Customer Service

CS Road Trips

2007-09-18T18:59:00Z

While many people hit the road for vacation this summer, our customer service team enjoyed a few road trips of their own. Every summer we take time out for all of our agents to visit the “other” lab. The Pittsburg CS team visits the Columbia lab, and the Columbia CS team visits the Pittsburg lab. We spread the visits out over the summer, with only a few people traveling at a time. The two days we spend visiting our other half keeps us sharp on details about our services and production in both labs. Most importantly, these visits strengthen our relationships with our team members in our neighboring state. For you this means seamless service no matter where you call.

Sondra Garton and Jen Courtney made their recent visit to the Pittsburg lab special by way of chocolate. Sondra is known for her baking and brought several tubs of her famous chocolate-peanut-butter-chip-brownies for us to enjoy. Yum! Here are some photos from their visit. (Sondra’s the one holding the brownies) Notice all the smiling faces around her? We’re a happy bunch, anyway, but chocolate makes us REALLY happy!

(Notice Randy can't wait until the photo is over.)

Speaking of Sondra’s baking, here’s a little known fact. Each of our Columbia team members gets a special treat from her on their birthday. Sondra bakes every single person a birthday cake or treat for their special day. I’ve heard she makes A LOT of brownies. And that’s no small feat with about 150 team members in Columbia! Most of you already know what a great customer service rep Sondra is, and now you know how special she really is!

Debra Radell

A TV Without Cable is a Sad TV

2007-08-28T14:46:00Z

Yesterday my cable went out, and since my pregnant wife was out sick from work this was a major inconvenience. Have you ever had to deal with a cable company? If the answer is yes then you probably know where I’m going here, if the answer is no then you’re lucky.

Her first call to customer service resulted in a 20-minute hold and the answer that there was currently an outage in our area and to wait an hour. After four hours she called back and with another 20-minute hold time was told that there was never an outage in our area and that a technician would need to be sent out. After a few more hours she called back once again to try and get the problem resolved that day and to have our bill pro rated. At this point she was told it would be a couple of days before anyone could come out, and while they were kind enough to pro rate our bill, our problem being unsolved left a sour taste in her mouth.

Once I made it home I took a look and found all of the wires on the outside of the house disconnected. We rented part of our property to some people who just moved out and the cable company had disconnected their service. As you have probably figured out they were kind enough to disconnect our box too. It only took the fourth customer service rep 30-seconds to figure out the problem.

Humorously enough this exchange coincided with our new subscription to satellite service. My wife was on the phone for hours yesterday and with a little more investigating on the first call the problem could have been resolved and they would not have lost a customer. Sometimes it may seem like we in customer service ask a lot of questions that have nothing to do with the problem at hand. However, I assure you this is so we can see the problem from all angles and not leave you stranded.

Justin Stubbs

Sad TV

New Orleans / Houston Trip

2007-08-23T14:17:00Z

I am back at my desk after being in New Orleans for several days, and let me tell you, what a trip!! I want to give everyone that made our trip so wonderful a big thank you. Never in my life have I been around such nice people! The culture is rich, the people are fantastic, and the food is even better!

Ted Vlaz and I were lucky to have some time to spend with long time residents (and customers) Barry, Mercedes, and Charlie Rittenberg. They drove us around the city and showed us homes still devastated by Katrina. I was shocked to see the amount of multi-million dollar homes still in disrepair or completely abandoned 2 years after the storm. The streets were lined with FEMA trailers even in the nicest neighborhoods. What was most shocking were the water lines on the fronts of these homes. Some of them came pretty close to the roof tops.

Home in New Orleans still unoccupied after Katrina. The red arrow shows the waterline from the flooding.

Ted and I attended the PPLA convention and Houston Guild meeting. The best part of going to these shows is the one-on-one time we get with you, our customers. I absolutely love being able to put a face with a name when talking on the phone. It is a great way to build one-on-one relationships. So the next time you see a convention or guild meeting in your area I strongly suggest you attend. You never know who you will see, the information you may pull from the classes, or the terrific time you may have just meeting the friendly faces from your lab!

Marsha Thomas

Not Enough Time

2007-08-15T12:52:00Z

As training coordinator it is an exciting but challenging time trying to keep up with the multitude of software and hardware options available to our staff and customers. In the film days (wow, that’s only six years ago), the photographer for the most part controlled their image quality and contrast with exposure and film type. Occasionally when those were not optimum, Miller’s was always there to bail our customer out of a jam. They sent the film to the lab for proofs, made the sale from those proofs, masked negative cards and the lab did the rest. For many years the only thing that changed was the fact that the film got better and Miller’s got faster. It was a simpler time for sure.

The professional digital photographer of today has to know so much more than just lighting, composition, exposure, and posing. Being able to capture a great image today does not necessarily mean success tomorrow. There is more competition than ever. The equipment and features change weekly. New and updated software programs are released daily it seems. How do you know which bells and whistles are going to be most beneficial before you buy? Heck, it’s hard to keep up with all of the new products Miller’s keeps adding not to mention how to incorporate them into your sales and marketing. And by the way, you still have to find time to actually service your clients. We do understand how precious your time is to your businesses success and we want to help.

We have a large selection of digital training programs available to you through WebEx classes. These programs are completely interactive to help maximize your understanding of the materials. This is the most extensive online training program in the industry. Our programs cover nearly every aspect of your digital images from capture to all of your ordering options. We also have programs covering a variety of post-capture processing options, digital workflow and presentation options for your sales. I am sure we have a program that will save you time and help you increase your sales. If you have used our classes I would love some feedback from your experience!

David Doria

Tennessee Convention & CS Switching

2007-08-14T15:21:00Z

I know it’s not much, but I feel like somewhat of a jetsetter these last few days. Sunday and Monday Lisa Ewing and I were at the Tennessee Convention and right now I am in Pittsburg visiting the lab (I’m actually one of those Columbia people). Every year all of the Customer Service Reps change positions for a few days to see how the other half lives. These trips keep us up to date with any changes in service or procedures that have been made, it’s also nice to see your co-workers face to face every once in a while. (Tonya, Tracy, Ted U, and I exchange thoughts in Columbia last week.)

The Tennessee Convention really felt like a success. We really enjoy both visiting with long-time customers and meeting some of the newer ones. It was also nice to be out of the lab and away from my desk, but towards the end of the trade show I‘d say my feet and back were starting to miss my desk. If you haven’t already been to a trade show this year (and even if you have) you should consider stopping by at some of the upcoming shows. It’s one thing to read about our new press books or assembled albums, but it’s definitely beneficial to see them in person. There are still a few more shows left for the year. I personally will be at the MOPPA Show Me Workshop and Oklahoma Convention, perhaps we will see you there.

Justin Stubbs

100% Customer Satisfaction

2007-08-08T15:15:00Z

My specialty with Miller's is Customer Service. I learned from some of our best, and after nearly two decades with this company, I like to think I have a pretty good grasp on the company goal of "100% Customer Satisfaction."

Marketing is not my specialty, but I enjoy observing the angles used by different companies to advertise and get their message heard. So you can imagine that ads relating to customer service particularly peak my interest. Especially ones from fellow labs! Several recent ads, including the newest Miller's ad, focus on customer service. Are we all trying to say that we're the best? Of course!

I won't deny that I have a biased opinion towards Miller's Customer Service being the best, but let me explain why. Miller's Customer Service is not just the group of people that answer the phone (in person, by the way) and respond to your emails, but the entire lab. That's me and 389 other dedicated souls who genuinely like what we do and want to get it right, whether it's on the phone or on a printer. We serve you by making sure that everyone in the lab knows how important their job is to you. Our management team works hard to give every team member access to information about you, our business, and our industry. We welcome and rely on feedback from team members, as well as you, for continually improving our products and services. At Miller's, every team member is important, just like every customer is important.

Yes, I'm tooting our horn, but I'm very proud to work here, and very proud of the people I work with. You can decide who's best.

-Debra Radell

p.s. Here's a nice forum conversation we're enjoying!

MIller's Press

2007-07-31T13:00:00Z

Part of the Press Crew -- Dan, Kristy, Stephen, and Lindsay -- taking a break near the press.

I have been dealing with Press-related questions from photographers since we first released this service. And believe me I think I have heard them all!!

One recently recurring question line is “How do I sell Press products?” and “How do I price them?” Unfortunately, all I can give you is general guidelines based on information I have gathered from conversations with other photographers over the past year. For definitive answers you need to turn to each other for guidance. This blog and the Miller’s Forum are perfect vehicles to get these types of conversations rolling.

One thing I think most photographers would agree upon is that you should not try to replace your existing offerings with similar Press Products. Instead look for ways to use them as add-ons to existing packages or products. Or try using them as incentives. For example, your main business is family portraiture and you offer three packages. Your customer orders the least expensive package. Try enticing them to upgrade their choice by offering a set of “customized” greeting cards, using an image of their choice from that same session and their own greetings. Voila! Additional sales! The possibilities are endless.

For more Press product ideas, check out the July 2007 newsletter. If you did not receive a copy, click here for a downloadable pdf. These newsletters are always full with useful and timely information.

Tracy Eichhorn

CS is Here to Help

2007-07-27T18:30:00Z

I'm sure most of our customers have good stories about how one of our customer service team members took care of you (please go to the forum and post them!)... Here's a funny one from just a few minutes ago.

A long-time customer just e-mailed Tonya in customer service. She e-mailed because she locked herself in the office with no phone! Tonya happily called the business next door who came over and enabled the escape. We're always happy to help, especially when it makes us laugh!

Convention Update

2007-07-27T13:00:00Z

Miller’s will continue to travel through the remainder of the summer and fall to various conventions around the country. We love having the opportunity to meet and re-acquaint ourselves with our customers, as well as make new friends! And we’re excited to be able to show you first-hand some of our newer products and services, such as our Assembled Albums, Press Products and Web Hosting services.

Our upcoming shows are listed below. If you’re anywhere close, we’d love to see you! Many shows offer free or discounted trade show passes, if you don’t belong to the association. For more information on each convention, simply click the link by each listing. Each site contains all the details on programming, registration and hotel that you’ll need. We also keep a list of all the conventions we attend on our site, under the Resources section. We hope to see you soon!

Debra Radell

Tennessee PPA
Cool Springs Marriott
Franklin, TN
August 12, 13
www.tnppa.com

Louisiana PPA
Wyndham Hotel
New Orleans, LA
August 19, 20
www.ppla.net

Florida PPA
Sheraton World Resort
Orlando, FL
August 26, 27
www.fpponline.org

PPA of New England
Sturbridge Host Hotel
Sturbridge, MA
September 9, 10
www.ppane.com

Oklahoma PPA
Radisson Hotel
Tulsa, OK
September 22, 23
www.ppok.org

Fall Ozark
Inn of the Ozarks
Eureka Springs, AR
October 28-30
www.ppozarks.net

Dedication

2007-07-25T13:00:00Z

Have you ever uploaded an order in the middle of the night only to find FedEx knocking on your door 24 hours later to deliver the order and wondered how it could be possible? Even in the lab we sometimes wonder this ourselves. Daily we come in to messages to make changes to orders uploaded overnight that are in invoicing by 8:00am and ready to ship. There really is only one word I can use to describe how this happens……dedication.

At Miller’s we are very lucky to work with such a hard working group of people. Hourly there are those scanning orders for problems to send up to Customer Service to call on, working long hours to make sure that last rush order ships, or coming in early to get a jump start on the day.

Too often the praises for getting these types of things handled falls back on Customer Service when the real heroes are the people we all rely on the most. Production! Here is a big thanks to all of those that helps us meet deadlines, get that special order out, or fix a problem that would have otherwise gone out the door. Thank you!

Marsha Thomas