hi all
after a long long time, am back with doing what i like doing....sharing my experiences in servicing customers!!!
WHAT IS THE RIGHT AMOUNT OF INFORMATION THAT WE SHOULD SHARE WITH CUSTOMERS!!
well there are no set parameters on how much information should we be sharing with the customers; but there are certain flag points which one should keep in mind while dealing with customers and sharing information.
#try and ask questions from the customer in order to gauge how much information will he be able to absorb!
#have to the point conversation with the customer so that he does not wander away and loose interest in the information that is being shared with him!
# do not share too much information. this will make the customer loose interest in the conversation. refrain from sharing too much technical information especially with customers who are not too much technical friendly!
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Managing Customer's Perception
Customer’s perception is one of the most important factors which decide the future of the business. The business might propagate heaven in terms of their service offerings but what the customers think of it is more important.
Company’s employees play a major role in deciding its fate as the case is generally and they can play an effective role in changing their customer’s perception on how they think. Simple things like behavior with guests, warm gestures and courtesies go a long way in enhancing a customer’s experience of dealing with a business.
Doing things in the correct manner and refraining from over delivering are the keys of maintaining a positive perception. Giving a patient hearing and making genuine efforts to resolve customers queries are the main stay of changing customer’s perception even in cases where the guests have a complaint pertaining to any aspect of service that they have been dissatisfied with. Honoring one’s commitment and delivering what is promised is also one of the important factors which goes a long way in establishing the credentials of a business in their customers mind. Simply bragging about exceptional experience and not delivering optimum results breaks a customer’s faith in the business and gives it a reputation which it can never ever get rid off.
Therefore; the crux is to do simple things in a simple way and earn customers faith and respect rather than over publicizing and under delivering.
Company’s employees play a major role in deciding its fate as the case is generally and they can play an effective role in changing their customer’s perception on how they think. Simple things like behavior with guests, warm gestures and courtesies go a long way in enhancing a customer’s experience of dealing with a business.
Doing things in the correct manner and refraining from over delivering are the keys of maintaining a positive perception. Giving a patient hearing and making genuine efforts to resolve customers queries are the main stay of changing customer’s perception even in cases where the guests have a complaint pertaining to any aspect of service that they have been dissatisfied with. Honoring one’s commitment and delivering what is promised is also one of the important factors which goes a long way in establishing the credentials of a business in their customers mind. Simply bragging about exceptional experience and not delivering optimum results breaks a customer’s faith in the business and gives it a reputation which it can never ever get rid off.
Therefore; the crux is to do simple things in a simple way and earn customers faith and respect rather than over publicizing and under delivering.
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Effective compaint management tips
Hi
After a hiatus of more than three months I am back to what I do best, share my thoughts with you on topics pertaining to various aspects of customer services. In this edition would share with you some of the most common tools with the help of which one should handle customer complaints in order to ensure that the customer walks away satisfied and remains loyal with the organization; continuing to do business.
Before we start; the first or the basic principal of going about handling an irate customer is the ability to be a good listener. My personal experiences tell me that more than 60% of the guest dissatisfaction situations can be tackled simply by being a good and compassionate listener.
Always be aware that in case a customer is walking up and sharing his dissatisfaction about a particular aspect of your service; he is giving you a second chance to retain him. This is true; as in 90% of cases dissatisfied customers would simply walk away without letting the company know and would simply stop doing business with the organization. Therefore; with the cut throat competition and current market dynamics it becomes all the more important for you to retain the existing lot of customers.
There are a few simple to do and not to do steps which should be practiced when dealing with an irate customer and trying to retrieve the situation. The most important aspect is to never tell or try to prove to a customer that he is telling a lie and creating a false situation. Nobody likes to be called a liar and such an interaction becomes embarrassing and in some cases an ego issue for the complaining guest. Make sure that the action of the dealing person does not project as if he is not interested in dealing with the situation, always project a focused and problem solving image.
One should never match aggression with aggression. An irate customer is bound to lose his temper in certain situations; the same should not be replicated by the person dealing with the situation. Being appreciative of the fact that a mistake has happened and accepting and apologizing for it will diffuse the situation immediately. After all every one realizes that we humans are not perfect and mistakes are bound to happen. Always show to the customer that you are trying to understand his point of view by being on his side of the table and are trying to resolve the matter with his support and understanding. Another way of dealing with this type of situation will be to ask the customer to be in your shoes and suggest as to what he thinks should be done to rectify the error.
Always always ensure that you are very polite and soft with the customers and maintain proper eye contact with them during the entire conversation. Always take their contact numbers so that you can touch base with them later on in order to develop a better relationship with them. The more personalized you try and make the relationship the more loyal the customer tends to get as they feel that they are wanted and cared for in a particular place. After all who would like to frequent a place where they are treated like unwanted entities and are not accorded any value?
After a hiatus of more than three months I am back to what I do best, share my thoughts with you on topics pertaining to various aspects of customer services. In this edition would share with you some of the most common tools with the help of which one should handle customer complaints in order to ensure that the customer walks away satisfied and remains loyal with the organization; continuing to do business.
Before we start; the first or the basic principal of going about handling an irate customer is the ability to be a good listener. My personal experiences tell me that more than 60% of the guest dissatisfaction situations can be tackled simply by being a good and compassionate listener.
Always be aware that in case a customer is walking up and sharing his dissatisfaction about a particular aspect of your service; he is giving you a second chance to retain him. This is true; as in 90% of cases dissatisfied customers would simply walk away without letting the company know and would simply stop doing business with the organization. Therefore; with the cut throat competition and current market dynamics it becomes all the more important for you to retain the existing lot of customers.
There are a few simple to do and not to do steps which should be practiced when dealing with an irate customer and trying to retrieve the situation. The most important aspect is to never tell or try to prove to a customer that he is telling a lie and creating a false situation. Nobody likes to be called a liar and such an interaction becomes embarrassing and in some cases an ego issue for the complaining guest. Make sure that the action of the dealing person does not project as if he is not interested in dealing with the situation, always project a focused and problem solving image.
One should never match aggression with aggression. An irate customer is bound to lose his temper in certain situations; the same should not be replicated by the person dealing with the situation. Being appreciative of the fact that a mistake has happened and accepting and apologizing for it will diffuse the situation immediately. After all every one realizes that we humans are not perfect and mistakes are bound to happen. Always show to the customer that you are trying to understand his point of view by being on his side of the table and are trying to resolve the matter with his support and understanding. Another way of dealing with this type of situation will be to ask the customer to be in your shoes and suggest as to what he thinks should be done to rectify the error.
Always always ensure that you are very polite and soft with the customers and maintain proper eye contact with them during the entire conversation. Always take their contact numbers so that you can touch base with them later on in order to develop a better relationship with them. The more personalized you try and make the relationship the more loyal the customer tends to get as they feel that they are wanted and cared for in a particular place. After all who would like to frequent a place where they are treated like unwanted entities and are not accorded any value?
Monday, June 1, 2009
How to ensure effective customer service standards
Another insight into the excerpts from the eBook which I am in the process of writing on the most common customer services mistakes that the organizations make while serving its customers.
Often there are concerns shown on the fact that an organization is losing the loyalty of its valued customers and the deteriorating customer service standards are impacting the growth of the organizations bottom line. There is a need felt to upgrade the standards and often steps are initiated with a hope to resolve the internal problems and correct the situation. More often than not, the steps which are initiated tend to complicate the matter even further rather than contributing in correcting the situation. The question is what are the most common mistakes that the companies need to aware off not committing?
# 1) Increase in the number of employees to improve the customer service standards
This is the most common mistake that is committed by organizations. The people at the top believe that by increasing their work force they will be able to provide its customers better customer services standards. In actual terms, increasing the number of employees does not impact the situation even a wee bit until and unless the work force is provided with adequate training and skill up gradation opportunities. Maintaining an effective training and skill up gradation program will ensure that the employees are up to date with the latest industry trends, have requisite knowledge base to know about the various ways to know what their customers needs are and serve them accordingly in order to provide exceptional service and raise the customer service standards of the organization.
Further efficient training programs also ensure complete employee participation and the employees feel wanted and cared for in an organization. It is like providing effective and efficient tools to the employees which will help them in going about their routine jobs on a day to day basis.
# 2) Increase the salary of the employees to improve the customer service standards
Most of the organizations think that by increasing the salary of the employees they will be able to motivate them to raise the customer service standards. This might not be true as just increasing the employee’s salary will not ensure that they will be able to raise their customer service standards. How the company treats its employee in their work life is rather more important in ensuring their on job behavior and the way that they conduct themselves with their customers. Providing effective training opportunities which can help them in enhancing their careers with the organization or making them part of some or the other important facet of the organizations planning or strategizing function or any other avenue wherein they can contribute towards the growth of the company apart from their routine work will ensure that they take up more responsibility and ownership of the process that they are directly involved in or hired for. They will be self motivated to perform better and this will ensure that they are able to raise the customer service standards of the organization as perceived by the guests who deal with that particular organization.
Often there are concerns shown on the fact that an organization is losing the loyalty of its valued customers and the deteriorating customer service standards are impacting the growth of the organizations bottom line. There is a need felt to upgrade the standards and often steps are initiated with a hope to resolve the internal problems and correct the situation. More often than not, the steps which are initiated tend to complicate the matter even further rather than contributing in correcting the situation. The question is what are the most common mistakes that the companies need to aware off not committing?
# 1) Increase in the number of employees to improve the customer service standards
This is the most common mistake that is committed by organizations. The people at the top believe that by increasing their work force they will be able to provide its customers better customer services standards. In actual terms, increasing the number of employees does not impact the situation even a wee bit until and unless the work force is provided with adequate training and skill up gradation opportunities. Maintaining an effective training and skill up gradation program will ensure that the employees are up to date with the latest industry trends, have requisite knowledge base to know about the various ways to know what their customers needs are and serve them accordingly in order to provide exceptional service and raise the customer service standards of the organization.
Further efficient training programs also ensure complete employee participation and the employees feel wanted and cared for in an organization. It is like providing effective and efficient tools to the employees which will help them in going about their routine jobs on a day to day basis.
# 2) Increase the salary of the employees to improve the customer service standards
Most of the organizations think that by increasing the salary of the employees they will be able to motivate them to raise the customer service standards. This might not be true as just increasing the employee’s salary will not ensure that they will be able to raise their customer service standards. How the company treats its employee in their work life is rather more important in ensuring their on job behavior and the way that they conduct themselves with their customers. Providing effective training opportunities which can help them in enhancing their careers with the organization or making them part of some or the other important facet of the organizations planning or strategizing function or any other avenue wherein they can contribute towards the growth of the company apart from their routine work will ensure that they take up more responsibility and ownership of the process that they are directly involved in or hired for. They will be self motivated to perform better and this will ensure that they are able to raise the customer service standards of the organization as perceived by the guests who deal with that particular organization.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Essential tips on improving customer service standards
In a challenging business environment, business’s often face threat of losing their customer base to competition. There is a constant need to provide the customers with an experience which makes them come back to the business again and again.
Organizations often face a dilemma when faced with the situation; as most of the people do not have a clue of what areas to focus and what changes to make in order to provide an enhanced and improved customer service experience to their guests. Well to be true there are a few basic troubleshooting steps which need initiated in order to correct the situation and provide an enhanced customer service experience.
The processes or the way that organization functions, not just in the front end, while dealing with the customer, but the entire product life cycle should be focused around the customers needs. The idea should be to make the customers touch points with the organization as customer friendly as possible. There is no point in implementing systems and processes which make customer interaction a pain and leave a bad taste in the customers mouth, this way the customer is bound to shift his loyalties to other avenues where he expects to experience better and customer friendly interaction level.
The attitude or the way the employees of an organization perform towards providing effective customer service standards goes a long way in deciding the fate of the customers loyalty. They have the capability of making or breaking the relationship with the customers. No matter how friendly or customer focused the organization systems and processes are, if they are not being practiced by the people with the right kind of attitude, organizations should be ready to part with lot of their regular and loyal customers.
Having a grip on the customers needs is another important avenue, which potentially decides the fate of the relationship between and organization and its customers. The organization needs to be aware of the changing needs and requirements of its customers and should constantly keep on upgrading their product services according to them. Regular communication with the customers is important as it helps in analyzing the changing demands and needs of the customers and the organizations can fine tune their offerings accordingly.
These basic things ensure that the organizations are up to date with the customers expectations as the moment there is a lapse in the service levels, more often than not customers will shift their loyalties to other service providers without even bothering to tell the organizations about their shortcomings. Regular assessment and analysis of the way the organization is functioning with it customers both internal as well as external will highlight the shortfall areas which need attention. Tackling these shortfall areas will automatically ensure that the customers experience an improved service experience while dealing with the organization.
Organizations often face a dilemma when faced with the situation; as most of the people do not have a clue of what areas to focus and what changes to make in order to provide an enhanced and improved customer service experience to their guests. Well to be true there are a few basic troubleshooting steps which need initiated in order to correct the situation and provide an enhanced customer service experience.
The processes or the way that organization functions, not just in the front end, while dealing with the customer, but the entire product life cycle should be focused around the customers needs. The idea should be to make the customers touch points with the organization as customer friendly as possible. There is no point in implementing systems and processes which make customer interaction a pain and leave a bad taste in the customers mouth, this way the customer is bound to shift his loyalties to other avenues where he expects to experience better and customer friendly interaction level.
The attitude or the way the employees of an organization perform towards providing effective customer service standards goes a long way in deciding the fate of the customers loyalty. They have the capability of making or breaking the relationship with the customers. No matter how friendly or customer focused the organization systems and processes are, if they are not being practiced by the people with the right kind of attitude, organizations should be ready to part with lot of their regular and loyal customers.
Having a grip on the customers needs is another important avenue, which potentially decides the fate of the relationship between and organization and its customers. The organization needs to be aware of the changing needs and requirements of its customers and should constantly keep on upgrading their product services according to them. Regular communication with the customers is important as it helps in analyzing the changing demands and needs of the customers and the organizations can fine tune their offerings accordingly.
These basic things ensure that the organizations are up to date with the customers expectations as the moment there is a lapse in the service levels, more often than not customers will shift their loyalties to other service providers without even bothering to tell the organizations about their shortcomings. Regular assessment and analysis of the way the organization is functioning with it customers both internal as well as external will highlight the shortfall areas which need attention. Tackling these shortfall areas will automatically ensure that the customers experience an improved service experience while dealing with the organization.
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
how to increase customer loyalty
with my experience of working for over 12 years in the customer service industry, i intend to share my learnings and experiences with a series on the customer services subject; its intricate details and some of the common mistakes that are made by individuals and organizations while serving their customers.
the most difficult part in today's business scenario is the retention and loyalty of customers. most often individuals and organizations make very basic and common mistakes which contribute in the customers shifting their loyalties to some other alternate competing brand or service provider. basic things like operating processes and systems and people involved in these processes are one of the major reasons which make the customers shift their loyalties. Introspection of systems and processes should be done in order to correct and rectify whatever shortcomings might be there in these processes. emphasis should be give in engaging people in the process who have a customer friendly nature and attitude as only they will be able to cope up with the customers expectations which increase and change on a daily basis.
one should realize that it is much more easier and cost effective to retain a customer and make him loyal towards one's brand or product rather than acquire a new customer.
introspecting and correcting these basic and simple steps will ensure that the organizations are on the right track to increase the loyalties of their customers.
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