As a business owner, how you perceive your customers
trickles down into all aspects of your business. How you
feel about them, talk about them, and serve them provides a
filter that your employees and service providers see
through, and that your customers can perceive right away.
This is a filter that your customers are intuitively aware
of in their interactions with you. They will be attracted
to you, or not, based on how you feel about serving them.
When you're starting out in a new business, you may be
looking for ways to best utilize your time, since it may be
just you juggling all aspects of the business. Utilizing
the latest technology is one way you can potentially
alleviate some of the stress of being the only person
answering the phone. As a small business, you may be
competing with many larger companies, so customer service
is especially critical. One major advantage of being small
is that you get to interact with your customers on a more
personal level, and this is where you can shine.
If you decide to use technology in your business it may be
one of the first interactions your customers have with you
as a service provider. Their first impression of your
business through this technology can start you off with a
warm, friendly relationship or an adversarial one. Once a
relationship starts off on the wrong foot, it's always
harder to change its direction...
A common example, I encounter on a daily basis, is the use
of directive recordings for the first contact with
customers. As a continuous user of technology, I want it
to provide me with a reliable way to access information, so
I can connect to the people and resources I need to build a
financially viable business. When I call for support and
receive recording after recording, with no option for
talking to a live body quickly, it's wasting my time and
causing me stress and frustration. In this way, technology
is keeping me from experiencing the very ease of
communicating and accessing information it was supposed to
provide!
The maze of companies that have gone to this method of
providing customer service is astounding. In many cases,
by the time a person reaches a live body they are so
frustrated that the service rep has to first overcome their
irritation before the problem can be addressed. In
addition, you need to take great care in choosing the tone
of the recording, since reaching a recording, as the first
point of contact with a company, can make customers feel
like you don't want to be bothered with their requests for
service.
It's possible to create a better customer service
experience and serve the company's best interests at the
same time? Here are some possible answers to this dilemma.
1. Give the customer no more than 3 or 4 recorded options
when calling in for customer service. One of the options
should always be allowing the customer to dial zero to
reach a person, who can immediately direct the customer to
the department that can best help them. I suggest using
zero since it's the most universally recognized number for
operator assistance.
2. If you require that the customer input their account
number, don't ask them for it again when they reach a
service provider. If your technology doesn't allow you to
transfer the account number to a representative, don't
require that the customer provide it up front. If the
account rep needs to verify the account number, tell the
customer they are asking again for verification purposes,
or verify other personal information instead. Repetition
is a small, but irritating, inconvenience.
3. Always provide a call back option if customers have to
wait more than five minutes to speak to a representative.
Show your customers you respect their time and you will
find the respect is returned.
4. Always call back the same day, if possible, but no later
than 24 hours after the initial contact. Unresolved issues
that go on for an extended period of time cause customers
to be even more irritated when they finally speak to
someone who can help them.
5. When talking to customers, always listen to all the
issues before responding. I have had more than one
customer service representative interrupt me before they
heard all my issues. This led to me repeating the problem
several times, and more frustration, because I was not
being heard.
Your customers are normal people with fears, insecurities,
and obligations just like you. These are people who are
looking for your business to help them:
* Solve a problem.
* Enjoy life more.
* Feel better about themselves.
* Provide something they need.
* Feel more secure.
The bottom line is, they are coming to your business
because they want help.
In the technology arena it's easy to get side-tracked by
the latest and greatest thing to make your life and
business "easier". But technology alone won't pay the
bills. Always come back to the basics of great customer
care strategies.
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Would you like to learn more about how building a
soul-based business can create a thriving business that
feeds your spirit and bank account? Visit my website at
http://www.soulpreneursuccessstrategies.com to check out my
free "Creating Money" ebook, free articles, and Soulpreneur
Coaching Services.
Sandy Reed, the Soulpreneur's Coach, is a business coach,
writer, ex-corporate manager, and co-owns her own
successful home-based business.
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