How to Crush it in Customer Success- A Barista’s Point of View
Working as a barista has taught me some pretty valuable lessons on customer success. Here are my top three tips on how to be the best you can possibly be in this role.
Tip #1: Always make the customer feel welcome.
Yes, this is the simple Latte of all tips. Everyone knows that in order for a business to thrive you need to have happy customers. The best way to go about that is to not just get them in and out but to make a little small talk while brewing their coffee. I always try to remember the customer’s names and their orders. The joy and the feeling of importance that the customers get when I ask them if they would like the ‘double shot dry cappuccino’ like they did last time is irreplaceable.
Tip #2: Task Management and productivity.
This one is more like the art on top of the espresso, yes it’s simple but mastering it takes work. To-do lists are key for managing tasks. Knowing what you have to get done in a day is the best way to ensure productivity. For example look at an espresso machine, if you forget to backflush, it will make worse espresso as time goes on. That’s the same for customer success if you forget about your important tasks you’ll slowly lose the customers.
Tip #3: Efficiency
Being efficient is like making a flawless Cubano, practice makes perfect. Take a shot of espresso for example, after you pull the shot it takes only ten seconds for the shot to ‘go bad’. If you forget about the shot for a maximum of five minutes, it is undrinkable. The steps to efficiency start with ‘why?’. Define your goals then ask yourself ‘why?’, Why are you reading this? Once you know your ‘why?’ then you can be efficient in your everyday life. Why did I pull this shot of espresso? I pulled the shot so I can make a Con Panna, which will make the customer happy.
The Takeaway
The skills I’ve acquired through my time working in a customer success role as a barista will help me on every different career path I take. One of the best lessons I’ve learned is, know what you’re doing and have fun doing it.
