Having a prepared and knowledgeable staff ready to handle customer issues is the key to excellent customer service and a company?s reputation. A healthy reputation is worth every penny spent on training. When thinking of great customer service, Nordstrom pops into my head. Nordstrom is known for its amazing customer service. Quality customer service is embedded into their employee training, company processes, policies and procedures. I could discuss how people take advantage of their easy return policy, but that is not the point of this article. I would like to focus on the benefits and impacts of excellent customer service.
When a customer service department is properly trained on their roles, responsibilities, level of authority and soft skills, they are likely to gain good standing with their customers and make a positive impact on the outlook of the company and its product and services.
What is excellent customer service, what are the impacts of good and bad customer service and how to achieve the former?
Let?s look closely at what makes up quality Customer Service and Agents:
Clear establishment of Roles & Responsibilities to agents
Their role is to be a helpful Customer Service Agent with the responsibility of resolving customer issues in a timely and respectable manner.
Provide Authority Levels to agents
In order to properly assist customers with returns, credits, exchanges or other concerns, agents must know what actions are within their realm of authority. The last thing a customer on the phone wants is to be placed on hold several times while the agent checks with a manager for every question asked.
Instill Confidence in agents
Companies can instill confidence in their agents by providing the right tools and techniques to get the job done. This will make them feel empowered and capable to perform their role with confidence. Tools and techniques can be as simple as an agent knowing his or her role & responsibility and authority level to having the appropriate hardware, software or management available to finalize a resolution.
Agents to show Commitment to customers
When the going gets tough, agents need to be able to walk customers through their issue and resolve it with satisfaction. If an agent is on a call, he or she can obtain a call back number from the customer in case the call gets dropped. If at a store location, the agent can stay solely focused on that customer and not multitask or help others when unnecessary. If the phone needs to be answered at a retail location while an agent is helping a customer, the agent should answer the phone and politely put the customer on hold to finish the transaction at hand. These are just a few ways to show commitment.
Agents to speak with Empathy to customers
Empathy can place the customer and the agent on the same level of understanding and often times have a calming effect on the customer. Agents should not put their customers in a position to feel stupid, cheap or of any less importance than the next customer.
Achieve a Win-Win Resolution with customers
Ending a call with a win-win solution is a key component to effective communication and successful customer satisfaction. Companies rely on their representatives to keep their customers happy and coming back again. If a customer has confidence in call resolutions, he or she is more likely to want to purchase products and services from that company.
Agents to show Respect at all times
Customers are typically calling in because they need the help of your agents. It goes back to the saying, ?treat people the way you would like to be treated.? Bottom line, bite your tongue, mind your manners, and be respectful to your customers. Not everyone is going to be as knowledgeable, technologically savvy and smart as the next person.
Agents should maintain constant Communication with customers
Customers need to feel that your agents are keeping them up-to-date during a call or in a store location. If an agent needs to read notes in the computer, he or she should let the customer know that is what?s going on. The last thing a customer should be wondering is if the agent is still on the phone or not or listen to awkward silence without knowing what it is for. In a retail environment, checking in with your customer during wait times can alleviate frustration, simply by acknowledging your customer is waiting for service.
Agents need to exude a Positive Attitude to customers
Having a positive attitude can be difficult for an agent who deals with feisty or difficult customers hour by hour. But agents need to remember that their verbal communication and attitude reflects the company?s reputation and to always keep that in mind no matter how feisty or difficult the customer is or how bad of a day the agent is having. Also, it is important to remember the next customer that you come in contact is a new beginning. Leave behind the negative feelings, if any, in your last encounter. First impressions last a lifetime, so ensure that you put your best foot forward when greeting a new customer.
Agents should be Proactive in providing resolutions to customers
By the agent being proactive to resolve the situation, the customer no longer needs to feel the need to fight for his or her request. Maybe the agent has the authority to present the option of a credit refund or a replacement product. What a relief to the customer to sit back and choose a resolution rather than fight for one.
It is important for agents to actively Listen to their customer needs
Customers want to know they are being heard. They want to feel that an agent is listening to their issue and can present a solution to fix it. After all, who wants to talk to a wall.
By adhering to the previous 11 key components to quality customer service, agents should be able to build a rapport with their customers. Establishing rapport is the key to gaining repeatable business, increasing positive word of mouth marketing, and reducing negative impacts on your brand reputation. And with a rapport built during the customer interaction, customers will often walk away or hang up the phone feeling pleased about their experience. The company?s reputation is hopefully left intact, and better yet, thought of in a brighter light.
Source: http://www.business2community.com/customer-experience/give-your-customer-service-a-boost-0340440
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