Whatever Happened to Customer Service?

We take customer service for our time and attendance software very seriously. When customers need help with their time clock software, or prospective customers have questions about Virtual TimeClock, we want to leave them delighted by the experience. But have you ever tried to define customer service? Some would certainly say it's how well a company consistently meets the needs of its customers. But that sounds like the focus is on the company meeting some minimum level of customer acceptance, and not on the customer whose needs may be unique and not even fully known. I think the definition of good customer service can only come from the customer. If customers are delighted by the service they receive, then that's good customer service. Even though companies try to objectively measure customer service success, it's essentially individual and subjective. What it takes to delight one customer may be qualitatively and quantitatively different from what it takes to delight another.

I had a recent customer service experience that I'd like to share. I had the unpleasant duty of needing to switch my broadband from DSL to cable, which meant switching Internet service providers. I called to set everything up, a 6 month promotional rate and then 6 months at the regular rate. Of course, it took longer than I expected. Of course, I was skeptical of the promotional promises. Of course, I had been lied to by the time the transaction was completed. But it was done, I wouldn't even need to think about it for another year, or would I?

Then I received my first invoice. I wasn't billed at the promotional rate I had agreed to when signing up. Score: Jeff = 0, ISP = 1. So I called the number on the invoice as directed if I had any billing questions. The live attendant said I'd need to call a different number before 6:00pm in order to get help with a billing question. I was thanked for my business, well wished, and asked if anything else could be done for me. Score: Jeff = 0, ISP = 2. The second call (before 6:00pm this time) went something like this: "We don't even offer a promotion for that amount", "We have a promotion that almost matches, but it requires phone service and you didn't order phone service", "The computer won't let me just enter an amount, I have to have a promotional code". I was told my best bet would be to start an instant online chat with someone in sales. Again, I was thanked for my business, well wished, and asked if anything else could be done for me. Score: Jeff = 0, ISP = 3. So I moved on to the infamous online chat. This time I was told that promotion was no longer available, but they'd see what they could do. Questions, waiting, more questions, more waiting. I was finally offered a solution that seemed satisfactory. I couldn't get the 6 month promotional rate I was promised, but I could get a slightly higher rate for a longer period of time. I immediately jumped at the opportunity because 1) this promotion may not be available after the next 5 minutes, and 2) it saved me more money in the long run than the original, and that's a good thing. Again, I was thanked for my business, well wished, and asked if anything else could be done for me. For the first time I could answer, "No thanks, you've done enough." So here's my little customer service analysis based on this recent experience.

What they did wrong:

1. Don't lie to your customers, ever.
2. Don't dangle a carrot in front of your customers and then yank it away because they don't meet some hidden qualification.
3. Don't put the blame on another person, the computer, or the "system".
4. Don't make your customers do all the leg work to get their issue resolved.

What they did right:

1. Kept accurate, up-to-date documentation in my record that even included the original promotional amount I was offered.
2. At least 1 person took responsibility until a solution was found.
3. Found something better for me, rather than just an equivalent offer.

Let me leave you with an analogy. Boiled chicken can meet certain of my nutritional needs, but it doesn't have much flavor. It doesn't delight the palette to say the least. But take your boiled chicken and combine it with other ingredients to make kung pao chicken, and now you've got a dish that delights the senses (at least mine, remember customer service is a subjective experience). I know Redcort Software has learned a few things about customer service after nearly 15 years in the time and attendance software industry. And I hope we continue to provide customer service that delights the senses of each individual we come into contact with.

Have a comcastic day!

Jeff Morrow

Redcort Software

How Do You Want to be Remembered?

In celebration of St. Patrick's Day, I decided to do a little research on the man who's inspired the color, the clover, and the corned beef. Legend has it that St. Patrick was responsible for driving all the snakes from Ireland. That's not a bad thing to have on your resume, that is, if your island had a problem with snakes (biologists don't think there ever were any snakes in Ireland).

This got me thinking about how I want to be remembered. I mean, there could be a lot of empty space on a grave stone between the year you're born and the year you die. It's hard to come up with a one-liner that summarizes your life. Should it be your main accomplishment, a favorite quote, your life motto, a mission statement, or maybe just a simple R.I.P?

Naturally, this flowed into my work environment. How do I want Redcort Software to be remembered? Maybe even more appropriate is how I want Redcort Software to be known in the time and attendance industry right now? I'd like Redcort Software to be known for our mission (what we've set out to do), our values (how we go about doing it), and our reputation (how others think our values support our mission).

Our Mission

We've made it our mission to develop, publish, and support time and attendance software that helps free businesses from the unproductive cycle of repetitive tasks and unavailable information. This means our time clock software incorporates features that make the lives of our customers easier. We've eliminated the time spent gathering and totaling timecards from manual punch clocks and hand written timesheets. Our Virtual TimeClock software greatly reduces payroll errors with automatic rounding rules and break deductions. That's why we added a powerful report writer, so you can quickly get your time clock data the way you need it for your accountant, management team, or payroll company.

Our Values

We value excellence. This means we're committed to working hard to produce and support time and attendance software products that exceed the expectations of our customers. That's why we've never outsourced product development or technical support overseas. We believe nobody can help, listen to, and anticipate the needs of our customers like we can.

We value our customers. This means we're committed to doing business the old fashioned way. You'll always talk to a live person during regular business hours. And if you leave a message after hours, we'll always call you back promptly the next business day. Our regular time clock software releases are a direct result of listening to our customers and what they need to simplify their payroll, manage their labor costs, track their employee attendance compliance, and organize their businesses.

We value each other. This means we're committed to recognizing the value in others by expressing appreciation, acceptance, and concern for those we come in contact with.

Our Reputation

Our customers are responsible for transforming Redcort Software into an industry leading time and attendance software publisher. We have the privilege of serving tens of thousands of time clock software users in over fifteen countries around the world. Just take a look at this small sample of Virtual TimeClock software users and what they're saying about our time clock software and our service.

I think all that could fill up the space on a corporate grave stone quite nicely. How do you want to be remembered? Unfortunately, snake exterminator is already taken.

The Pareto Principle Is Alive and Well

You probably know what the Pareto principle is, although you may not know it by that name. It’s more commonly referred to as the ’80-20 rule’. It’s named after an Italian economist who at the beginning of the twentieth century observed that 80% of the land in Italy was owned by 20% of the population. He applied his observation at home and discovered that 20% of the pea pods in his garden contained 80% of the peas! It’s basically a rule of thumb that describes how something is shared by a particular set of participants. For example, you may see this rule in action as you wear 20% of your clothes 80% of the time, or spend 80% of your time with only 20% of your friends.

I saw the Pareto principle alive and well with our latest time clock software release.  Here’s what I mean. Roughly 80% of our new timeclock software feature requests are for similar new functionality. This means that out of all of the feature requests we’ve received over the last several years, approximately 8 out of 10 customers consistently ask for similar new features or functionality (20% of the pea pods). The engineers were definitely able to tap into this principle when planning and developing Virtual TimeClock ’10.

Let me give you an example. The ability to track and limit the time employees have been on paid breaks has been a top requested new feature for some time. And while it seemed like a simple request, this feature required a tremendous amount of engineering effort to make it a reality. The same is true for tracking unpaid worker time and leave. Implementing these two requests completely changed timecard reports, how leave is accounted for, and how activities are tracked. However, implementing these two items at the same time with the related reporting improvements fulfilled an enormous number of our user feature requests. We also knew the 80-20 rule was in effect for the requests themselves. For every person who took the time to request these features, we knew there were many more Virtual TimeClock users who wanted the functionality but simply hadn’t submitted a request.

Rather than going for cool new eye candy, a glamorous new buzz word feature, or something a little less strenuous to implement, engineering decided to pull out all the stops and make Virtual TimeClock ’10 do more of what our users wanted it to do. It wasn't the easiest, cheapest, or quickest route to a new release. At the same time it was certainly the right thing for us to do. Virtual TimeClock ’10 gives our customers the tools they need to more effectively manage their employee time and attendance and payroll costs. 

What does this mean for the future? Well, it definitely means biometrics, web clients, and integration with new payroll products. These things are important to us because they’re important technologies for our customers. As always, we’re letting our users drive our innovation for each Virtual TimeClock software release. The Pareto principle may just be a natural phenomenon, but it’s a great way for us to focus our efforts on the things our customers really need.

Virtual TimeClock '10 Release

In these challenging economic times, businesses are working very hard to maintain profitability. Our customers tell us that controlling labor costs is a top priority today. Virtual TimeClock '10 builds on the strengths of past versions with useful new cost control features.

Most significantly, the new release enables employers to easily track paid and unpaid breaks and lunches, as well as manage unpaid leave. We also upgraded our timecard report writer to make access to the new information easy and intuitive.

Get more information on Virtual TimeClock '10 here:
Virtual TimeClock '10 Press Release

Check out the new release and get a free download here:
Virtual TimeClock '10 Home Page

Virtual TimeClock Software '09 R3.1 Update

Last month's release of Virtual TimeClock '09 Release 3 contained over a dozen enhancements to timecard reports. The  new 3.1 release addresses two reporting issues that have arisen as a result of the Release 3 changes. Release 3.1 is an important time clock software update that ensures timecard entries for future payroll periods are reliably totaled and included in timecard reports.

The Virtual TimeClock Basic Edition software is not a part of this update. If you are a Virtual TimeClock Network Edition user and are running '09 Release 3, you need only to update your Virtual TimeClock Pro Client software to Release 3.1. The Virtual TimeClock Server software is not a part of the 3.1 update.

Virtual TimeClock '09 Release 3

Virtual TimeClock '09 Release 3 was made available today. The new release provides an often requested new feature: adding notes to timecard entries. Timecard notes can be used to note jobs or project tracking details, report mileage, tips, bonuses, or commissions right on the employee timecard. Employees can add a timecard note to explain a late arrival or early departure right when the event occurs.

Virtual TimeClock '09 Release 3 is compatible with the new Microsoft Windows 7 release. With the September announcement of Apple OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard support, Virtual TimeClock '09 is now fully compatible with Apple and Microsoft's newest operating systems.

We have also improved the user experience in Virtual TimeClock '09 Release 3 with over two dozen program enhancements. There is a complete list of changes in Virtual TimeClock '09 Release 3 on our web site.

Virtual TimeClock '09 Release 3 is a free upgrade for all users enrolled in our software Maintenance & Support program. We offer generously discounted upgrade pricing if you are not enrolled in our software Maintenance program.

Please contact us with any questions you have about the release. You can reply to this email, visit our web site, or call toll free from 8 AM to 5 PM PST at (888) 207-0005.

I hope you enjoy the new features and enhanced functionality we've put into Virtual TimeClock '09 Release 3!

Keith DeLong
Redcort Software

We Are the Champions!

I was recently challenged to describe our business for a possible feature in a prominent magazine. They’re looking for what makes us unique and different, and why. They call this a ‘pitch’, which basically means you’re trying to persuade someone to buy or accept something.

This started a period of introspection. Software companies are a dime a dozen, so what makes us so special? Simply saying “Redcort Software is the best software company on the planet” may come across as being a little too subjective and one-sided. So I decided to do what I always do when faced with a question of this caliber, I made a list of what I know to be true.

• We’ve been publishing our Virtual TimeClock software since 1986, that’s over 20 years of time and attendance software experience.
• We’ve been online since 1997, well beyond the life expectancy of a dot com era company.
• Our wide range of time tracking products allow us to grow with businesses of any size, so we’re able to actively pursue long-term customer relationships.
• Tens of thousands of workers at businesses all over the world rely on Virtual TimeClock every single day, which means robust time tracking software.
• Our time clock software helps free businesses from the unproductive cycle of repetitive tasks and unavailable information, allowing business owners to focus on what’s important.
• We’re committed to producing and supporting software products that exceed the expectations of our customers, we hear it again and again… ease of use.
• We recognize that our customers deserve our genuine appreciation for their business, so we reward them with regular Virtual TimeClock software updates and friendly, US based technical support.
• We’re committed to doing business the old fashioned way, like picking up the phone rather than relying on an auto attendant.
• We do our best to go the extra mile to satisfy a customer. I know, I know, that’s what businesses are supposed to say.

So after letting the evidence speak for itself, all I can say is, “Wow, Redcort Software is the best software company on the planet!” Now if I can just pitch it to the magazine publishers…

Jeff Morrow
Redcort Software