When the H1N1 virus outbreak happened, State Industrial Products was slammed with demand for its hand sanitizer 10 times higher than what it had seen in prior years. While this may be difficult for many companies to keep up with, under the leadership of Harold Uhrman, the company, which manufactures and distributes specialty chemicals, was able to successfully meet its customers’ needs.
This commitment to meeting customer needs has been crucial to the company’s success for the past 100 years, and unlike many companies, much of the organization’s customer service actually takes place after the sale. State Industrial’s sales and service teams serve about 25,000 customers each year through its Circle of Service program. These associates recognize that customers constantly face new challenges and aim to help them through finding new solutions and products.
The sales team consists of 475 account managers who work with the customer to identify new opportunities for improvement through a survey of its facility. Based on what the account manager finds, that person will then make suggestions for products or systems that solve the customer’s need or problem. The sales team even goes the extra mile by installing systems and training customers and end users on how to use the new equipment they’ve purchased.
But the service doesn’t end at just the training. Instead, the account manager visits his or her customers on a regular basis to check on the progress of the solutions, to ensure customer satisfaction, review inventory levels and support them with troubleshooting or additional product training. Additionally, the account managers make themselves available to their customers 24/7 in case there is an emergency.
The account managers always go the extra mile — even painting customers’ buildings or windows for the holidays — and this extra mile makes all the difference in State Industrial’s business.
How to reach: State Industrial Products, (216) 861-7114 or www.stateindustrial.com
