Customer-Service Articles
9 Steps For Coaching Call Center Agents
(category: Customer-Service, Word count: 512)
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The call record method is, in my opinion, one of the best approaches to coaching agent phone calls and ensuring quality. Here's a 9-step plan for effectively coaching call center agent phone calls:
1. Randomly record 2 -3 telephone calls. Random recording is important. Do not record 3 calls back to back or on the same day, as your employee may be having a bad day and this may be reflected in all of one afternoon's calls, but is not necessarily reflective of their typical performance.
2. Review the calls and note strengths and opportunities. Before meeting with your employee, listen to the calls and note what they did well and identify 1 -2 opportunities for performance improvement.
3. Play one tape and let your employee listen. During the playing of the tape, you do not need to respond.
4. Have your employee respond to the tape. After the tape is played, ask your employee to respond. Most employees will be overly self-critical. Your employee will likely note many opportunities for improvement and struggle to articulate what they've done well.
5. Coach the call. Use the "sandwich" approach. Tell your employee what s/he did well, followed by constructive feedback, and then end with positive feedback. When offering constructive feedback, share only one opportunity for improvement. The employee has likely observed and stated several improvement opportunities so there is no need to bring these up again Try to mention one thin g the employee did not bring up and offer this as your constructive feedback.
6. Gain commitment for performance improvement. Ask the employee, "What specific steps will you take over the next 5 days to improve in this area?" Write down what the employee states and repeat it to her. Summarize the session by reiterating strengths and offering a vote of confidence that she can improve in the identified area.
7. Repeat steps 2 - 6 with a second and perhaps third tape if necessary. The point of numerous recording is that an employee may respond defensively stating that was just a "bad" call. If that is the response, you may choose to review a second or third tape.
8. Follow-up before the next agent coaching session. Check with your employee in between coaching sessions to keep the commitment top of mind. You can touch base with your employee via email or a personal conversation.
9. Discuss improvement in next coaching session. Before listening to calls in the next coaching session, ask your employee how she's progressing toward the goal of the last session. Look for improvement on calls reviewed in this session.
This 9-step call center agent coaching model is simple, clear and it both praises employees and offers support for improvement opportunities.
When you follow this 9-step process, you will set clear performance expectations, coach effectively and consistently and at the same time you will be motivating your employees.
Customer Service Done Right
(category: Customer-Service, Word count: 339)
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Are you a stickler about receiving top notch customer service? Do you routinely "come through" as a provider of exemplary services to your customers? Chances are you have been greatly disappointed at one time or another regarding the service you received from a salesperson, an internet hosting company, a hair colorist, or any one of thousands of different service providers. Frankly, customer service in many areas - retail, for one - isn't what it used to be. However, where there is poor customer service there is also a great opportunity. Read on and I will explain.
Let's say you are in a field that routinely provides so-so service to customers. It could be that customer expectations are low and no one expects top notch service. Maybe most customers are simply "price sensitive" and could care less about how fast or how well you deliver. However, you can bet that there are a percentage of customers out there who appreciate service that goes above and beyond the industry standard. These same customers typically will pay a little extra for service that really serves them. If you can tap into this customer base, you can create a niche, raise your prices, and make more money in the long run.
Depending on your industry, you could command a price premium of 10-25% over the average provider. That may not sound like a lot, but it could spell the difference between eating hamburger or eating steak. I don't know about you, but I would prefer eating steak!
Naturally, providing a high level of customer service means you will have to break a sweat. You may have to happily redo [its all in the attitude, baby!] or improve on an existing project in order to satisfy a good paying customer. This is what sets you apart from the pack.
If you are satisfied with the "status quo" then that's okay too. Just don't expect to have customers beat down your doors for work. At least the better customers will not!
Customer Service Training Tips
(category: Customer-Service, Word count: 500)
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Good customer service is the best way to keep customers coming back to your business. super stores that have hundreds of employee's, these companies do not give their workers enough incentive to be customer friendly, and they don't seem to insist their employees use the customer training tips that are provided during their training. Businesses always supply new employees with their own customer service training tips in the beginning but they seem to forget them after being employed for awhile. Maybe stores and businesses should make their employees go through a refresher course and re-learn the customer service training tips that were given to them in the beginning. Training your employees in the art of customer service can be the least expensive improvement you can do. Make sure your employees have good people skills and that they enjoy working with people. One nasty person with a bad attitude can ruin a small business faster than a hold-up. Here are some customer service training tips that may help your employees.
Some customers are just plain difficult. They are always complaining, they are picky, know-it-alls, faultfinders, constant complainers, unreasonable, demanding. There's no way you can avoid them so you have to learn to deal with them. Angry people cannot rationalize because they are so wrapped up in the emotion of anger that anything you say gets filtered through their emotion. Rationalizing, problem solving, listening, and negotiating are all left-brain activities and your angry customer is stuck in the right side of the brain, and therefore cannot be expected to rationalize with you. Here are a few more customer service training tips.
Believe it or not the best way to diffuse a situation with an angry customer may be cleared up with two little words. "I'm sorry." Recent research shows that more than 50% of customers who have voices a complaint never get an apology. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to realize that most people just want to be acknowledged, and when they get ignored and treated like they don't matter and their opinion means nothing. One of the better customer service training tips I found is saying "I'm sorry," can make all the difference in the world.
I don't believe in the saying the "customer is always right." No their not always right, and there are those that make themselves feel superior by belittling others. Being courteous to customers does not mean you have to accept abuse from them. Nobody deserves to be treated badly, but unfortunately there are those who go out of their way to do so. Saying things like, "Thank you for letting me know that you're unhappy with..." will usually calm even the meanest customers and the nicer you continue to be with them, the calmer they get, this is a very good customer service training tip. Try it a few times it really works. There's also another saying that goes: "You don't have to show up to every fight you're invited to."
What Are All The Services Movers Provide
(category: Customer-Service, Word count: 495)
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By Flemming Andersen
When you are preparing for a move, you will find that there are a lot of details that have to be taken care of. You will have a lot of preparations to handle for the big day and it will take a lot of time for one or two people to handle. Most people find it a lot easier to hire movers to take care of all these things for them. Movers can make it a lot less stressful for everyone involved.
Movers can usually be found in most areas. In some companies, they will provide different services. There are some movers that do more and others that only provide minimal services. You will need to decide what you are looking for in the moving company that you hire. Think about all the things that you are going to need done and what you are going to be willing to pay for.
Some moving companies only provide the transportation part of the move. This means that you will have to do all the packing and the wrapping. For some of the companies, you will even have to load the boxes and packages up on the truck. This may not be what a lot of people want in their moving company. They may expect the movers that they hire to do all the work for them in order to make their life easier.
If this is the case, you should look for movers that provide all the services of moving. This will include the wrapping of items, boxing them up, loading and unloading the truck and driving to the new location. A lot of people want this full service in their moving companies. For this service, however, you are going to have to pay more for the cost. In the long run, it is usually worth the expense.
Most movers will even go the extra mile to pack one room at a time and then they will label them and put them in the rooms that they belong in the new house. This great time saving step will help a lot of people with the unpacking in the new home. When you know what is in each box and where it goes, you will save a lot of time and work in the end.
Some movers even have storage units available for the customer to store their unwanted items. This great feature will be a big help in most moves. This step will let you store the items that you do not want or cannot use in the new home. You will not have the bother of trying to find room for them. The items will be safely packed away in a storage container until you want them. This will also cost extra, but it again is worth the cost when it comes to making things a lot easier for your move.
Is It Really Worth The Money
(category: Customer-Service, Word count: 443)
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When it comes to services I sometimes wonder if the asking price is really worth it. I can usually find the service that I am looking for online. Then I have to look around to find witch one is going to give me the most for the money. Well I have found that if I go with the low ball guy, he is reeling me in for a huge sales pitch to asks me to spend more than I would with the high roller guy. Maybe that's where I should have started my search.
Then again I wrote an article a couple of months ago about an auto repair shop that promised to fix my truck for $1,000.00. Fair price to install a new rear end and I agreed. 2 months later I could not get my truck out of the shop for less then $2,000.00. They actually told me "two grand or we will auction off your truck to pay the charges." I was robbed!!
I found out once again that maybe checking with a higher priced guy may have been a good idea. I am sure the price is higher because the put all of the add on stuff in the original quote. The quote is supposed to at least be close to the actual price, right?
The gist of my article is this. I have been in the carpet cleaning industry for almost ten years. We get a bad rap, no doubt about it. We have to earn the respect that others have spit on and ripped off. There are a lot of great cleaners out there and there are a few that kill the reputation of the entire industry.
Now we all have to make a living and I have chosen to make mine honestly. I may not be the cheapest, but my quotes are on the mark. If I give you a quote and then try to charge more for the same amount of work after you let me in. I am sure you will kick me out then or never call me back, so I prefer giving a little extra than taking what ever I can squeeze out of you.
I say go with the guy in the middle when it comes to choosing your service providers. If it seems to good to be true then it probably is. If it seems way too high compared to the competition then it probably is for the more elite or just plain over priced. Talk to others to find out whom they use and give an honest man the job.
Customer Loyalty The Key To Business Success
(category: Customer-Service, Word count: 819)
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Talk to many business people about how they approach customer service and the majority of them will say that they are aiming to have 'satisfied' customers. No! What we all should be seeking is to have loyal customers.
Research has shown that 65% of customers say they are loyal. You may be happy with this but you shouldn't! Satisfied customers are in a state of nothing - they are neither issatisfied or happy; they are in between. They will tolerate you while you are of use to them but if a better deal comes along, they're off.
On the other hand, loyal customers are your friends. They will be with you through thick and thin; they will be the first to try out you new product; they willing give you honest feedback; they will regularly refer business to you. This is what you want! But how can you turn a satisfied customer into a loyal one?
Let Them Decide How to Do Business With You
Today customers are a lot more sophisticated in how they want to do business. If your product or service lends itself to be offered via a number of different means, then give your customer the option.
Can you deliver face-to-face? What about telephone services? Could you make use of SMS texts for quick notes and reminders? Do you have a web site through which customers can contact you or even make orders on-line? If you provide a variety of delivery channels which are available to suit the customer's needs then they are more likely to stay with you.
Build a Relationship
Loyalty can only be achieved if you have a true relationship with your customer. Aim to build rapport. Understand who are dealing with you and understand what they are looking for. Keep in regular contact with them; you don't necessarily have to be selling something. Always use their names, especially their first name if you can.
All of this will help in building a long term relationship. Once you have this, they are less likely to walk away.
Generate Staff Loyalty
How can you cultivate a loyal customer if your staff are not loyal to the business? You must have staff who care for the job and will do anything to protect and move the business forward. Customers will be more loyal if they see familiar faces. A business with a high staff turnover will find it difficult to build a relationship with their customers.
Treat your staff well. Reward their successes and recognise their achievements. Hold regular training sessions so they feel they are learning and developing. An established training programme will also make sure that their product knowledge is up to date.
Seek Out Complaints
This sound strange but the average customer has to be encouraged to complain! Many will keep quiet about poor service but if they can find someone else to do their business with, they will. Set up a clear complaints procedure so customers can complain if they wish. Provide staff with the tools to effectively deal with customer problems. Follow up all complaints to ensure that they have been resolved.
Take an Interest
Show your customers that you are interested in their views. Run regular surveys to find out what they think of your service, to find out what you can do differently. You can either carry out a survey over the telephone, or go as far as doing a mailing to all your customers.
Taking the trouble to contact your customers will reinforce the message that you want their custom. But don't forget - take action on what you find out!
Be a 'Can Do' Business
Customers like nothing better than a business which delivers on even the most difficult of requests. 'Can Do' businesses will always have loyal customers. Train your staff to never use words like, "Sorry but ...", "It's not my fault", "Its company policy".
Be a business where solutions are always looked for and problems seen as challenges.
Look After The 'Golden' Customers
The old 80/20 is likely to apply to your business - 80% of your sales or profits are likely to come from just 20% of your customers. Work out who your top 20% are and love them to death! Why not concentrate on turning the remaining 80% into loyal customers? Well, the 20% have already shown that they trust and respect you. A little more effort with these customers will reap more business than concentrating on the 'maybe's'. By all means, run a programme to convert the 'maybe's' but put more effort into the converted.
So, there you have it. Some ideas and tips on how to build and keep loyal customers. Take a critical look at your business and put a loyalty building programme in place, which will boost sales and profits.
The Top Ten Client Feedback Questions
(category: Customer-Service, Word count: 903)
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As program chairperson of my SCORE * chapter I am always looking for new presenters to address the group. I frequently ask my fellow business counselors to give me some ideas for topics of interest to them.
In August one member approached me with an idea. He suggested inviting some of the clients that the counselors had worked with this year to one of our meetings to give us some feedback on our counseling techniques -both the highs and the lows.
Five clients were invited to our meeting and they were asked the first 5 questions of this Top Ten list. We learned a lot from the answers we got.
As 2005 comes to a close and we begin 2006 perhaps you are interested in finding ways to get clients to give you feedback about the products and services you offer. Here is a list of 10 questions you could use. Select a few that suite your situation. The key is to ask the question and then allow the client uninterrupted time to answer. Your job is to just listen!
1. What was the greatest benefit you derived from my service**? This question helps you to understand what is working. Sometimes you will be surprised by the answer. Our SCORE chapter has a limit of 3 counselors at one location to counsel one client. Our client panelists said the more counselors the better! We have now eliminated the restriction on the number of counselors.
2.What would you like to see more of when you work with me? For our session the panelists told us some counselors introduced themselves by telling about their business background during the sessions while others did not. The clients said they wanted to hear the qualifications of the counselors who were working with them. Are you forgetting to be consistent when delivering your product or service to your clients? We were! ☺
3.How could I improve my service? Clients often have ideas that are easy to implement but somehow you haven't thought of. SCORE does both email and face to face coaching. These were face to face clients who wondered if they could get support between sessions through email. Easily done now that we know it might be helpful. (Our email addresses are already on our SCORE business cards!)
4.Is there anything you would like to see me stop doing? This question gives the client the opportunity to tell you about something that isn't useful to him or her. It was suggested in our session that sometimes it is difficult for the business owner to meet with the counselor because the owner can't leave his/her place of business. The SCORE clients wondered if it would be possible for the counselors to occasionally meet them at their own place of business. The answer was "Yes". Again not something we had thought to offer consistently.
5.Is there anything you didn't get from my service that you were looking for?
Here is an opportunity for the client to tell you other services that you might provide. If you are looking for ways to expand your offering this question is important. In the SCORE session one client wanted to know how he might get a counselor who actually worked in or owned the specific type of business that he had. Access to a database of the counselors in our chapter and their background would be helpful to the counselors and our clients. We will be putting one together. (We did have one counselor with exactly the right background for this client.)
6.Has my staff treated you with care, attention, and courteousness? This would be an important question for a service provider with an administrative staff to ask. Clients don't always complain about their experience with your staff but might share something significant when asked.
7.Is there an issue that I have not spent enough time on for you? Sometimes clients allow you to move forward but are still thinking about a previous issue. This kind of question helps them to revisit areas they may have not understood and still have an unanswered question.
8.Am I doing what you want me to do? Most of the time we are doing what we think the client wants. It is good to check once in a while to find out if you are actually doing what the client wants.
9.Where have we been less than proactive in addressing your concerns? It may be that the client is expecting you to move into different areas that you think are being covered by other vendors or staff members. "Being proactive" may have a broader definition to the client than you are using. Asking this question might uncover new business.
10.Is our billing clear? Are you getting value for your money? The bill is often a source of anxiety for the client. He/she needs to know exactly what he/she is being billed for. Does your bill show that? This final value question is critical to insuring your client is satisfied with your product or service.
*SCORE - This is an organization that is part of the Small Business Administration in the US. SCORE volunteers are experienced managers and business owners who counsel small business owners without charge.
**I have used the word service here and also client. You could just as easily substitute product and customer.
Providing Customer Support To Your Hosting Clients
(category: Customer-Service, Word count: 669)
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I have said in some of my other articles that a hosting company needs to provide good customer service to succeed. From past experience I know how annoying it can be for a client if their host doesn't have a good support system in place. Many clients will expect fast replies to their support questions, and if you cannot supply this you may start to lose clients.
For a hosting company to be successful, they must be able to attract new clients to their service and keep their old ones. A host can build a large customer base in a few months, the hard job is keeping their clients.
The Types of Support Services
There are many different ways a host can offer customer support to their clients, I have listed just a few below:
Email Support
Telephone
Support Desk
Live Chat
Knowledge Base
Many hosts now offer 24/7 support as well, any new host should consider offering customer support around the clock, it can cost a lot to run this type of support service, however many clients do expect 24 hour support.
Email Support
This is a basic support system using emails, it can be a slow form of communication if the host or customer only checks their email inbox every hour for example. I would recommend providing an email address which clients can use to contact the support staff.
Telephone
Many hosting companies do offer phone support, however not all clients will use this method to contact the host. If the host can answer the phone for every call this can be a very quick method for answering clients' questions. The costs associated with telephone support can be relatively low, if no free phone number is provided. This type of support isn't necessary if the host provides other effective methods of contact.
Support Desk
I would recommend any new host to invest in a support desk, it can combine email support, FAQ (frequently asked questions), knowledge base, articles, and also allows for an online record of all replies.
Basically when a client needs support, they log into the support desk, create a ticket and when a support representative is free they can access the question (ticket) and reply online. Once the reply has been processed by the system, the client usually receives an email.
The advantages of a support desk means that a host can usually add unlimited departments and support staff, which means the host company can use outsourced support options, where another company can answer the support questions whenever needed.
The software required can range from nothing up to around $1000, many do have the same features. I would recommend that a host provides a support desk, but before they invest in one, shop around and ensure that they purchase one right for their needs.
Live Chat
Nearly every internet users has used some form of instant messenger service, this is what live chat is, it provides a platform for the support staff and customer to talk over the internet in real-time.
This is a very useful support service, and can be low in cost as well. There are many live chat services around, again I would recommend shopping around.
Knowledge Base
You can provide a question and answers section online for the most commonly answered questions. This can stop different clients contacting the support desk with the same questions, which can be time consuming and quite frankly annoying.
I would recommend provide this type of support, as it will save time and money in the long run and can be very easy to set-up.
Forum
A online forum provide a platform for your customers to contact each other, and ask questions. Providing a forum can reduce the number of support requests you receive each month because another member may be able to offer help.
Providing good customer support can cost money, however I believe that this is well worth as happy customers will generate more income.
Internet Answering Service
(category: Customer-Service, Word count: 333)
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Though most people are now turning to wireless, DSL, and broadband connections for their Internet access, those with dial-up modems still know how, occasionally, you can miss a call from someone important while surfing the web. That's where an Internet answering service comes in.
An Internet answering service more or less screens phone calls for subscribers, allowing them to decide whether or not they want to take the phone call immediately as it is received or to have it transferred to an answering machine/voicemail. Just as many e-mail services these days have "spam" filters, an Internet answering service works in much the same way.
It works as a caller ID for an individual while they are online. A caller's name and number are shown to the subscriber, and a message they leave can be accessed and played through the PC's speakers, allowing the subscriber to either answer the phone call, or let the caller leave a message to be picked up at a later time.
Convenience is the name of the game with an Internet answering service. Everything can be controlled with the click of a mouse. An Internet answering service allows a subscriber to take more control over their calls and have greater flexibility in how they take those calls.
Internet answering service providers have now branched out to take advantage of other venues that could find their services useful - businesses and cell phone users. By expanding into these markets, Internet answering service providers offer subscribers a sense of peace as they not only identify anonymous callers, but block such callers from getting through to the subscriber. Cell phone callers no longer have to use their precious minutes on unwanted calls, and businesses no longer have to ward off unwanted telemarketing calls. With an Internet answering service, nearly anyone can be in complete control over the calls they accept, with the peace of mind that those calls that they don't accept are taken care of properly.
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