What happens when three exceptional Colorado-based librarians travel to Anaheim, California to attend a workshop on quality customer service presented by the Disney Institute? You get new ideas on how to make every visitor to your library feel like a valued and welcomed guest. You find new ways to answer old questions. Most importantly, you learn to develop a new approach to customer service that will surprise and delight all who enter the library!
Libraries are not typically the first things people think of when they think about customer service. You go to the library, you get a book, and you leave. Perhaps you might find a comfy nook to settle down in for a while so you can study quietly. Maybe you are doing some research and need to ask a librarian for help. No matter why you visit your library, you likely do not come for the customer service. Sure, the librarians are amiable enough but do they ever blow you away with exceptional customer service or go "above and beyond"? Probably not. That should change, don't you think?
Mr. Walt Disney once said "We have always tried to be guided by the basic idea that, in the discovery of knowledge, there is great entertainment - as, conversely in all good entertainment there is always some grain of wisdom, humanity, or enlightenment to be gained". There is no reason why libraries cannot be genuine and fun. I know, seeking knowledge is serious business. But it is the personal touches library staff can put on our encounters with guests that can make the discovery of knowledge a positive and memorable experience!
The librarians who attended this conference focused on many areas of customer service and this is only a short blog post. However, one of the things that stood out to me was how to answer questions you may get 1000 times a day in a way that is fresh, personable, and authentic. Working the reference desk, I know it is hard not to seem bored when you are asked the same questions over and over. Therefore, we should always make an effort to not only tell someone the answer but to personalize it in a way so that the patron feels special. For example, when someone asks "Where are the fiction books located", don't just point and say "over there". Instead, get up from the desk and walk them over to the fiction section. While walking, you can ask if there is a particular title they are looking for. If they are just browsing, be sure to let them know that they can come to you to request a title if they don't see it on the shelf. Make a point to get to know your patrons. Learn their names if they come in often. We want people to come back not because we have books but because we have an amazingly helpful and caring staff too!
I know libraries can never be as fun and memorable as Disney World is....but can't we at least try?
Read more about learning from the legend here.
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