The Nordstrom Way to Customer Service Excellence: The Handbook For Becoming the "nordstrom" of Your Industry, Second Edition

Book description

The Nordstrom Way shows the direct link between empowering your employees and creating a long-term relationship with your customers. More businesses should follow Nordstrom's example.

Howard Schultz, Chairman, Starbucks Coffee

Virtually every company wants to be the Nordstrom of their industry. Nordstrom is one of only five companies to make Fortune's "best companies to work for" and "most admired" list every year the surveys have been taken. Despite its position in the hard-hit retail sector, Nordstrom, with 193 stores in 28 states, never experienced a quarterly loss during the recent economic downturn. The Nordstrom Way to Customer Service, Second Edition explains what every business can learn from the world's most famous customer-service-driven company.

New material in this revised edition includes:

  • "How To Become The Nordstrom Of Your Industry"

  • Tools for creating a customer-driven culture

  • Chapters on Nordstrom's online customer service and the innovative social commerce features of its website

  • Breakthroughs on Nordstrom's multi-channel approach to customer service

Nordstrom follows a set of principles that has made it a leader in its industry. Discover what endears Nordstrom to its customers, and learn how to apply those same standards to your company.

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. Title
  3. Copyright
  4. Dedication
  5. Contents
  6. Introduction
  7. Phase I: Culture
    1. Chapter 1: Tell the Story: How Nordstrom Became Nordstrom
      1. Seattle: City of Opportunity
      2. Everett, Elmer, and Lloyd
      3. Third Generation: Bruce, John, Jim, and Jack
      4. Betting Everything on Southern California
      5. A Crisis of Confidence
      6. Sales Are the Truth
    2. Chapter 2: Hire With Care: Finding the Right Fit for the Culture
      1. Welcome to Nordstrom
      2. Values and Practices
      3. Hire Motivated People—Who Are Also Nice
      4. Bob Love
      5. It’s Not a Job for Everyone
      6. Inverted Pyramid
      7. Empowering Managers and Buyers
      8. Managers’ Responsibilities
      9. Buyers’ Responsibilities
      10. Feedback
      11. Using Experienced “Nordies” to Spread the Culture
      12. Promoting From Within
      13. New Employees in New Markets
      14. Diversity
      15. The Nordies Versus the Clock Punchers
      16. Good Place to Work
      17. Hiring for Customer Service
    3. Chapter 3: Nurture the Nordie: Mentor, Support, Praise, Recognize, and Reward
      1. Product Knowledge
      2. Appreciation Promotes Motivation
      3. Mentoring
      4. Recognition and Praise
      5. Recognition Meetings
      6. John W. Nordstrom Award
      7. Everyday Praise
      8. Heroics: Inspirational Tales of Teamwork and Legendary Customer Service
    4. Chapter 4: Empower Entrepreneurs to Own the Customer Experience
      1. Ideas From Empowered Entrepreneurs
      2. Empowered to Take Ownership of the Customer Experience
      3. Don’t Judge a Customer by Her Shoes
      4. Inverted Pyramid
      5. Return Policy
      6. Empower Employees to Make Good Decisions
      7. Cross-Selling
      8. Dump the Rules: Tear Down the Barriers to Exceptional Customer Service
    5. Chapter 5: Compensate According to Results
      1. Commission Sales Versus Customer Service
      2. Goal Setting
      3. Top Performers
      4. Loyalty and Ownership
    6. Chapter 6: Communication and Teamwork: We’re All in the Customer Service Department
      1. Communication
      2. In Person
      3. Teamwork and Competition
      4. What Does Teamwork Look Like?
      5. Teamwork Across Departments, Business Units, and Geography
      6. Customer Service Behind the Scenes
      7. Tailoring to the Customer
      8. Impressing the Boss
    7. Chapter 7: Citizen Nordstrom: Doing Well, Doing Good
      1. “Nordstrom Cares”
      2. Recycle, Repackage, Reuse
      3. Supplier Diversity
      4. Contributing to Communities
  8. Phase II: Experience
    1. Chapter 8: Create an Inviting Place: Brick-and-Mortar Still Matters
      1. What’s Inside
      2. Let’s Get Comfortable
      3. Nordstrom Innovation Lab
      4. Food for Thought
      5. Something Extra
      6. Selection
      7. The Right Choices at the Right Time
      8. Nordstrom Rack
    2. Chapter 9: Touchpoints: Multichannel Customer Service
      1. A Multichannel World
      2. Single View of Inventory
      3. Order Online/Pick Up at Store
      4. Create a Customer Community
      5. Social Media
      6. Call Center Customer Service
      7. Answer the Telephone!
      8. The Nordstrom Family: Leading by Example
    3. Chapter 10: The Sale Is Never Over: Establish, Nurture, and Sustain Long-Term Relationships With Your Customers
      1. Customer Loyalty
      2. Personal Stylist
      3. Listen to the Customer/Stay in Touch
      4. The Personal Book
      5. Nordstrom Weddings
      6. Relationships With Vendors
  9. Phase III: Applications
    1. How to Become the Nordstrom of Your Industry
  10. Acknowledgments
  11. Index

Product information

  • Title: The Nordstrom Way to Customer Service Excellence: The Handbook For Becoming the "nordstrom" of Your Industry, Second Edition
  • Author(s): Robert Spector, Patrick McCarthy
  • Release date: March 2012
  • Publisher(s): Wiley
  • ISBN: 9781118076675