Customer service. Now there’s a phrase that everyone declares that they’ve got conquered but have they? And what really is customer service?
We’ve won many awards and accolades for our customer service and yet from time to time we still fall short. That strive for continual customer experience perfection still alludes us but in reality we’re only human so this quest is always only ever going to be a constant work in progress.
For a singer they say that you are only as good as your last album. Well when you are in a service industry like ours we’re only as good as our last delivery.
To help we’ve compiled 5 simple rules to set you off on the right foot;
Rule number 1: Forget the 100’s of jobs delivered on time, the most important job is the one you are handling right now.
Rule number 2: The customer isn’t always right. The supplier isn’t always right. You aren’t always right.
Rule number 3: Be honest. People can deal with the truth, they can plan with the truth, they can accept the truth and you’ll always remember the truth.
Rule number 4: Be consistent. Yes we all want to impress a client and yes the first impressions are the most important. But if you can’t keep this level of service up with your current staffing levels and you can’t afford to recruit additional staff to support your initial service level then it may be doing more harm than good.
Rule number 5: Keep in contact. Yes you may have been working on your clients issue for 8 hours straight but unless you regularly update them then they will think that you’ve forgotten them. And when they do call you for an update then they won’t believe you.
In summary customer service is all about treating your client how you would of like to be treated. That starts with how you answer the phone and never ends. You have to be the person that they want to call, not who they dread to call. And remember, all customers expect you to prioritise their work, don’t expect anything less.
