As the quality of service declines, and customers become more fed up with the service they receive, customer service becomes more of a "front page" issue.  CSS consultants are often contacted by the media or other publications for contributions to articles or stories.   Below are a articles either authored by CSS experts, or quoting them as a part of the overall piece.

Teams need not guess why they've lost a season ticket holder - Sports Business Journal - 5/11/09-5/17/09 issue:  Abstract:  All businesses lose customers for a reason.  They cannot know whether those reasons have to do with economic issues (which they cannot control), or with the overall experience of attending games and their relationship with the organization (which they can) without asking lost fans whey they've left.  The exit interview is best handled by a professional, objective researcher rather than a transaction-oriented salesperson...

Understand just what’s on your customer’s mind - Charlotte Business Journal - Customer Solutions - 4/17/09:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2009/04/20/smallb6.html

Keep employees happy to keep your clients - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 3/13/09:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2009/03/16/smallb7.html

Going Undercover - Mystery shoppers can help you experience your customers' reality - PublicWorks - 3/1/09:  http://www.pwmag.com/industry-news.asp?sectionID=0&articleID=902072

When the customer isn't buying, pull, don't push - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 2/6/09:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2009/02/09/smallb7.html

A Mystery Shopper in the Public School Market - The School Administrator - Service Solutions - January 2009:  http://www.aasa.org/publications/saarticledetail.cfm?ItemNumber=10967&snItemNumber=950&tnItemNumber=1995

It's time to refresh relationships with clients - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 1/9/09:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2009/01/12/smallb8.html

Let Customer Service be your company's defense - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 12/5/08:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2008/12/08/smallb10.html

Don't let sales success make you complacent - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 10/17/08:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2008/10/20/smallb5.html

High-tech crystal ball can help you retain clients - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 9/19/08:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2008/09/22/smallb10.html

Admitting failure can help you retain customers - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 8/22/08:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2008/08/25/smallb9.html

A culture of trust can pay off for staff, customers - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 8/1/08:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2008/08/04/smallb10.html

Learn from the airlines’ customer-service missteps - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 7/11/08:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2008/07/14/smallb9.html

Be open to changes that will benefit customers - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 5/30/08:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2008/06/02/smallb10.html

It pays off to give all your customers luxury service - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 5/2/08:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2008/05/05/smallb10.html

It's crucial to hear the truth from customers - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 4/4/08:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2008/04/07/smallb8.html

To retain customers, first recognize their differences - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 1/25/08:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2008/01/28/smallb8.html

Remove the internal barriers to customer loyalty - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 12/7/07:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2007/12/10/smallb10.html

Client retention makes sense - and dollars - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 12/7/07:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2008/01/07/smallb8.html

Make sure firm excels at customer-service basics - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 12/7/07:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2008/03/10/smallb10.html

Reignite the spark that will keep customers loyal - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 11/9/07:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2007/11/12/smallb10.html

You can still make hay during your slow times - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 10/12/07:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2007/10/15/smallb9.html

Reinforce the training of your staff - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 9/21/07:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2007/09/24/smallb2.html

Make IT department a tech-service center - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 8/31/07:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2007/09/03/smallb8.html

Customer-service lessons from the tooth fairy - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 8/3/07:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2007/08/06/smallb9.html

Workers' routine contact with customers builds your brand - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 7/13/07:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2007/07/16/smallb8.html

Two keys for customers: comfort and confidence - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 6/22/07:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2007/06/25/smallb10.html

Try to change the way you view difficult situations - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 4/13/07:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2007/04/16/smallb9.html

One-word answer to customer is OK, if it's positive - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 3/23/07:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2007/03/26/smallb10.html

Throw in an extra cookie to get a happy customer - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 3/2/07:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2007/03/05/smallb10.html

Learn by asking good questions - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 1/19/07:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2007/01/22/smallb2.html

Remember: It's all about the customer - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 11/24/06:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2006/11/27/smallb2.html

Your service makes the difference - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 10/20/06:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2006/10/23/smallb2.html

Be visible when going gets rough - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 9/1/06:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2006/09/04/smallb2.html

Raising the bar raises expectations - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 7/28/06:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2006/07/31/smallb2.html

Get it right or risk losing customers - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 5/5/06:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2006/05/08/smallb2.html

Overcoming staff's fear of change - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 3/31/06:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2006/04/03/smallb2.html

Ensuring employees are effective - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 2/17/06:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2006/02/20/smallb2.html

Appreciating the customer pays off in repeat business - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 11/18/05:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2005/11/21/smallb7.html

Customer service can be your advantage - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 9/23/05:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2005/09/26/smallb8.html

Rewarding customers can pay off - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 9/2/05:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2005/09/05/smallb2.html

Local golf center also provides lessons for running a business - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 2/13/04:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2004/02/16/smallb4.html

Hickory firm builds business by building relationships - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 2/21/03:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2003/02/24/smallb4.html

Former farmer is cultivating relationships at service shop - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Solutions - 9/13/02:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2002/09/16/smallb4.html

Hospital consolidates its complaints to cure its ills - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Success - 8/16/02:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2002/08/19/smallb4.html

To retain clients, find creative ways to reward them - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Success - 7/19/02:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2002/07/22/smallb4.html

Don't let your attitude hang customer service out to dry - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Success - 6/7/02:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2002/06/10/smallb4.html

Hockey franchise checks its service to boost attendance - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Success - 5/12/02:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2002/05/20/smallb5.html

Apply the recession lessons for economic recovery - Charlotte Business Journal - Service Success - 4/12/02:  http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2002/04/15/smallb4.html