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Customer

service
Basic concept of customer service
Basic communication skills of dealing
with customers

Review
Do you think companies spend
most of the time and energy
attracting new customers or
keeping existing customers?
Which one is more crucial to a
company, attracting new
customers or keeping existing
customers? Why?
p.25
How do you understand the idea
of Customers are God?

Statistics: Advantages of
keeping customers

Repeat customers spend 33%


more than new customers.
It costs 6 times more to acquire
a new customer than it does to
keep an existing one.
As little as a 5% increase in
customer retention can increase
profits by 25 to 95%.

Ladder of customer loyalty


p.25
Advocate

Supporter
Client
Customer
Prospect

Strategies of building
customer loyalty
Building brand equity
- Brand loyalty (From a marketing
point of view, brand equity is the
measure of customer loyalty to a
brand.)
Creating customer satisfaction
Creating and maintaining
relationships
- Customer service
- CRM (customer relationship
management)

I. Customer Service
Discussion: Sharing your
experience

Talk with your partner about


your most delightful or
annoying experience with
customer service as a
customer.
Refer to p.84

Discussion:
What were the
consequences of your
delightful and annoying
customer service
experiences?

Facts about customer


service
80% of business leaders believe
their companies are doing a
good job in the way they treat
customers.
Only 8% of customers agree.

Facts about customer


54% to 70% of customers who
service

complain will do business with you


again if they feel their problem is
resolved. That figure jumps to
95% if the customer feels the
complaint has been resolved
quickly.
According to the above recent
reports, outstanding customer
service is now rated as being
more important than low prices
and quality products!

1. What is customer
service?
How a company deals with its
consumers before, during and
after a purchase or use of a
service.
A series of activities designed to
enhance the level of customer
satisfaction that is, the feeling
that a product or service has met
the customer expectation.
A proactive attitude that can be
summed up as: I care and I can do.

2. Why it matters?
Businesses need to recognize:
The benefits of having
satisfied customers;
The costs of having
dissatisfied customers .

Reading
p.86 Customer delight

3. Who offers it?


Who gives customer service?
Name some job roles
Shop assistants (salespersons)
Receptionists
Bank assistants
Insurance agents
Food servers
Bus drivers
Customer service representatives

Link: Customer Care


Customer care centre
Customer care representative
The two terms (customer
service and customer care) are
often used interchangeably.
Customer care is the
application of customer
service.

3. Who offers customer


service?
Excellent customer service
can only be achieved by
training all employees, even
those who do not have direct
contact with customers.
Happy employees make
happy customers.

4. How to offer customer


service?
Listening:
- p.89

4. How to offer customer


service?
Discussion:
What rules for good customer
service can you summarize?

4. How to offer customer


service?
Excellent customer service is the
ability of an organization to
constantly and consistently
exceed the customer's
expectations.
Its all about attitude and skills.

Rules for good customer


Answer your phone
service
Make sure that someone is picking up the
phone when someone calls your business .

Dont make promises unless you WILL


keep them
Listen to your customers
Let your customer talk and show him that
you are listening by making the
appropriate responses, such as
suggesting how to solve the problem .

Deal with complaints


Be helpful, courteous, and
knowledgeable

Communication skills of
dealing with complaints
Customer complaints p.85,
Book 4
Telephone complaints p.131,
Book 3
Handling difficult situations
p.43, Book 4
Resolving conflict p.73, Book
4
Active listening p.89, Book 4

Words & phrases that damage


Ill find out for you;
customer relationship
Ill need to check on

You dont understand.


that and get back to
I dont know.
you;
Ill have to look that
I cant
up, when is a good time
You dont see my point.
for me to call you
Hold on (or hang on) back?
a second.
Our policy says (or prohibits)
Thats not my job/responsibility.
You must/should
Youll have to
What you need to do is
Whats your problem?
Why dont you?
I never said

Words & phrases that build


customer relationship
Please.
Thank you.
I can/will
How may I help?
I was wrong.
Youre right.
I understand how you feel.
May I ? / Could we try ?
Have you considered
Im sorry for
Its my/our fault.
What do you think?
Would you mind?

Express empathy to
customers
Use empathic phrases:
I can see why you feel that
way
I see what you mean
That must be very upsetting
I understand how frustrating
this must be
Im sorry about this
Always say youre sorry

Excellent customer service


Study these winners
Customer service stars:
2009 BusinessWeek Top 25
http://images.businessweek.com
/ss/09/02/0219_customer_servic
e/1.htm

Customer service & CRM


CRM is useful for customer service.
Businesses can use automated
CRM applications to analyze
customer complaints, or
compliments, and change the
business processes accordingly.
Interestingly enough, CRM products
also run many automated callcenters for businesses (i.e.
customer service systems). CRM
applications and practices are used
to make businesses more efficient
and improve customer satisfaction.

Role play (work in pairs)


You have bought a cell phone and
its broken after only one week
and youre very angry about
products not being made to last
anymore. You want the
salesperson to do something
immediately. She is offering you a
replacement and you want a
refund.

Homework
Listening
pp.84-85
Case study
p.90

Appendix
How to deal with different
types of customers?

The talkative customer


Ask closed questions
Limit the time available for them
to interrupt (dont have long
pauses)
Provide minimal response
Smile and be pleasant, but dont
encourage them
Wind up thank them for
coming, walk them to the door
but dont be rude or dismissive

The angry customer


Listen carefully without interrupting
so you understand the problem
Empathize in a broad way
Stay calm and remain polite
Dont escalate the problem
Dont take it personally, be defensive
or blame others
Propose an action plan and follow it
Seek support if you are scared, if you
cant agree on a solution or if the
customer asks to see whoevers in
charge

The know it all customer


Acknowledge what they say
Compliment them on their
research
Be generous with praise
Dont put them in their place no
matter how tempting
Dont try to be smart you cant
win!
Ask them questions and use
them to improve your knowledge

The indecisive customer


Find out what they really want
Ask them for the options
Reflect back to them what theyve
said
Assume control gently and point
out the best course of action from
what theyve told you they need
Be logical
Confirm a plan of action with them
Maybe even put it in writing

The suspicious customer


Establish your credibility
Ensure you know your product or
service
They will try and catch you out
so dont guess or tell them
something youre not sure of
Be careful what you say
Be polite
Dont take it personally, they
dont trust anyone!

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