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January 10, 2018
Posted by
Amy Lewkovich
If your company is like most others, customer service is a multi-dimensional component that’s carried out by different employees in different ways. But one thing should be consistent no matter what: your employees should provide stellar service every time, no matter how they interact with customers. Phone and email conversations are every bit as important as face-to-face interactions. The goal should always be to bolster relationships with customers and to never provide a bad customer experience. Every conversation will mold the public’s perception of your company and build (or destroy) your brand.
We talk on the phone and write emails every day – but does that prepare us for phone and email interactions with customers? The answer is no, because our personal communication is just that – more personal – than the communication we should have with customers. Even if we always use correct spelling and grammar when we talk to our friends and family, we need to pay special attention to our tone of voice, the speed at which we speak, the clarity of our words, and so much more when we’re dealing with a customer rather than a friend.
This one’s a no brainer, right? The optimal amount of politeness, respect, and etiquette should be deployed over the phone and in emails. In fact, because it can be much more difficult to woo a customer through these colder means of communication, your employees should be even more charming and polite on the phone and in emails. While it’s not possible to cover every potential situation, it may be helpful to develop strategic scripts for phone and email conversations that your employees can refer to for guidance.
In real estate it’s all about location – in customer service it’s all about consistency. If you have a policy in place for how to speak to customers in your store, you should have the same, or a similar, policy in place for all phone and email communication as well. For example, if you have a unique greeting for customers as they enter your brick and mortar store, you should use the same (or a very similar) greeting when you answer a call or start an email. A consistent approach will improve your level of service and lead to public recognition of your brand – both of which breed customer loyalty and additional sales.
Think back to your last phone call with your mom, brother, or best friend – did you really pay attention to what the other person was saying or were you watching TV, cooking dinner, or painting your nails at the same time? When you’re talking to a customer, you can’t do something else at the same time. The customer deserves your full attention. And let’s not forget, you need pay attention if you’re going to understand the issue and fully grasp how the customer wants you to solve the problem.
Listening is the key here but sometimes even listening isn’t enough – you may still not have all the details. When this happens, you’ll have to ask the right questions to gather all the information you need to resolve the problem as quickly as possible. The right questions include who, what, when, where, and how – in most cases, you can’t solve a problem until you know these details so politely ask the customer to walk you through these all-important answers.
It’s not enough to provide quality service in just one area – you need to create a company culture that encourages and emphasizes a remarkable overall customer experience from start to finish. If you don’t provide the best customer experience possible, your competition will steal your business. You need to create a cycle of well-rounded customer service, which means you should treat your customers with respect before they’re customers and long after you’ve earned their business. The better the customers’ experience, the more you’ll stand out from the competition, and the more successful you’ll be overall.
It has become more and more difficult to capture the attention of the public and win someone over as a customer. With so much advertising and marketing noise, it can feel impossible to stand out enough to carve a name for yourself. However, by investing in your employees, instilling in them the desire to provide the highest level of service, and insisting on nothing short of perfect in-person, phone, and email communications, you are guaranteed to shine in your customer’s eyes.
If you haven’t already trained your employees on phone and email best practices, there’s no time like the present!
