As cultures, values and ethics change, customers service skills seem to as well. Good customers service is the lifeblood of any business. You can offer any sort of “teaser” to bring in new customers all you want, but if they don’t come back again, your business won’t be profitable for long.
Good customers service is all about bringing customers back – and bringing them back happy, happy enough to be an “unpaid cheerleader”, one who sings your praises to anyone who will listen.
A good salesperson can sell anything to anyone once. But it will be the approach you use that will determine whether or not you’ll ever be able to sell that person anything else. The key is to form a relationship with customers – one the customers feels he would like to pursue.
How do you go about doing that? Remember the one true secret of good customers service and apply it: “You will be judged by what you do, not what you say.” Are you truly being respectful? Do you listen? Are you empathetic? Do you have insight? These are things that help in understanding your client and their concerns.
There will be employees that feel good customers service is an extension of their job. It is not. It is an integral part that focuses on the most vital asset – its customers. Without them, a business cannot exist.
So what are some good customers Service Basics? We mentioned several above but below are a few more details….
1) Be a Good Listener
Is there anything more exasperating than having to re-tell your problem or what you want because the person hasn’t been paying attention? Let your customers talk and concentrate on what they are really saying. Listen to their words, tone, body language and most importantly how they feel. Make appropriate responses to show you are listening.
2) Make Customers Feel Appreciated and Important
Train your staff on what is (and isn’t) good customers service. We all want to feel valued, appreciated and important. Do each of your employees know how to express that to the customers? People know when they are being treated with genuine sincerity. It creates good feeling and trust. In what ways you can do that to create positive feedback for your company?
3) Be Helpful Even if you Don’t Profit Immediately
Remember I mentioned an “unpaid cheerleader”? If you give more than expected, expect to get more business! This will elevate you above the competition. What can you do for them that is totally unexpected? What can you do to follow-up and thank people even when they don’t buy? We’ve had long term customers come from those who were just told about our services and the care we take with individuals.
4) Apologize if you Need to
No one is perfect. Things will go wrong. It’s how you deal with those incidents that create positive moments with your customers. Last week we had a phone call from a woman confused about her bill. Our office manager realized the error and that it was our fault. She immediately took action by apologizing, adjusting the bill and explained what happened. The customers was so appreciative for her quick response she sent a glowing note to our company stating that while our techs were great, it was our honesty that will give them the incentive to recommend us to others.
5) Don’t Make Promises Unless you Keep Them
Let your “yes mean yes”. We’ve heard that before, but do we realize the effect on our customers? Reliability is one of the keys to any good relationship; good customers service is no exception. If you promise Wednesday before noon – make it so. If you cannot make it, don’t promise or if something comes up at least call with plenty of lead time. Think before you promise – nothing will erode customers confidence more than a broken one.
Now after refreshing your memory with all the right things to do for the customers, let me relate a nightmare of customers service.
(The foul language is clearly wrong in this story. What else can you identify after reading over the 5 above points?)
“I had a problem with a new piece of electronic equipment and called for assistance. The first technician I talked with insisted that there was nothing wrong with its company’s equipment, that it must be my fault. When I explained that everything in the network had worked perfectly until I powered the new item up, he laughed at me. When I asked to talk to his supervisor, he responded with the infamous two letter expletive and hung up. I called back and spoke with a different tech who was able to resolve the problem in a matter of minutes and who then asked his supervisor to join us on the line. When I told the supervisor of my earlier experience, she asked me to give her one day so she could resolve the problem. She called back in less than fifteen minutes to tell me that she and the call center manager had reviewed the tape of the call, fired the original technician, and promoted the second one to a customers service training position. It went from being the worst customers service experience ever to one of the best in less than half an hour.”
It almost curls your hair doesn’t it? How we treat our customers has a HUGE effect on whether our business continues to do well or not. Make it your resolve to apply the 5 suggestions listed and see the response you get!
