Customer Service Training Seminars:
Our customer service seminar 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 seminars 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.
Seminar Objectives:
In our Exceptional Customer Service one-day seminar
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:
Great Customer Service Training Seminars Tips and Guidelines for Customer Service
Do you ever remember a time when you received poor customer service? Maybe it was when you were looking at new carpet to install in your home and the salesman just sat behind the desk and ignored you. Or was it a time in which you were out to eat for your grandmother's 90th birthday party and the waitress forgot about your table and you sat waiting with empty glasses for over 40 minutes! Although the carpet you may have been looking at was on sale and in the exact color you wanted or when the food came at that restaurant it was cooked to perfection, what you remember about the experience is how disappointed you were with the customer service. A product or service cannot stand alone without having great customer service otherwise the business will soon collapse.
How often do we get caught up with making sure our product or service is superior above the rest? We will make sure that we use the highest quality, most cost efficient materials or we may spend time learning new tools or applications that build up knowledge about our industry. This is all an excellent use of our time and certainly has allowed us to impact our audience such that we have seen some success. To transform this new success into sustainable success it is imperative to spend time on developing our customer service skill set. A web designer who is expert in HTML, may think that their flashy and edgy designs will be all they need, may need to consider brushing up on some of the soft skills that allow for landing clients and keeping them hooked.
In Customer Service Suicide: Six Reasons That Organizations Lose Customers by Robert W. Lucas, the number one reason listed is losing Customer Focus! So unless you want your company to join the list of organizations that are losing customers, you have good reason to invest some time in educating yourself on how to become a more customer-centric business. Think about your business today, do you have repeat customers or do you have one time interactions with that customer and never see them again? Do you feel like you can land a sale easily but does this result in a 2nd or 3rd visit from that customer? So how does one become educated on good customer service and how do I know which areas I may need help with?
Below are some simple guidelines to keep in your back pocket when it comes to customer service:
Listen. Take the time to actively listen to your customer's needs. How often do you find yourself listing off your products or services with all their special features when you are not even sure if this is what the client is looking for? So put the sales pitch on pause, and ask the client specific questions about why they have contacted your business. Pay attention, watch their body language, and do not assume that you intuitively know what the customer wants.
Feedback. Obtain regular feedback from your client to understand where you are on the customer service scale. Customers will appreciate that you are taking an interest in how the service/product you have provided is working for them. Listen carefully to what they say and see if this is something that can easily be incorporated in your business.
Acknowledgment. Although you customers may not be you direct boss, if they were not there you would not be in business. Make sure you acknowledge your customers and show appreciation by making them feel good about working with you. This can be done by treating them as individuals, getting to know there name, there business, and what is important to them. Always say "thank you" at the end of the interaction and do this with sincerity and your customers will remember you.
Connect. Make it easy for your customers to get a hold of you. So that means answer your phone when they call and respond to their email quickly. Consider doing this even if you have to get a call forwarding service or a smart phone that will allow you to view business email. Make sure that you can connect with you through the channel that is most comfortable to them whether it is email, over the phone, through text, or even in person.
Be Helpful. How many times have you walked into a store and asked where the dish detergent is and the answer is "aisle 7"? How do you know where "aisle 7" is? And where in aisle 7 is the dish detergent? Great customer service would include walking the customer to the dish detergent which is more direct and helpful. This added touch really only takes an extra couple minutes of your time. Think about what ways you could be more helpful in your business. If you are creating a website for someone who is still using a dial-up connection then they are probably not to web savvy, so take the time walk them through purchasing a domain name for them. This extra touch that does not take that much time out of your day will leave the customer with that warm and fuzzy feeling that will make them want to tell their friends about how helpful you were.
Apologize. Mitigate any potential customer losses by remedying an issue with the client with a sense of urgency. Acknowledge your customers frustrations, and apologize for any disappoint even if you feel that their complaints are not justified. The customer always wins because you are the one providing the service or the product and you want to create a relationship with them so they will continue to come to you. Complaints give your business an opportunity to improve and if the customer feels comfortable telling you when they are dissatisfied then you flexibility will attract this customer back.
Take these guidelines into consideration and soon you will find that you are building a strong rapport with your client base and referrals and recommendations will continue to come your way. Think of applying these guidelines to your business as an inexpensive way of advertising. Satisfied customers will be out in the field representing your business for you without even asking for a commission!
Source:
David Odey: link
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