21 Ways to GREAT UNEXPECTED Customer Service
By Nancy Friedman, The Telephone Doctor
OK! OK! Yes, there are certainly more than 21 ways to GREAT customer service, but rather than overwhelm you, we wanted to start out with a palatable number. And 21 sounded like a good number to me. Any one of these tips will produce better relations in your customer service. The idea is to bring UNEXPECTED GREAT customer service. Things that other folks don’t do!
1. Smile! All the time. Right. Don’t kid yourself. Just as it can be seen in person, it can be heard on the phone. So as NIKE says…Just Do It!
2. Say something nice at least once a day to someone. I was at the St. Louis airport a while back and the skycap came up to me and said, “Are you going first class or does it just look that way?” That was over 10 years ago and it still seems like yesterday. People remember nice things…just as they remember the not so nice things.
3. Don’t ever argue with a customer. You’ll lose every single time. Don’t even get into the ring with them. “Maybe you’re right” is a great saying.
4. If you’re sending something to a customer via any method, consider adding a short personal note. Items received without any note or mention of the transaction is perceived as cold and rude. A simple “Thank you” on company notepaper will do the trick. It says you stopped to do something special.
5. Use “WE” statements when possible rather than YOU. We is consultative and feels friendlier. And it’s far less confrontational.
6. See someone walking into your store/branch/location/office? Say “HELLO” loud and clear. Ignoring people, even fellow employees, isn’t good customer service
7. Keep the fences in your organization low. We all know there needs to be rules, guidelines and policies. However, when there are so many of them, they can make doing business difficult. It’s not worth it.
8. Be a double checker. Often, we can miss something or not know all the details. Most people appreciate hearing, “The last time I checked, we were out of stock on that; however, let me DOUBLE CHECK for you.” That particular statement is so comforting. Everyone loves a double checker.
9. We cannot do 2 things well at once. If you’re working with a customer on the phone or in person, then focus on that person. Trying to type or file or do some paperwork while you’re communicating with a customer is dangerous…and rude.
10. If your attitude stinks, change it. No one – absolutely no one – wants to be connected with someone with a bad or negative attitude.
11. Respond rapidly. When you receive information from a client, it’s a good thing to let them know you did receive it and will be working on it! That’s good communication.
12. Extend a firm handshake when being introduced to a customer. And FIRM is the key word. That loose, fish-like handshake is not a sign of confidence. FIRM is key
13. Thank you notes are still thought of as GREAT. Take the time to jot several off a day to new or, better yet, older clients. Email thank you’s are just OK. Unexpected is a personal note.
14. Use your name when you answer the phone. Everyone likes to know who they’re talking with.
15. Use your listening skills more often. We all like to talk, mainly to show off how much we know. But listening to what the customer knows is much better. Let others have the stage.
16. It shouldn’t take 2 people to give good customer service. Learn how to handle the situation yourself rather than trying to get rid of it by shipping it off to a co-worker or supervisor.
17. Show some empathy or sympathy when a customer complains. Doing or saying nothing when they feel they have a problem will put you in the doghouse fast.
18. Learn to say, “I apologize for what happened.” Do something that will allow the customer to feel that you are apologizing. That quick, “Sorry ‘bout that” statement sounds as though you’re throwing the statement away.
19. Be prepared. If you’re in customer service, or any frontline position, expect things to happen. Be prepared is not just for the Boy Scouts. It’s for anyone who works with customers. Prepare for the unexpected.
20. When in doubt, leave it out. Writing a letter to a client? Or calling them? If you’re in doubt of using a certain word, leave it out or use something else.
21. This is reserved for you to put in your own customer service tip. And if you have one you’d like to share with us, send it on to PRESS@telephonedoctor.com. It could end up in one of our new books. You will, of course, receive full credit.
PS – Thanks for taking time to read and share this article.
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By Nancy Friedman, The Telephone Doctor, customer service expert. Nancy is a keynote speaker at association and corporate meetings. She was recently selected as one of the top keynote speakers in a poll of meeting planners. Call 314‑291‑1012 for more information or visit the website at http://www.telephonedoctor.com/keynotes.php.
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Second Call Treatment – A Strategy to Handle Repeat Callers and Improve First Call Resolution by Bob Brittan
Measuring FCR (First Call Resolution) is only the beginning to understanding why your customers needed to call your company more than once about the same transaction. Implementing a Second Call Treatment solution (like Primas’ Evolution FCR™ product) offers special attention be given to the repeat caller and can diffuse hostile interactions between the customer and CSR (Customer Service Representative), and even save a valuable customers business. Building a Second Call Treatment process is imperative to avoid a third or subsequent customer contact, remember operating without a first call resolution process was found to account for a minimum of 30% of a call center’s operational costs!
In a recent study by the Ascent Group more than 90% of companies measuring first call resolution reported improvement in their performance. Another study by callcentres.com reported a dramatic fall in call volume — identifying that a minimum of 20% of all calls were repeat calls from customers needing an answer or help they didn’t get on the first call. Even with a first call resolution plan in place you will never eliminate all repeat callers. The reasons are many and varied by industry and you may even encourage repeat callers depending on your business model.
Repeat call tracking is a powerful FCR measurement tool. It allows a business to define a second call treatment range, track FCR rates and automatically collect information (otherwise calls will be missed) that can be used to determine root causes of problems. For repeat call tracking to work, every call needs to be captured and the customer and the call reason must be identified. Repeat call tracking differs from other FCR measurements because:
· Relies on actual repeat calls.
· Provides FCR information on all calls, not just sample sets.
· Provides all associated information, including agent ID, customer name and number, call times and dates, call reason, call flow (transfers, abandons, etc.), and multi-call correlation.
Benefits of a Second Call Treatment Solution
Implementing a Second Call Treatment solution can yield the following benefits:
· Lower operational costs
· Reduction in customer churn
· Improve revenue opportunities (in revenue generating contact centers), introduce up-sell and cross-sell strategies
· Proper alignment of customer to the correct resource (agent)
· Expanded data collection, tracking and reporting
· Increase agent productivity and satisfaction
The greatest benefits to second call treatment come from available technology that can locate resources more easily. By identifying a repeat caller within Evolution FCR, the repeat caller can be transferred to an agent with specific training or a managed queue with the proper expertise. This has the benefit of using the extensive efficiency and optimization technology within the contact center queues to optimize performance. Another way this can be achieved is by having the integrating software perform a series of automated data “dips” to examine the database for the information needed to route the call to the proper agent. One benefit of Evolution FCR is the real-time notification to a CSR desk top that a caller is indeed a repeat caller. The CSR can immediately see a real-time screen pop on their desktop with valuable customer information like:
· How many times the customer has called into the contact center
· Where the customer connected to (IVR, agent, transfer, abandon)
· Dates and times calls were made
· Customer name
· CSR name(s) that the customer had previously contacted
Sample - Primas’ Evolution FCR – Second Call Treatment Agent Real-time Screen Pop
Knowing this information ahead of any CRM scripting or even CRM screen pop can dynamically change the way the CSR handles the repeat caller; special attention can be given to the repeat caller and can diffuse hostile interactions and even save a valuable customers business.
You now have all of the data from the completed repeat call transaction and as far as you know, the customer is satisfied. How can you be sure? Invest in an automated IVR survey like the one that is included in the Primas Evolution FCR product solution.
A Post Call IVR survey captures the customer’s impression of the call immediately after the interaction. FCR measurement is straightforward - the survey asks the customer if their problem was resolved while the call is still clear in their mind. A good post call IVR survey will tie the survey to customer information and call reason, so that you can resolve any issues with a specific customer or call type. Overall, you will be doing a better job if you close the loop to the very end ensuring customer retention, loyalty and most importantly, customer satisfaction with your services.
About the Author
Bob Brittan is the Senior Marketing Director at Primas. He has more than 20 years of experience in best-practices consulting for real-time data, and contact centers with a focus on workforce and enterprise performance management. As a product marketing director, Brittan has brought many powerful combinations of products to market creating and transforming cohesive customer views into real-time performance and productivity metrics. www.primas.net (714-901-2721).
About Primas
Primas is a leading contact center solutions and professional services company designing and implementing multi-platform data integrations and solutions for over 15 years. Our expertise leverages and enhances legacy infrastructure and assists with cost effective, new and migratory planning focusing on FCR, CTI, IVR and speech application development and implementation.