Best customer relations books according to redditors
We found 43 Reddit comments discussing the best customer relations books. We ranked the 15 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the top 20.
We found 43 Reddit comments discussing the best customer relations books. We ranked the 15 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the top 20.
I’m a print and basic web designer that’s been making an overhaul towards UI/UX the past few months so maybe I can offer some help. I’m actually working on a mobile app’s case study as we speak! You may have already noticed that UI/UX tends to get many different definitions depending on who you ask. With this said the path I took was focused on research methods (competitor research, demographic research, user testing, etc), UX deliverables (personas, user flows, wireframes, etc), prototyping, high-fidelity design and front-end coding (I’ll touch on that a little more in a bit).
 
When it comes to UX research I found the following resources immensely helpful:
Books (Reading? Yes, reading. Trust me these are worth checking out…pretty short too)
Podcasts (Listen on your commute, while you’re folding laundry, whenever)
Websites (It’s also a good idea to Google some successful UX designer’s portfolios)
 
Basically what UX teaches you is that all design decisions need to be backed by an informed reason. That reason is found by doing proper research and testing.
 
Now for UI design. There’s always Bechance and Dribble for inspiration, but a lot of the pieces you find on there lack context and are merely pretty to look at. So don’t get too obsessed. For software, personally, I’m a Photoshop to Sketch convert. It’s $100 but MAN is it worth it. There’s a number of things that make Sketch attractive (vector based, easy exporting, etc) but I guess the simplest way I can put it is that Sketch just feels…lighter than Photoshop. But it’s really personal preference, if you’re a master at using Photoshop for web design then don’t feel like you have to get Sketch. With that said I HIGHLY recommend investing in Meng To’s Design+Code. While it mainly focuses on iOS design, there is a lot of information that goes across the board for UI design, and it will give you an organized learning method (plus a discount on Sketch).
 
It’s also a good idea to familiarize yourself with Material Design. Google’s presentation of the topic gets a little too in-depth at times so you may just want to Google search for other explanations of Material Design (that’s a bit ironic huh?).
 
Okay so now you know how to design a basic UI right? Well what if you want to make your designs interactive? There’s quite a bit to benefit from actually seeing your designs work (or not work). Over the past couple years there’s been a gigantic influx of prototyping programs. They all have their pros and cons. Personally I use Pixate but at times it can be a little restricting. My iOS developer friend recommends Origami, it has a pretty steep learning curve but I think I may switch to that at some point.
 
The key to becoming effective at UI design is the same with any other form of design: practice, practice, practice.
 
Okay, now on to coding:
 
Depending on your goals you may have to alter your studies a bit. For example, knowing your way around HTML/CSS and jQuery will give you more control of the design process, improve your relationship with developers on your team and make you EXTREMELY marketable. However, in many cases, only a basic knowledge of those languages I mentioned is required (jQuery being more of a bonus). As a designer you may not even touch the coding side of things at all, it really just depends on the team you’re working with. With that said I HIGHLY suggest taking a dive into front-end coding eventually, you’ll hate yourself for not learning it earlier. Ditch dreamweaver too, pickup SublimeText. Team Treehouse and CodeAcademy are fan-fucking-tastic. Learned a lot from their education programs.
 
Whew, if that seems like a lot it’s because it is. Hopefully I broke it down into digestible chunks though. Remember, design is a never-ending learning experience. Don’t stop learning.
Great question!
Sometimes you test an idea, and it turns out it doesn't work, but you feel like it wasn't really a final test because maybe something could be changed and it would work.
I believe I understand what you're asking, and I think the trick to answering it is to change how you think about the problem a bit, so let me try and talk about it a bit.
The right way to approach it I think isn't about testing the idea, but about setting out to learn something. I think if you change that mental model, you can be clearer about what you want to learn, and try more ways of learning it than just regular user testing.
User Testing a Solution
Let me give an example. Lets say you're building a product to sell movie tickets using Amazon Alexa. You have a solution in mind, and you want to test it. You write the dialog, develop the conversational interface, create the list of films etc and ship it to thousands of homes.
Alexa has thousands of customers, but you only sell 27 movie tickets.
What's the result?
Well, you know you failed to sell a lot of tickets. But you don't really know why. Maybe people don't like the movies out this time of year. Maybe they don't like buying tickets whilst standing in their living room. Maybe they don't like buying tickets without hearing reviews. Maybe the way you had them talk to Alexa was awkward and they didn't understand it. It could be all sorts of things. But all you can really say for sure is that you didn't sell many tickets. Have you tested the idea? It's really hard to say. This is the problem I think you're talking about /u/pigmyhawk
So how could we think about this differently?
Well, we could try approaching things a bit differently where instead of saying "is this movie ticket design idea good" we say "is it true that ____?"
For example, instead of saying "is this ticket selling tool for Alexa good" we say "Is it true that people want to buy film tickets with their Alexa?"
Or we say "is it true that people will buy tickets without reading reviews?".
Or "is it true that people will buy movie tickets whilst in their living room?". Etc
See, there are all these different reasons that the original design might have failed, and the reason testing that design idea is so hard is because we're not really sure what we're learning by testing the design.
If instead we focus on what we want to learn, then we can build the right experiment to learn it. Maybe we go watch people interact with their Alexa and see if they even ask about movie tickets. Maybe we test two versions of the design, one with reviews and one without and see if there is a difference. This way we aren't just generically testing the design, but rather trying to learn something we think is important to know the answer to.
So I'm saying I think the solution is to be clearer at the start about what you want to learn, and then designing an experiment, which tests just that thing. If you run several experiments, each time you will learn more and have a better idea if your idea is right or not. That way you aren't testing an instantiation of the idea. You're testing the assumptions on which you base the idea.
Only once you've tested all the things you're most unsure about (and which are most important to your idea being successful) do you actually say "okay, we think we have learn enough that this is our best idea now, lets make it using all the knowledge we have".
----
If right now you're feeling like you didn't really test your idea, then I think the answer is that there are too many things you don't know the answer too. It's like you're doing a science experiment but there are 20 different things you didn't control for, so all the test shows is that one of those 20 things isn't right. You need to test less things at a time, and be clearer about what exactly you are trying to learn and how you are going to measure it.
So the answer is:
There's lots of different ways you can run experiments. They might be interviews and paper prototypes, or surveys, or just watching people looking for something in particular etc.
They might be A/B tests where you decide what you're trying to learn, you design an A/B test which test 2 different versions and compares them. A/B tests can help you because it's not just about which design is right, but about "is this difference important or not". You learn something by comparing the different results.
I've talked too much now, but I think the basic answer to your question is - be clearer ahead of time about what you are trying to learn. Don't test a whole design at once because there are too many moving parts. Instead, identify your assumptions, design experiments to learn if your assumptions are right, be clear about what you're going to measure, and then use what you learn to design better things. If you aren't sure what the results of a test were, it might mean you weren't clear at the start about what you were testing, or how you were going to measure it.
Couple of suggestions for things to look at:
I am a supermarket cashier who had gotten very fed up with customers so in an effort to regain empathy for the masses I wrote a poetry book of vignettes about all my customers giving them a backstory. It’s on sale on amazon for $5.
Supermarket Diaries
No, they are not.
There are many examples of Amazon doing extraordinary things (for instance, refunding an order that the USPS lost AFTER Amazon had already shipped it via UPS). Or for me recently, refunding an order that never showed up.
Rackspace Hosting has routinely been fanatical in their customer support, even going so far as to call me directly when they knew of an issue that would affect my business. They also sent me a package with all sorts of swag. Just randomly.
So, Lego is in a class of companies that practice smart/great customer service, but they are not the only ones.
Read "I Love you More than My Dog" to see more companies that understand the value of exceptional customer service.
Edit: I'm not saying that Lego doesn't have great customer service, but just sending someone parts for free is not so above and beyond that puts lego above all the rest. There are many companies that understand great customer service, and this is just one piece of that.
It's part of "Customer Success" where you have different "high touch", "low touch" and/or "tech touch" (triggered emails) based on your biz and the type of customer. E.g. If you have a lot of low-value customers you could do triggered emails. But if you have high value customers you should be tracking those same behaviors and doing QBRs and basically holding their hand (because high value).
But before that you need to actually figure out the steps your customers need to take to be successful using your product (understanding the customer journey). And then relentlessly helping them clear hurdles through whatever methods and communications make sense for your business.
I really loved this book: Customer Success: How Innovative Companies Are Reducing Churn and Growing Recurring Revenue https://www.amazon.com/dp/1119167965/
Buckle up! In my teams, leaders are readers.
Here's a short list:
Oh and here is Lincoln Murphy's book list.
Just started reading UX team of one
and
Lean UX
It seems as though your company is in need of this
http://www.amazon.com/Customer-Service-Dummies-Karen-Leland/dp/0471768693
I haven't read this book myself, but "Lean UX" is very popular and covers this exact topic.
https://www.amazon.com/Lean-UX-Applying-Principles-Experience/dp/1449311652
Prospect the Sandler Way. It's an amazing read.
https://www.amazon.com/Prospect-Sandler-Way-Stress-Free-Development-ebook/dp/B00LFTL9A0
I am self taught and design applications for human and system workflows at a Internet security company. I am biased but I don't think a degree will necessarily give you more hands on skills than just finding projects and building a portfolio to show your skills. There are many many different niche categories, every UX professional I have met have different skill sets. For example I tend in a version of lean UX which includes need finding, requirements validation, user testing, workflow analysis, system design, prototyping, analytics, and accessibility design (not in that order). I am interlocked with the engineering team so my job is FAR different than many UX professionals I know who work with marketing teams. They tend to specialize very deeply in research, prototyping, user testing, and analytics. Some UX types code and some use prototyping tools like Balsamiq, UXpin, Adobe etc. There is heavy debate on which path is more useful/safe/ relevant. Where I work I do not get time to code because my team and I feel I provide the best value to our engineering team and internal/external customers by doing the items listed above. The other UX person I will work with me on similar activities but then may be given projects to look at the best options for reusable components and code them up for testing.
TLDR:
Here are some of my resources I found helpful.
(confessions: I've posted these before in other comments but I hope you find it helpful)
Sub-reddits:
Sites:
Books:
Tools (other than typical Adobe design tools):
MISC:
Lean UX: Applying Lean Principles to Improve User Experience https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1449311652/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awd_lTi9wb8GSDPDD
Here are all the local Amazon links I could find:
amazon.co.uk
amazon.ca
amazon.com.au
amazon.in
amazon.com.mx
amazon.de
amazon.it
amazon.es
amazon.com.br
Beep bloop. I'm a bot to convert Amazon ebook links to local Amazon sites.
I currently look here: amazon.com, amazon.co.uk, amazon.ca, amazon.com.au, amazon.in, amazon.com.mx, amazon.de, amazon.it, amazon.es, amazon.com.br, if you would like your local version of Amazon adding please contact my creator.
Lean UX
About Face - Essentials of Interaction Design
Got mine last year.
Honestly your best bet is to use the videos provided in the training section if your company already has a version that supports it.
I read through this book as well. which seemed to help some.
Otherwise, sign up for the trailhead modules and familiarize yourself with the back end.
I know there is nothing I can say to change your opinion on this, but just understand that Publix is where it is because of the policies we have in place to take care of our customers. If we modify these policies,we are no better than the joint down the street. Don't loose a customer because of a few dollar chicken.
See if any of the managers have these books, it might explain it more
https://www.amazon.com/Fifty-Years-Pleasure-Illustrated-History/dp/B0006E21WA
https://www.amazon.com/Piece-Pie-Customer-Service-Publix/dp/0976818302/ref=pd_sim_14_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=JCH3NN7ASBXCZXWYHEVT
The deli is the hardest job inside the four walls of a Publix store. I respect anyone who puts on that orange shirt and goes behind that counter.
Direct link to amazon page.
>I want to design some UI/UX elements for this too and I don't know what should I use for that.
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Learn how to carry out lean user research ("UX research") before jumping into designing and coding things. Make sure you're solving a legitimate user problem
​
UX and UI are two very different things
​
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Lean-UX-Applying-Principles-Experience/dp/1449311652
​
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Validating-Product-Ideas-Through-Research/dp/1933820292/ref=sr_1_1?crid=WJGAFM0WD67M&keywords=tomer+sharon&qid=1567899236&s=books&sprefix=tomer+sha%2Cstripbooks%2C142&sr=1-1
Customer Happiness on the Horizons: How to achieve Customer Happiness and Loyalty influenced by Happy Employees - Robert Keay
This read made me realise that I was wasting my time doing everything that everyone else was doing in business. After I read through this, something just clicked.
Great idea. Sometimes goes by the moniker "Lean UX" as in http://www.amazon.com/Lean-UX-Applying-Principles-Experience/dp/1449311652 and http://www.amazon.com/UX-Lean-Startups-Experience-Research/dp/1449334911/ref=pd_sim_b_9?ie=UTF8&refRID=0ZY6P3SYWTKC77QXRKS6
https://www.amazon.com/Lean-UX-Applying-Principles-Experience/dp/1449311652
My favorites are:
https://www.amazon.com/Ultimate-Online-Customer-Service-Guide/dp/0470637706
https://www.amazon.com/Thank-You-Economy-Gary-Vaynerchuk/dp/0061914185
and Jeff Toister's books https://www.toistersolutions.com/books
I'd be happy to send you a copy of The Ultimate Customer Service Guide and one of Jeff's books.
Have a read of Lean UX and also Communicating the User Experience both really awesome with loads of practical tips, tricks, and insights from real world examples
https://www.amazon.com/Customer-Success-Innovative-Companies-Recurring/dp/1119167965
Read "Streetwise: How Taxi Drivers Establish Customer's Trustworthiness" by Diego Gambetta and Heather Hamill (maybe skip the hardcover version if you see the price).
Great book that is a collection of interviews with Dublin and New York cabbies that analyzes their threat models and tactics.
Dublin section is the best part. Mix casual mugging with sectarian warfare.
Pinfluence: The Complete Guide to Marketing Your Business with PinterestSOLD!Communicating DesignSOLD!Event PlanningSOLD!TwittervilleSOLD!The Truth About Email MarketingSOLD!The Little Red Book About SellingSOLD!Secrets of Social Media MarketingSOLD!Rebel’s Guide To Email MarketingSOLD!Preparing A Successful Business PlanSOLD!Business Model GenerationSOLD!Transcending CSSSOLD!Designing with Web StandardsSOLD!Designing with Web Standards - 2nd EditionSOLD!Social Media is BullshitSOLD!Content Rules: How to Create Killer Blogs, Podcasts, Videos, Ebooks, Webinars (and More) That Engage Customers and Ignite Your BusinessSOLD!Defensive Design for The WebSOLD!MTIVSOLD!OK I lied, that's not exactly what happened. I said "returns are outside of my jurisdiction, let me get my manager." The customer had bought a pair of $300.00 Ugg boots. It was a Christmas present for her daughter or something like that. Then she returned them a week later saying something like "they're too big for my daughter" or "she doesn't like them". Since they weren't worn outside, we were willing to take them back. However, she no longer had the large Ugg-branded box that the boots came in. Without that, we would not be able to resell the shoes to another customer, because there would be no way to box them in storage, and also the customer wouldn't get the original box so they might expect a discount. Manager tried to explain to her that without the box we couldn't perform a return.
Customer flipped out. Said shit like "oh come on, just resell it to someone else, they won't care the box isn't there!" So pretty much, she automatically knows more about shoe sales than we do. The manager said "I can't authorize the return without the box, because then I would be responsible for the product when it can't be sold" (and this is a $300 pair of boots), and the customer flipped out at that point. Saying that we were being unreasonable, that she felt ripped off, that this was a scam charging that much for shoes and refusing to take the return, etc...
My manager was a 21 year old girl and she had absolutely no idea what to say. She tried to explain the situation, but the customer didn't care for an explanation. Beyond that she didn't know what to say. So then the customer started verbally assaulting the girl personally I believe, something like "you should feel bad working here, your company is terrible, bla bla bla". And at that point, she just stood there not being able to speak, she was obviously destroyed on the inside. So at that point, there was two other ladies in line, and they told the customer "you should be ashamed to talk to someone like that, especially a helpless young girl who obviously didn't have anything to do with this situation. If you have a problem, call the corporate office, and yell at them. But don't yell at this innocent girl."
In any case, I read a couple books on "dealing with the customer from hell", and I noticed a couple mistakes the manager did when trying to resolve the conflict. Pretty much it says the customer wants to be heard above all else, so let them explain themselves fully, and don't cut them off until they're finished saying the whole thing. Sympathize with the situation, say things like "damn, it's disappointing your daughter didn't like the shoes, you must have been looking for the perfect shoes for a long time before you got those for her." Then repeat the request you think they had, "so you're saying that you need to return these shoes so you can find a better gift, but you don't have the box anymore?" This gives the customer the chance to add any more details if you missed something. Or if not, it makes them feel you're making an effort to listen. Finally you try to look for a way to make it happen. If you're the store manager, you can call regional and ask them if they can do something for the customer. They might be able to validate the return, or if not, they can take a message for someone higher in corporate to review the case, at which point they'll take down the customer's number, and will give them a call back with a follow-up. In the end, I think she called corporate and got them to approve the return without the box. But by that point, all hell already broke loose in the store. And it's because the manager didn't know how to handle the situation. The manager thought her job was to be the iron fist that tells the customer NO, "because store policy." But her job was to be a good listener and a problem solver.