Response Time: Vol. 19
You satisfy your customers, but can you satisfy our curiosity?
With Will Yates, Co-founder of ttagz.
Please tell us a little bit about your company and what you do there.
I’m the co-founder of ttagz, a user-generated content (UGC) tool for brands looking to create an authentic tone of voice and build community around authentic content.
Which celebrity would be really great at your job, and why?
Keanu Reeves. He’s widely known as a kind and attentive person – all the qualities needed to excel in this role.
What’s your greatest productivity hack?
I’ll give you two: checklists and time allocation. I would be lost if I didn’t write out my daily (and weekly) tasks, then I get a little dopamine hit every time I tick them off (yes, I do it on paper). Segmenting your diary is another mental hack to allow you to dedicate time appropriately to tasks.
“I don’t see how bots will ever be able to truly empathize with my customers’ personal struggles, feel genuine emotions, or deeply understand the nuances of human experiences”
What’s the best customer service you’ve ever experienced?
Honestly, American Express. If you call the number on the back of your credit card they will literally bend over backwards for you.
What can you do that a bot will never be able to replicate?
On a very human level, I don’t see how bots will ever be able to truly empathize with my customers’ personal struggles, feel genuine emotions, or deeply understand the nuances of human experiences. I could be wrong, but there’s an intrinsic quality to human connection and understanding that is still untouchable.
“Behind every support ticket, there’s a human with a story”
What’s the one piece of advice you would give to your peers in the customer service industry?
We’re quite disconnected with our customers now, but remember, behind every support ticket, there’s a human with a story. So treat them with kindness and patience (and maybe sprinkle in a bit of humor).
What’s the best thing a customer has ever said to you?
“Will. Thank you! It was so easy to contact you, and your help made it an absolute breeze to set up my UGC tool. Thanks a million.”
What words make your skin crawl?
“I need to work on the back-end,” which is coder language for “I haven’t got a clue.”
What’s your most used emoji in customer chats?
🚀🚀🚀🚀
Do you identify more with the title “customer support,” customer service,” “customer success,” or “customer experience,” and why?
Definitely customer support. I think service sounds too transactional, experience is too flat, and success is too presumptuous – our customers will be the judges of that.
What was your “15 minutes of fame” moment?
This is so random and I almost forgot about it, but I was on the red carpet with Guillermo Del Toro for the world premiere of The Shape of Water.
How would you explain your job to an alien?
₶₺৲⁍︎⊁ ≫⊉. ∧º⁊❖▻৳₣ ⋕⋛⋼⋩⋣⋰⨦⩎⫶⟣
Conversation closed… for now 😏
If you’re interested in being featured in our Response Time series, you can share your insights on customer service – and explaining things to aliens – with us here.
