Happy Customer Service Week!

I'm hoping you've got it marked on your calendar --> It's National Customer Service Week! (I assume smart people celebrate it all across the world, but I believe we only formally recognize this here in the US... thus the "National" distinction. With some Canada thrown in too.)

First of all I would like to be the first to say "THANK YOU" to the people on our customer service staff who have taken the hit for a very challenging year. Although, I know I am not first, because Jorge Molina who runs the department thanks them everyday. With the new business model, challenges in our processing systems, and an increase in shipments, we've had longer hold times, some angrier customers who rightfully are confounded when the rep they are speaking too can offer only intermittent access to their customer information. I mean it when I tell you, these folks have taken the bullet for us. But things have recently seen incredible improvement. This week signals the change, a shift toward the excellence we all seek for Beachbody Customer Service.

Our customer service management team is so strong it is difficult to say anything except, we got lucky. That luck started when we asked our utility player, Heather Church to find us some help to supplement our customer service area back in the early days. Her nose for talent ws keen since the three people she hired as temps back in 2001 still work for us - and have evolved their careers into something really special. Cintra continues to work with the Beachbody community while she spends time raising her son. Drew has grown from customer service temp to our Training Manager. Amber has also grown from temp rep to our Director of CRM. When I need an answer, I know she can find a way to get it for me. And I think everyone in the company feels that way.

Things got so tight this year that I finally had to take a deep breath, and look into expansion off shore. One of our senior managementnt team, Ravi has contacts in India that were well educated and well trained. When it came to fighting this year's customer service fires Jorge even had the chops to get this offshore capability implemented in under two months, instantly expanding our customer service capabilities by 50%, and instantly cut our benchmark hold times drastically. There were times last Friday our hold times were under thirty seconds! Awesome!

I know many of our customer service staff feel what they do goes by unnoticed. But it's not true. We know that when we give them the right tools and capacity, they are the bedrock of the company. When we struggle with technology, they feel the heat. My gratitude for this group runs so deep, I am almost embarrasseded to visit. Any action I take feels like it would be insufficient.

So at Beachbody we are taking this week to recognize them, and their noble profession, servicing the reason we have a company in the first place: Our awesome customers.

[Pictured -- Jorge, Delia, Shakima and Jude]

We will have competitions all week that recognize a spirit of "Focus on the Customer" and create fun ways to say thank you for their efforts. There will be team competitions, in the categories of Perfect Attendance, Customer Compliments, plus some funny costume and food competitions.

We will also have a "composition competition", where many in the department will share their best Beachbody Customer Service story. A winner will be selected each day of the week.
This is my favorite part. THIS IS THE STUFF I NOTICE. THIS IS THE STUFF WHICH MAKES ME LOVE THIS COMPANY EVEN MORE.

So, with this blog entry I say "Thanks to YOU, CS Team." I know it hasn't been easy. But I am hoping recent efforts to make it work better will succeed. In the meantime, please accept my gratitude, my salute, and resounding "hooyah!" for a valiant effort and your continued commitment to our customers and delivering on our Core Values.