Melneka Parker | There are many different ways to provide great customer service. Whether you work in retail serving external customers or back office serving internal customers, you have opportunities every day to provide great customer service. The tricky thing is that the definition of great service varies on the person you ask and the situation. What one person thinks is great customer service, another person says is normal service. What most customer service professionals forget is that it does not matter what they think is great service, it only matters what the customer thinks is great service. Here are three tips on how to provide great service in the eye of customers.
First, build trust with your customers. This applies to the first time you help a customer to the fiftieth time. If they trust you, they will return for more. Customers who trust you will be more satisfied, will refer their friends, and less likely to switch to a competitor. The easiest way to build trust is simple: make promises and keep them. It is easy to say, “I will get that report for you.” This is an open window. You could provide it in five minutes or five days. You send the report and they are satisfied. Instead, you should specify when you will be providing them the report. (Melneka Parker) For example, “I will get that report for you in one hour.” Then you send it to them within that time frame and in their eyes you have provided great service instead of just satisfying the request. If you are unable to fulfill the request within the promised time, you need to renegotiate the expectation before the deadline with an apology. For example, “Sorry Mr. Smith, I know I said I would have that report for you today, but I am going to have to send it to you tomorrow.” Even though you did not keep the original promise, you renegotiated before the deadline. This too raises the level of trust your customers will have for you.
Another way to provide great service is to make the customer in front of you feel as though they are the only customer you have. In retail, this means focusing your attention on the customer you are helping no matter what other stuff you have to do that day. That means when you are helping a customer, you should not have side conversations, check your phone, or anything else that takes your focus off the customer. In an office setting, this means when someone comes to you for assistance you do not put them off, keep typing on your keyboard, or keep looking at your monitor. You should stop what you are doing, look at the person requesting assistance, and actively listen to them. By doing this, they will feel important and respected which will raise their satisfaction level.
Thirdly, be proactive. This alone scores many points with customers. Retail employees should recognize opportunities to suggest other products to go along with the customers purchase. For example if you work in a clothing retailer, when you see someone buying a jacket, you suggest a scarf that matches the jacket, is on sale, and would look great on the customer. Small things like show the customer they are individuals and appreciated for more than their money. For backoffice support professionals, this could be done as well. Let’s say there is a policy change that will require (Melneka Bowers) the people you support to do something additional to get work done. Instead of waiting for them to find out the hard way, why not take the initiative and let them know of the change, why the change occurred, and how you are here to help them. They will never stop thanking you for making the extra effort.
No matter your profession or line of work, using these techniques will go a long was in provided great customer service. The golden rule of service has always been, “Treat others the way you would like to be treated.” My new golden rule is, “Treat people better than they have ever been treated.” They will love you for it and appreciate the great service.
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