Happy Customer Service Week! (Oct. 6-10 2008)

With Customer Service week starting, I thought I would take a few minutes to focus on some of my top tips for customer service excellence. As a former supervisor in a financial services call center, I took many calls from upset customers. Many times, it was our own service reps who caused or exacerbated an issue to the point that the customer had had it and would only speak with a supervisor.

It's a fact that customer service should take center stage for retaining existing customers and attracting new ones. Great customer service is all about creating positive experience for the customer from the very beginning. And it makes great business sense to do so. Satisfied customers are a company’s biggest cheerleaders, and have a tangible effect on attracting new customers through word of mouth referrals.

It really isn't complicated. It's simply acknowledging and resolving your customer’s concerns. From the moment the customer walks into the office or calls you up on the phone, he is assessing his relationship with your company. His continued use of your product or service may hinge on this very contact so give each one the serious consideration it deserves.

Here are my top ten tips for treating each customer like the valuable ambassador he is:

• Greet the person warmly and with enthusiasm.
• Let the customer know you really want to help.
• Listen carefully to what the customer tells you, rephrasing and repeating to make sure you understand the customer’s needs and to let him/her know you understand them.
• Use proper language at all times, avoid slang, internal acronyms or technical jargon.
• Remember your manners! Say ‘Please’ and ‘Thank You.’
• Do not rush the conversation. Even if you don’t come out and say, ‘Hurry up already,’ your body language and tone of voice might just say it for you. Heavy sighs, rolling eyes, shaking your head in a no-no movement all translate into ‘I want this conversation to be over.’
• If the customer is upset or angry, let him vent a little. Most likely, he will begin to calm down on his own when he figures out that you are listening and really want to help. If, after several minutes, the customer is still venting, it’s okay to interrupt with ‘I can tell you are really upset by this. Let me see if I understand the problem and then I will explain exactly how I can solve this for you.’
• If the company has made a mistake, don’t be afraid to say ‘I’m sorry.’
• Check your emotions at the door. An upset customer isn’t mad at you. He doesn't even know you and probably has never even spoke to you before now. He’s mad at the company. Don’t take it personally or power trip. Even upset, grumpy customers deserve exceptional customer service. Solve his problem and you will likely have a customer for life.
• Let the customer know what's next, and make sure to follow through and follow up. If you make a promise, keep it! There is nothing worse than getting a call from an upset customer, convincing him that you really want to help, making certain promises and then forgetting all about him when you hang up the phone. Do what you say you are going to do, otherwise he isn’t going to believe a word anyone says the next time he calls in.

Customer service should be a top priority in every company. Always, always remember that your primary goal with every customer contact is to address and resolve their concerns. After all, without customers you and I wouldn’t have a job! In my opinion, customers deserve our undivided attention, respect and good-faith effort to resolve their concerns.