Customer Service Training Courses:
Our customer service course teaches by doing with less than 15% lecture and 85% hands on
activities. Participants learn by Doing and not by being told. Exercises are
practical, realistic, fun and are skill based.
To maximize your customer
service teams effectiveness we suggest our custom, private
customer service courses offered in house at the location of
your choice, usually in groups of 6 or more.
Contact
us for a free consultation on how we can best service your
training needs in a customer service training course customized
for you!
Course Objectives:
In our Exceptional Customer Service one-day
course
participants will:
- Understand how to handle inquiries and/or complaints in
ways that create improved, lasting relationships with your
customers or clients.
- Learn to promote positive "chemistry" between
your company and your clients by recognizing and
responding to the needs of each individual.
- Learn how to handle doubt, misunderstandings, and
objections.
- Acquire techniques for seeing issues from clients'
perspectives, creating value-adding options for clients,
and making sure clients recognize the added value they are
getting.
- Learn how to gain agreement from clients and reinforce
mutually satisfying long-term relationships.
Customer Service Training:
Why Most Companies Fail the Customer Service Course Test
Providing good customer service would seem to be a good thing for all businesses, yet many furniture companies cannot really say that they do so. They likely think that they do, primarily because they are "keeping up with the status quo" for their respective competition. What most furniture companies do not realize, particularly in the online furniture business, is that the status quo is woefully short of acceptable.
While being average is really a sad way to look at things, it is popular in many customer service circles. The reason for this is simple, really--customer service costs a company money on the front end. While there is a huge payoff long term to great customer service, it will hurt the pocketbook on the bottom line in the right now. Because of this, many furniture companies take an attitude of trying to solve customer service issues in the cheapest way possible. This also includes skipping policies that can prevent problems from cropping up in the first place, and this is where the thinking is seriously flawed.
Customer service is a very wide conceptual way of thinking that allows a company to separate themselves from the competition. It should never be about finding the cheapest way possible to get out of a problem. Furniture companies, both real and online, are usually operating on a fairly small profit margin in comparison to smaller retail items. This leads many of them to fall into the trap of operating strictly on a profit minded basis, and not seeing the costs of alienating their customers. An unhappy furniture customer is going to cost far more on the bottom line than these poor customer service policies.
The best customer service policies in the furniture industry go over and beyond to satisfy their customers. They do not make the purchase more difficult and they certainly do not force a customer to jump through hoops to get a resolution to their problem. Good customer service in the furniture industry means more than just this simple premise, however. It means being proactive before the problem ever happens.
One step in the right direction is to make sure that you are available in a direct fashion as a furniture retailer. A direct phone line to your online customers is a great start. A customer should never call and have to speak to a computer for a call back. This is a sure-fire way to create a poor customer experience-especially if you are an online furniture retailer.
Some of the bigger companies have gone to a "virtual agent" on their websites as their primary basis of customer satisfaction. How in the world do they think that this helps their customers? It only serves to frustrate and anger them. What is particularly frustrating about this is that it clearly is a way for the company to save money and is not about trying to make the buying experience a good one for the customer.
Refund and return policies are another frustrating point of contention for online furniture retailers. They sell an item that cannot be touched, and then make you jump through thousands of hoops to even discuss a return if you are dissatisfied. Usually by the time you reach someone with a pulse, the time period to return items has long since expired.
Fortunately, there are still some online furniture companies that still know how to deliver top notch customer service. You can easily recognize them by the way. They offer a clear method of communication, and are always available to speak to you. The best ones actually are available 24 hours a day, showing complete commitment to their customers and their needs. Also, a great customer service company will have a reasonable return policy that is flexible when customer satisfaction demands it to be so. A happy customer is the sole motivation for these furniture retailers, and they understand that this will cost them far less in the long run. A happy customer will spread the word, making the business that much more profitable.
While there are still some furniture companies that are struggling with this concept, one can hope that they will take a lesson from these innovative and dynamic companies that have it down pat. Make the customer happy, and your business will grow.
If you stick with average, you will continue to be average. Who wants that as a retailer anyways?
Source:
Rodney Southern:
link
Article Content: Customer Service Course
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