Guy Kawasaki has posted two blogs, The Art of Customer Service and The Art of Customer Service, Part II, for a total of 18 great customer service tips.

Highlights from the first blog include:

• Start at the top. The quality of service provided to your church’s congregation and guests is primarily determined by the senior pastor’s attitude towards customer service.
• Hire the right kind of people. Whether staff or volunteers, it is important to find the right people for customer service. Not everyone is gifted in this area.

Highlights from the second blog include:

• Use their name. If someone tells you their name, use it. It makes a big difference. It is a key to making a personal connection with first time guests.
• Have operating procedures, not scripts. Teach your staff and volunteers to understand the principles behind what you do. If they do not understand the “why”, they likely won’t do it right. Guy Kawasaki states that having standard operating procedures ensures the job is done properly.
• Make customers feel important.
• Follow-up. Follow-ups make big impressions. If someone in your congregation makes a suggestion or reports a problem, follow-up with a phone call or email. If a preschooler gets a scrape during playtime, don’t simply tell the parent after service but follow-up with a phone call or email during the week. Church on the Move (Tulsa, OK) will follow-up with a family if they notice that their elementary age child has missed more than a month of service. Follow-ups are about letting people know you care.