Nathan Schwenke of Digitech Systems On How to Build Lasting Customer Relationships
An Interview with Rachel Kline
Most Important Item: Building & Maintaining a “Legendary Customer Service Team” — It is all about the people. At the end of the day, without our great staff and management, we wouldn’t be able to provide the type of service that we do.
Building lasting customer relationships has many benefits, including increased revenue, positive word-of-mouth recommendations, and saving on acquisition costs. But how does one do this? In this interview series, we are talking to Product Managers, founders, and authors who can share their “Five Tips For Building Lasting Customer Relationships”. As a part of this series, we had the pleasure of interviewing Nathan Schwenke.
Nathan Schwenke is an award-winning Vice President of Customer Support at Digitech Systems. Nathan leads a legendary customer support team that resolves 87% of issues same-day, and a live person answers calls in less than 9 seconds on average. Nathan applies that same customer commitment as an entrepreneur, starting a successful treasure-hunting business called Midwest Diggers with his wife and son. No matter what he does, Nathan recognizes that positive customer journeys fuel growth and loyalty.
Thank you for doing this with us! Before we begin, our readers would like to learn a bit more about you. Can you tell us the “backstory” about what brought you to this career path?
Before joining Digitech Systems, I owned a data processing and mailing company. When 9/11 hit, direct mail took a major hit with the anthrax scares and much of the industry ground to a halt. I sought a change to the technology side of things. My sister was working at Digitech Systems and felt I’d be a perfect fit, so I joined over 20 years ago.
After selling my company, I was drawn to the opportunity of a fast-growing software firm where I could stretch my customer service skills. Going from the physical mailings to the software powering it all was an exciting transition. Now I get to focus on providing legendary customer service on the tech side rather than just using the tech. Seeing how our solutions empower digitization and automation across so many industries is rewarding.
And I’m proud to work at a company with similar values to my own — doing whatever it takes for customers, always improving, and having real heart. Digitech Systems has given me a chance to grow as a leader while guiding an incredible support team. I’m grateful this career path led me to a place where I can drive impact while being myself.
Can you share with our readers the most interesting or amusing story that has occurred to you in your career so far? Can you share the lesson or takeaway you took from that story?
I live close to our office in Nebraska since I hate commuting. One winter, we had over a foot of snowfall, and no one could make it to work except me. I walked all the way to the office that day through the blizzard just to make sure I could be there for any clients who needed help. It was a bit extreme, but that commitment to serve our customers no matter what it takes is fundamental to why our support is legendary.
It’s also been fun discovering how many of our clients and coworkers at Digitech Systems headquarters in Colorado share my passion for treasure hunting. The wilderness provides so much more opportunity out there to explore, and I’ve connected with several people through our shared hobby. There are more similarities than you’d think between providing tech support and searching for treasure, like being committed to the journey to find solutions.
Are you working on any exciting new projects now? How do you think that will help people?
One of our big initiatives right now is building a self-paced online training program for our software solutions. In the past, we’ve provided primarily live training, but with remote work increasing, it’s harder to coordinate schedules and keep attendees focused.
My team has invested heavily in creating video tutorials and training content. Now our marketing team is building the platform for users to access this material anytime on their own schedule. There will be an agenda to follow, just like an in-person class, with opportunities for hands-on practice as they learn. The goal is to provide that same interactive educational experience without requiring a live trainer. We’re excited to make this huge library of training resources easily accessible for clients to ramp up at their own pace.
For the benefit of our readers, can you tell us a bit about your experience with building lasting customer relationships? Can you share an anecdote or two that illustrates your experience in this area?
Meeting customers face to face has been huge for building lasting relationships over the years. You establish a deeper connection when you can interact in real life. This goes for any industry — to provide the best experience, you need to embrace opportunities to physically get out and meet your users.
Beyond meeting in person, it’s about having a curious mindset. Be hungry to really understand each customer’s unique needs and challenges. Dig deep to grasp their world so you can better serve them. Approaching every user with that level of care and curiosity results in meaningful relationships that last.
In today’s fast-paced and constantly evolving landscape, what strategies do you employ to maintain a strong connection with your customers and anticipate their changing needs?
We gather customer feedback, whether through post-call surveys or follow-up conversations. If a customer gives us anything short of a perfect score, we reach back out to understand why and improve. People are always surprised when we call them after a case just to check in on their experience.
It shows we genuinely care and aren’t just trying to solve issues and move on. We take pride in those connections. In today’s impersonal digital world, reaching a human is rare — we answer calls within 9 seconds on average and resolve 87% of cases same day. Being consistently available and fast is what customers need, but remembering we’re serving real people with real, important issues that deserve quick and skilled support is what creates lasting relationships.
Can you discuss the strategies that companies can employ to strike a balance between driving revenue and profitability, and focusing on building customer relationships and loyalty?
Happy customers drive revenue, plain and simple. As our CEO says, “It starts with the customer.” Unhappy clients lead to business challenges, while customer focus drives growth and referrals. Providing our level of support with live 24/7 call answering is expensive, but it pays off through loyalty and word-of-mouth.
Our channel partners use our customer service as a selling point, calling in during sales presentations to show prospects how quickly we answer. When customers feel genuinely taken care of, they spread that message.
Could you describe the metrics and measures you use to evaluate the success of your customer relationship-building efforts, and how you identify areas for improvement?
First and foremost, our average call answer time is 9 seconds — you get a live person nearly instantly. We also resolve 87% of cases same day, meaning we solve issues incredibly fast. The 13% that carry over tend to involve other teams because they are more complex, but we pride ourselves on quick resolution.
Our overall goal is to reach a support engineer within 20 seconds 98% of the time, which is almost unheard of in our industry. Speed paired with knowledge is key — we train staff extensively so they can serve customers efficiently and effectively.
Regarding customer-facing teams, what steps do you take to ensure they can deliver personalized, proactive, and efficient support, tailored to the needs of each individual customer?
We invest heavily in training before staff ever interact with customers, unlike many companies that rush to get new hires on the phones. We want even first-time callers to feel like they’re working with a seasoned veteran. Our program covers product knowledge but also focuses on empathy, communication, and the human connection.
At the end of the day, you need the right mindset and soft skills to provide exceptional support. The technical side can be taught, but it takes hiring for emotional intelligence and molding reps into gurus who can solve problems and build relationships. That trust keeps customers coming back year after year.
What tips do you have for responding to negative feedback from customers, and what steps can be taken to turn those experiences into positive outcomes?
If we receive negative feedback, we don’t get discouraged. Just like with treasure hunting, you must power through challenges on the journey. There are always more opportunities to improve and make each customer interaction better.
We truly appreciate candid opinions from users because they help us grow. Each piece of feedback provides one more chance to show we’re dedicated to building lasting relationships, even if that means patiently turning detractors into promoters.
Lastly, how do you use technology or AI to enhance your customer relationships, and what tools have you found to be most effective in building and maintaining them?
The phone. As simple as it sounds, picking up the phone is key — talking to customers shows we care. Emails get lost, and chats feel impersonal, but the phone guarantees real human interaction.
That immediacy is why we answer fast, train well, and strive to resolve issues quickly. We know reaching a live, knowledgeable service rep can turn a customer’s whole experience around. The phone builds bonds that automated systems simply can’t.
Here is the main question of our interview. In your experience, what are five key components of building lasting customer relationships? If you can, please share a story or example for each.
1. Collect Customer Feedback — We make it very easy for our customers to provide feedback by simply selecting a smiley face or a frown for their experience. Anything but a perfect score gets a personal phone call from our department manager.
2. Reliability — Offering toll-free live support to our customers where you get to speak with a real agent who is well-versed in our product lines and can rely on knowing they can reach an agent within 9 seconds, is unheard of today. Especially after COVID, so many companies went to only email correspondence if you’re lucky to even hear back. Many of our resellers will make a test call in front of a prospect to show them how quick we are to answer a call, and this usually helps them close a deal.
3. Going Above & Beyond — In the Enterprise Content Management world (ECM), people use our software all over the world and in many types of environments, Hospitals, Finance, Government. Business does not stop! So we have to go above and beyond to provide the customer service they need, whether that is walking to work in a snowstorm or taking a call during Thanksgiving Dinner to support a bank that had issues retrieving documents. That is what makes customer service legendary.
4. Showing Understanding & Empathy to our Customers — Customers are not calling us because things are working great. They reach out for large issues, and some are not in the best of moods. If our engineers can relate to how they are feeling and show sincere empathy, then addressing the technical component comes as a bonus!
5. Most Important Item: Building & Maintaining a “Legendary Customer Service Team” — It is all about the people. At the end of the day, without our great staff and management, we wouldn’t be able to provide the type of service that we do.
How do you ensure that these ideas are implemented throughout the customer journey?
We incorporate these principles in every stage of the customer journey, from onboarding to support and beyond. Our entire company models this people-first approach — we recognize that mobile and self-serve options can augment relationships, but the human touch remains irreplaceable. Providing truly legendary service means keeping people at the heart no matter what.
If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the greatest amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. :-)
I’ve always believed that a very simple action of showing respect to others creates a positive experience for the recipient that is easily passed on to others. It can create a domino effect, and before you know it, that simple action of showing respect to a single person might have touched 5 or 6 others down the line in a positive way.
How can our readers further follow your work online?
· Digitech Systems: https://www.digitechsystems.com/digitech-systems-vice-president-recognized-by-enx-magazine/
· LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathan-schwenke-96219511/
· Treasure Hunting Shop Link: https://www.midwestdiggers.com
Thank you for the interview. We wish you only continued success!
