COURSE OVERVIEW:
There is a little known secret about the value of delivering good service to customers. Yes, it’s good for business and the organisation. Yes, you may derive a lot of satisfaction by doing a customer service job well. No question. But what’s the most compelling reason to learn about, and deliver good customer service? It’s this. When you deliver good customer service to your customers, you experience less stress, and less hassle and grief from customers. They argue less. They’re much less likely to insult, and they’re less demanding. They don’t threaten you when they get upset (I’ll have your job!”).
You can save huge amounts of time. One dissatisfied customer may take up to ten or twenty times more of your time than a satisfied one. And the time spent with the dissatisfied customer is usually not all that much fun. Customer service skills help you keep your happy customers happy, help prevent customers from becoming unhappy and taking out their frustrations on you, and help you deal effectively and quickly with customers who are upset and unhappy.
There are tools and techniques for every trade and profession. Carpenters have their hammers, saws, screwdrivers, and scores of other tools and techniques for using them. Other professionals—accountants, doctors, psychologists, and so on—also have tools and techniques.
Those involved in customer service are no different, although they use less tangible tools than carpenters. The tools and techniques of effective customer service have to do with what employees say and do with reference to each customer. Top-notch customer service employees know how to use each specific technique and how to match techniques to specific situations.
In the first part of this course we cover some basics of customer service, so you can increase your understanding of what customers want from you, and the things that cause customers to hit the roof. We’ll also talk about various types of customers (internal, external, paying and non-paying).
The second part describes dozens of very specific customer service techniques. The explanations will help you decide when to use what techniques and in what customer situations. Using these techniques increases the chances of a successful interaction with each customer, whether that customer is currently happy or is angry and upset.
LEARNING OUTCOMES:
By the end of this course, you will be able to understand:
- What is customer service?
- The importance of good customer service to any organisation
- The basics of customer service
- What’s in it for you?
- The different kinds of customers
- An important customer service myth
- What customers want and need?
- How to go above and beyond the call of duty?
- How to acknowledge customer’s needs?
- The acknowledging without encouraging technique
- How to actively listen to your customer?
- How and when to admit mistakes?
- The allowing venting technique
- How and when to apologise?
- The appropriate non-verbals technique
- The appropriate smiles technique
- The assurances of effort technique
- The assurances of results technique
- The audience removal technique
- The bonus buyoff technique
- The broken record technique
- How to close interactions positively?
- The common courtesy technique
- When to contact security/ authorities/ management?
- The disengaging technique
- The distraction technique
- When to use empathy statements?
- The expediting technique
- The expert recommendations technique
- The face-saving out technique
- How to find agreement points?
- The isolate/detach customer technique
- The levelling technique
- The managing height differentials/non-verbals technique
- The not taking the bait technique
- The pre-emptive strike technique
- The probing questions technique
- The questioning instead of stating technique
- When to refer the customer to supervisor or to a third party?
- How to refocus a conversation with a customer?
- The neutral mode technique
- The stop sign — non-verbal technique
- How to suggest an alternative to waiting?
- The telephone silence technique
- The thank-yous technique
- When to use customer’s name?
- The use of timing with angry customers
- The you’re right! technique
COURSE DURATION:
The typical duration of this course is approximately 2-3 hours to complete. Your enrolment is Valid for 12 Months. Start anytime and study at your own pace.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
You must have access to a computer or any mobile device with Adobe Acrobat Reader (free PDF Viewer) installed, to complete this course.
COURSE DELIVERY:
Purchase and download course content.
ASSESSMENT:
A simple 10-question true or false quiz with Unlimited Submission Attempts.
CERTIFICATION:
Upon course completion, you will receive a customised digital “Certificate of Completion”.