Response Time: Vol. 36
You satisfy your customers, but can you satisfy our curiosity?
With Robb Clarke, Head of Technical Operations at RB2B.
Please tell us a little bit about your company and what you do there.
I’m the Head of Technical Operations for RB2B. We do person-level identification of US-based anonymous website visitors.
Which celebrity would be really great at your job, and why?
Ryan Reynolds – he’s just so darned charming!
What’s the most valuable thing that working in customer service has taught you?
The most valuable thing that I have learned working in customer service is to compartmentalize different aspects of my life. Customer experiences get tucked away in their own neat little container that has no bearing on the rest of my life – this is especially important with negative interactions.
Describe the essence of great customer service using only three words.
Empathy, patience, communication.
Which movie robot would you choose as your AI sidekick, and why?
What’s the one from Star Wars that Alan Tudyk played where he slapped the guy? K2. Him. Or Johnny 5.
What can you do that a bot will never be able to replicate?
Love.
“Let it flow like water off a duck’s back”
What’s the most embarrassing thing you’ve ever said/done to a customer?
Twenty years ago, we were renovating a drive-in theater that I was managing and we had just finished painting the little symbol of a man above the men’s room door freehand. I climbed down the ladder and started walking back across the lobby to admire it, turned, and said, “That’s a fine looking man,” just as a customer was walking out of the men’s room. He thanked me for the compliment.
Do you identify more with the title “customer support,” “customer service,” “customer success,” or “customer experience,” and why?
“Customer experience,” because ultimately, if they can’t get our software working as expected then that greatly affects their entire experience with us.
What’s the one piece of advice you would give to your peers in the customer service industry?
Let it flow like water off a duck’s back.
What’s your greatest productivity hack?
ADHD meds. Also, Brain.fm and “Do Not Disturb” mode on my phone.
What book are you reading at the moment?
The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt.
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 which celebrity would be great at your job – with us here.
