Tuesday, 19th August 2014 (North Side, Anguilla) — Spirit has once again prompted me to write about how we can improve our customer service skills and techniques. What inspired me to compose these written word thoughts on this subject is an incident that occurred last week. This is a lighthearted piece which is meant to show us how we can do better in our business practices, and that places emphasis on areas of improvement rather than on negative criticism.
On Wednesday morning, 13th August 2014, I went to check my post box located outside of the Public Works Department building. Normally when I go to the box to look for postal deliveries, it is either empty or has at the most four or five pieces of mail. Much to my surprise, the box was jam packed that day. I couldn’t figure out why there were so many items in the box, especially since I had just checked it only a few days ago.
Then I started examining the mail closely. There were nine billing statements from ANGLEC, LIME and Caribbean Cable Communications along with an envelope from the Anguilla Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Besides the bills, the post box also had six pieces of personal correspondence which included a number of cards from family and friends. I share this box with two friends, so some of the items were for me and others were for them.
After my examination and sorting of to whom the mail was addressed, I began to check the postmark dates on the envelopes. I couldn’t believe that, with the exception of one or two pieces, the dates indicated were from April, November and December 2010 and 2011. Now, my mind really began to wonder what was going on with a delayed postal delivery of mail that was sent three to four years ago.
To satisfy my curiosity and enquire in more detail, I went to the Anguilla General Post Office in The Valley. I asked the receptionist/secretary if I could speak with the Post Mistress. She graciously called the mistress who came and spoke briefly with me in the public area. When I explained to her what my enquiry was about, she welcomed me into her office so that we could talk in privacy.
It truly was a mystery to me. I wanted to investigate the matter to determine if we could figure out what had occurred with the delayed postal delivery of more than a dozen pieces of mail. The Post Mistress called a supervisor to come and join our conversation. Between the two of them, it was suggested that perhaps the box had been full or payment of the annual rental fee had not been made in a timely manner. I responded to both individuals that my box was checked on a regular basis – it was never full, and the yearly fees were always paid on time.
Then the Post Office management said that it could have been a case of mail having mistakenly been put in another customer’s box. They told me that customers don’t always return mail, which does not belong to them. I recognised that they too were trying to solve the mystery of the delayed postal delivery.
Some suggestions to improve customer service
Whatever the case may be, I ensured the Post Mistress and supervisor that I merely wanted to bring this concern to their attention so that they could enhance customer service. A suggestion that I made to them was to have the postal carrier put a note in a customer’s box indicating whether the mail had just been received, misplaced, or whatever was the reason for the delay with an apology to the customer. At least that way, the customer would have some knowledge of what had happened instead of it being a mystery or left as an unanswered question.
For example, when the electronic equipment used for sorting mangles mail in the USA, it is standard procedure for the postal station staff to put the mail in a plastic envelope. The envelope is then marked as to how the piece was received with a notation apologising to the addressee, and then it is delivered to the individual’s mailing address. A similar policy could be implemented for Anguilla that would inform customers of the reason for delayed delivery, or any other issue concerning their mail service.
Another procedure is utilised when mail addressed to my post box on Anguilla is misdirected to some other country. The envelope is stamped with the wording: “Misdirected to Antigua” (or the name of whatever country erroneously received it). With this marking, then I am able to realise the cause of delay. Of course, I’m still waiting to receive the birthday card that my mother posted me in November 2013 from Seattle, Washington, in the USA. Was it misdirected, misplaced or tiefed (stolen) by someone who thought the envelope may have contained money in cash?
I also strongly recommend that if a customer receives mail in her/his postal box, which is not addressed to her/him or other users of the box – that the receiver immediately returns the mail to the Anguilla Post Office for delivery to the correct person(s). An even better idea would be that if a post box customer knows the person to whom the mail is addressed, he/she could personally deliver it to that individual. It seems to me that it’s common courtesy to do either of those things rather than to throw the envelope on the ground as I have seen take place on a few occasions.
Staff training for excelling in service to customers
Staff also need to be trained in how to handle such matters because even if policies and procedures are put in place not everyone may know exactly what to do in each instance. Perhaps using my experience, as a training example, would be a good way to let postal employees learn how to handle such situations. Both employees and managers could make recommendations for the best ways to deal with these kinds of incidents should they happen in the future.
I like to think that we live in a society which is open to helping everyone of us to improve our standards of living, and that we are all willing to look out for one another. Perhaps this would be true in an ideal or utopian kind of world. Yet I know each of us can make a significant difference to create positive changes if we focus our attention on doing whatever we can to make them happen.
As I keep emphasising to my family members, friends and the Anguilla community at large, we must be the instruments of change that we envision and do what we can to move ourselves and our nation forward. May God’s divine grace continue to inspire us to create opportunities to provide better customer service for the clients whom we serve and who help to sustain our island’s businesses!
Kay M. Ferguson is a conscientious writer who excels at providing the best service to customers in all facets of business. To link with Kay, e-mail her at anguillawriter@gmail.com. Send an e-message via www.facebook.com/kaymferguson or tweet @kaykayferguson.
