open-ended questions is harder to compile.
3. Poor instructions on how to show a response. Should respondents check a box, circle a term, or rank options in order of importance? If you aren't very clear about what to do, respondents will do things the wrong way and you'll have to toss out their feedback.
4. Questions written in loaded language. You may already know what survey results you're hoping for, but, among other sins, loaded questions waste respondents' time. Here's a biased example Fred shared, drawn from the land use survey: "Agree or disagree with the following statement: 'The population growth in our town is stressing town services and educational facilities.'" Hmmm...I wonder whether they want me to agree or disagree.
5. Questions not worded to the scale. If the survey offers respondents an Excellent-Satisfactory-Poor scale, it should not ask yes-no questions such as "Was the audit conducted in a professional manner?"
6. Incomplete response options. Some surveys fail to offer the range of options a respondent will need. Fred provided this example of a customer satisfaction survey he completed after a stay in a luxury hotel. One of the items he was asked to rate: "Ability of the staff to anticipate your needs." The survey should have included a Not Applicable option, as guests may have had all their needs met without any evidence that staff had anticipated them. And honestly, how would guests know that staff had anticipated their needs?

Does the Macys.com/tellus survey avoid common mistakes?

With Fred's advice still resonating, I rifled through the huge collection of receipts in my wallet to find one that listed a survey URL so I could weigh in on my experience as a customer. My Macy's receipt led me to this survey. At first glance, I thought the Macy's survey generally followed the guidelines Fred provided. The questions are clear enough, the response options match the questions, and I'm given the chance to provide comments. On closer inspection, Macy's could improve the writing a bit:

• The capitalization is inconsistent (see technician)
• The question about scheduling in-home service is double-barreled, asking about both promptness and satisfaction.
• The choice of the word quoted is interesting. Was the survey too timid to use the word promised?

Now that we've opened the topic of survey writing, we're inviting you to share. Send us examples of well-written, or badly written, surveys. We're especially interested in online surveys that solicit customer responses.

-- Leslie O'Flahavan

Rumor Central: A Gossip-Quelling Blog from Missouri's Retirement System

After my recent web writing presentation at the National Association of Government Communicators' annual Communications School in Orlando, Candy Smith, Communications Supervisor for the Missouri State Employees' Retirement System (MOSERS), asked me to take a look at her organization's blog. Now, I must admit that I didn't expect fascinating reading at a state retirement system's blog, so when Candy told me the blog's name, Rumor Central, I was intrigued. Candy explained that MOSERS uses Rumor Central to squash rumors about changes to retirement benefits and insurance, etc., rumors that flourish during the January - May legislative session.

Rumor Central posts are straightforward but not straitlaced. They provide answers to questions such as:

• Were any of our retirement funds invested with Madoff?
• I read an article on CNN that said Missouri was one of the states losing money in investments in the retirement system. What does this mean to us as state employees?
  

In a follow-up call with Candy, Krista Myer (communications manager), and Scott Simon (benefit services section manager), I learned that Rumor Central successfully counters incorrect information in the rumor-sphere with an authoritative, accurate response. It also helps MOSERS cope with high call and e-mail volume in their contact center. Simon estimated that in 2005-6 MOSERS' contact center handled 2000 e-mails per year, but in 2008 e-mail volume shot up to 8000. 

When it launched in 2005, Rumor Central wasn't a blog; it was just web content. But as the content grew, it became unwieldy and impossible to search. Pulling the content into Blogger provided a custom search engine and allowed MOSERS to tag posts. And while the communications team may reopen the discussion of whether to allow comments (currently, Rumor Central doesn't accept comments on posts), they are confident that Rumor Central is serving its purpose. It provides access and accurate information to a wide group of people, and it helps people see MOSERS as forthright and real.

Want us to tell your blog's story? Get in touch, and we'd be glad to feature you in an upcoming post.

-- Leslie O'Flahavan