Strengthening Communication with Customers – Tip#3

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Strengthening Communication with Customers – Tip#3

Demonstrate Openness

Customers who feel that they have an active role in and control of a service-provider interaction often feel more important and valued. Improved interpersonal communication can lead to higher levels of customer satisfaction and retention and reduced stress for you and your co-workers.Strengthening Communication with Customers – Tip#3: Demonstrate Openness

Take advantage of the following strategy to build stronger relationships with your internal and external customers by demonstrating openness.

Customers often want to see that service providers understand them on a personal level. The worst thing you can do as a service provider is to hide behind a policy or deflect responsibility when dealing with a customer issue or question. Think of how you likely react when a service provider says something like, “I can’t do that because our policy says . . . .” You probably feel the hairs rise on the back of your neck and become agitated. Your customers are no different. When interacting with them, take the time to put yourself in their place before saying something or taking an action that might create an adversarial situation.

For specific strategies on more effective communication with your customers, get a copy of Customer Service Skills for Success and Please Every Customer: Delivering Stellar Customer Service Across Cultures.

About Robert W. Lucas

Bob Lucas has been a trainer, presenter, customer service expert, and adult educator for over four decades. He has written hundreds of articles on training, writing, self-publishing, and workplace learning skills and issues. He is also an award-winning author who has written thirty-seven books on topics such as, writing, relationships, customer service, brain-based learning, and creative training strategies, interpersonal communication, diversity, and supervisory skills. Additionally, he has contributed articles, chapters, and activities to eighteen compilation books. Bob retired from the U.S. Marine Corps in 1991 after twenty-two years of active and reserve service.

Make Money Writing Books: Proven Profit Making Strategies for Authors by Robert W. Lucas at Amazon.com.

The key to successfully making money as an author and/or self-publisher is to brand yourself and your company and to make yourself and your book(s) a household name. Part of this is face-to-face interaction with people at trade shows, library events, book readings, book store signings, blogging or guest blogging on a topic related to their book(s). Another strategy involves writing articles and other materials that show up online and are found when people search for a given topic related to a topic about which the author has written.

If you need help building an author platform, branding yourself and your book(s) or generating recognition for what you do, Make Money Writing Books will help. Bob’s popular book addresses a multitude of ideas and strategies that you can use to help sell more books and create residual and passive income streams. The tips outlined in the book are focused to help authors but apply to virtually any professional trying to increase personal and product recognition and visibility.

In my book Customer Service Skills for Success, I define customer service as “the ability of knowledgeable, capable, and enthusiastic employees to deliver products and services to their internal and external customers in a manner that satisfies identified and unidentified needs and ultimately results in positive word-of-mouth publicity and return business.”

Improving Customer Service With Active Listening Skills

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Imrpoving Customer Service With Active Listening SkillsImproving Customer Service With Active Listening Skills

Delivering excellent customer service to your internal and external customers requires strong interpersonal communication skills, especially in the area of listening.

  • Listening effectively is the primary means that many customer service representatives use during communication to determine the needs of their customers. Many times, these needs are not communicated to you directly but through inferences, indirect comments, or nonverbal signals. A skilled listener will pick up on a customer’s words and these cues or nuances and, then conduct follow-up questioning or probe deeper to determine the real need.
  • Most employees take listening skills for granted in a customer service environment. They incorrectly assume that anyone can listen effectively. Unfortunately, this is untrue. This is why many employees who deal with customers are complacent about listening and only go through the motions of listening.
  • True listening is an active learned process, as opposed to hearing, which is the physical action of gathering sound waves through the ear canal. When you listen actively, you go through a process consisting of various phases …. hearing or receiving the message, attending, comprehending or assigning meaning, and responding.
  • For information and strategies for developing and using effective listening skills and what you can do to more effectively interact with your customers, get a copy of Customer Service Skills for Success.

Quote On Communicating Through Body Language – Harvey Wolter

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Quote About Communicating Through Body Language - Harvey Wolter

Quote On Communicating Through Body Language – Harvey Wolter

Learning to read body language (nonverbal communication) is a crucial customer service skill since the majority of the sender’s meaning in a conversation comes from the non-verbal cues that they send along with their verbal communication.

Famous Harvey Wolter Quotes

  • “You can tell a lot by someone’s body language.”
  • “It really gets your blood going in the morning.”
  • “I never take anything personally. If they don’t respond, I figure it’s because of what’s going on in their own life; they’re preoccupied. I just try to help them with what I can.”
  • “You get to know them, and all about their family, their aches and pains. Sometimes you laugh with them, sometimes you cry with them.”

For additional thought and strategies on using and reading nonverbal communication when dealing with customers, get copies of Please Every Customer: Delivering Stellar Customer Service Across Cultures and Customer Service Skills for Success.

About Robert W. Lucas

Bob Lucas has been a trainer, presenter, customer service expert, and adult educator for over four decades. He has written hundreds of articles on training, writing, self-publishing, and workplace learning skills and issues. He is also an award-winning author who has written thirty-seven books on topics such as, writing, relationships, customer service, brain-based learning, and creative training strategies, interpersonal communication, diversity, and supervisory skills. Additionally, he has contributed articles, chapters, and activities to eighteen compilation books. Bob retired from the U.S. Marine Corps in 1991 after twenty-two years of active and reserve service.

Customer Relations is Directly Tied to Keeping Your Word

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Customer Relations is Directly Tied to Keeping Your Word

Customer service training for employees must cover basic customer service skills (i.e. verbal and nonverbal communication, how to build and maintain customer relationships that can lead to customer and brand loyalty and overall customer satisfaction). It must also emphasize how to handle situations when something goes wrong and teach how to implement sound service recovery strategies.  This last topic is crucial since some customer situations can quickly escalate when people perceive that they have been lied to or that a service provider failed to meet a commitment to them.

An example of the importance and severity of what might happen if employees fail to meet commitments to a customer was provided in an article in USA Today newspaper on February 28, 2014. Four people were shot in a tax preparation business when a customer became disgruntled when her tax return was not ready as promised. Read more at http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/03/01/detroit-shooting-tax-refund/5919971/.

For more ideas and strategies on building better customer relationships and implementing service recovery strategies when customers are dissatisfied, get a copy of Customer Service Skills for Success.

Customer Relations is Directly Tied to Keeping Your Word

About Robert W. Lucas

Bob Lucas has been a trainer, presenter, customer service expert, and adult educator for over four decades. He has written hundreds of articles on training, writing, self-publishing, and workplace learning skills and issues. He is also an award-winning author who has written thirty-seven books on topics such as, writing, relationships, customer service, brain-based learning, and creative training strategies, interpersonal communication, diversity, and supervisory skills. Additionally, he has contributed articles, chapters, and activities to eighteen compilation books. Bob retired from the U.S. Marine Corps in 1991 after twenty-two years of active and reserve service.

Non-Verbal Communication Tips

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Nonverbal Communication Tips - The Importance Gestures in Customer Communication

Nonverbal Communication Tips –

The Importance of Gestures in Customer Communication

Never underestimate the power of nonverbal communication when interacting with your customers or others. The issue is so important that entire books have been written on the topic. This article provides some nonverbal communication tips related to gesturing that you may want to consider before meeting your next customer.

Many studies have been done on the different ways in which people communicate and send messages to others. One classic study by Dr. Albert Mehrabian emphasized that the emotions between two people can be amplified through the use of nonverbal gestures or cues. In some instances, silent messages can override spoken words. These unspoken signals should not be underestimated if you are working with customers. An example of how you might impact a customer-provider interaction involves gesturing. To send a positive message, use open, flowing gestures (gesturing with arms, palms open and turned upward, out and away from the body). This approach can encourage listening and help explain messages more effectively to customers. If you use closed, restrained movements (tightly crossed arms, clenched fists, hands in pockets, hands or fingers intertwined and held below waist level or behind the back) you can potentially send a message of coolness, insecurity, or disinterest. This could result in a nonproductive situation and lead to customer dissatisfaction.

What nonverbal communication tips can you offer to customer service professionals?

The key is to make gestures seem natural and to be conscious that some people might perceive your movements differently based on their background or culture. If you do not normally use gestures when communicating, you may want to practice in front of a mirror until you feel relaxed in using them. Make sure that your gestures complement your verbal messages without distracting.

Effective nonverbal communication can help build stronger customer relationships while helping increase customer satisfaction and retention. For more ideas and nonverbal communication tips related to positively communicating with your customers, search the topic on this blog. Also, check out more strategies in Please Every Customer: Delivering Stellar Customer Service Across Cultures and Customer Service Skills for Success.

About Robert W. Lucas on Customer Communication

Bob Lucas has been a trainer, presenter, customer service expert, and adult educator for over four decades. He has written hundreds of articles on training, writing, self-publishing, and workplace learning skills and issues. He is also an award-winning author who has written thirty-seven books on topics such as, writing, relationships, customer service, brain-based learning, and creative training strategies, interpersonal communication, diversity, and supervisory skills. Additionally, he has contributed articles, chapters, and activities to eighteen compilation books. Bob retired from the U.S. Marine Corps in 1991 after twenty-two years of active and reserve service.

Positive Impressions Builds Strong Customer Relationships

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Postitive Impressions Help Build Strong Customer Relationships

Positive Impressions Builds Strong Customer Relationships

Customers often judge an organization and the people who work for it based on the first impressions made by customer service representatives and others in the organization with whom they come into contact face-to-face or via technology. This is why it is crucial that you and others who serve customers take time to prepare for customer interactions by fine-tuning your interpersonal communication skills.

To ensure that you have the tools needed to deliver excellent customer service to current and potential customers, learn as much as you can about your organization, products, and services. Also, continually work to upgrade your knowledge of people from varies backgrounds and enhance your customer service skills. By taking these basic steps you will be better prepared to send positive messages through your appearance, voice and non-verbal cues and to provide quality customer service.

To learn more about ways to deliver the best customer service possible and make positive impressions on current and potential customers, get copies of Customer Service Skills for Success and Please Every Customer: Delivering Stellar Customer Service Across Cultures.

Strengthening Customer Relationships With Verbal and Non-Verbal Communication Skills

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Strengthening Customer Relationships Through Strong Verbal and Non Verbal Communication Skills

Strengthening Customer Relationships

Strong Verbal and Non-Verbal Communication Skills Can Make the Difference!

We live in an era in which people from all over the world come together in various situations throughout any given day. They bring with them individual experiences, education levels, cultural and personal backgrounds, preferences, opinions, and perspectives. Any or all of these elements can impact the way they approach and receive others or the manner in which they communicate.

An old adage goes: It is not what you say, but how you say it that counts. Nothing can be truer than when you are dealing with customers from diverse backgrounds. For this reason, customer service representatives should always take their time to “read” their customers and think of their response (verbally and non verbally) before jumping into any situation where verbal and non-verbal messages communication might be misinterpreted.

Likely, the last thing that a customer service representative, or another employee from an organization, wants to do is falter in their efforts of building customer relationships.

To help reduce the potential of a customer-provider relationship breakdown; service providers should focus on building and practicing their positive communication skills (e.g. smiling, paying compliments, using open body movements and gestures and finding things to agree with when interacting with their customers).

For ideas on how to more effectively communicate verbally and non verbally in order to improve customer loyalty and enhance customer retention, get copies of my books: Please Every Customer: Delivering Stellar Customer Service Across Cultures, Customer Service Skills for Success, and How to Be a Great Call Center Representative.

About Robert W. Lucas

Robert ‘Bob’ Lucas has been a trainer, presenter, customer service expert, and adult educator for over four decades. He has written hundreds of articles on training, writing, self-publishing, and workplace learning skills and issues. He is also an award-winning author who has written thirty-seven books on topics such as, writing, relationships, customer service, brain-based learning, and creative training strategies, interpersonal communication, diversity, and supervisory skills. Additionally, he has contributed articles, chapters, and activities to eighteen compilation books. Bob retired from the U.S. Marine Corps in 1991 after twenty-two years of active and reserve service.

Customer Service Skills That Lead to Customer Satisfaction

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Customer Service Skills That Lead to Customer Satisfaction

Customer Service Skills That Lead to Customer Satisfaction

As a customer service professional, what can you do to enhance customer satisfaction and build a lasting relationship with your customers? If you answered “improve your customer service skills and knowledge,” you are correct. Unfortunately, many managers and their organizations do not take the time to invest in employee knowledge and skill-building. Often, supervisors are not taught how to effectively coach and mentor employees and ongoing customer service skills training is neglected for all employee levels. Cost and time constraints are two common excuses for both of these failures. The ultimate result is lowered employee morale, high turnover, lowered customer satisfaction, and increased customer churn rates.

What skills do you believe are crucial for enhancing customer satisfaction?

If you find yourself in a situation in which customer service skills training is not being provided, take responsibility for your own professional development. There are many options for gaining, updating or upgrading your knowledge and skills.

The key to improving the chances of providing stellar service to your customers is to focus on personal motivation and continually strive to improve your own knowledge and customer service skills.

The following are specific areas that can lead to improved quality of customer service.

Customer service skills.  No matter whether you serve internal or external customers, you are in the “people” business. To be successful in interacting with others, you must be able to communicate verbally and nonverbally, actively listen, empathize, question in a non-threatening manner, provide appropriate feedback, and demonstrate that you have their best interests at heart. All of these skills take a conscious effort on your part after you learn how to use them.

Enhanced knowledge of diversity. The world is continuing to evolve related to interactions between a variety of people. This means that for you to be effective in delivering effective service, you must first understand the needs, wants and expectations of various groups. To help accomplish this: (1) Learn as much as you can about the cultural backgrounds, values, and beliefs of customer groups with whom you are likely to encounter, (2) Explore differences and similarities of people from various generations,  (3) Identify preferences of customers based on their genders, age, and ability levels, and (4) Recognize that people have different behavioral style preferences that affect the manner in which they react in various situations. All of these crucial components can impact customer-provider interactions. By increasing your awareness about interpersonal dynamics, you can potentially become a more effective customer service provider.

Organizational and product knowledge. One of the most frustrating things that a customer can experience is an unprepared service professional. This is one who does not know what his or her organization is about, the features, benefits, and functioning of products sold, and services offered. Typically, these areas are addressed briefly in new hire orientation and in the information provided online or in materials provided to employees. Take the time to familiarize yourself with all of these components of the customer service process so that you are prepared to answer questions from customers and offer appropriate options when the time arises.

For additional ideas on how to improve your customer service skills and improve customer satisfaction, search those topics on this blog.

Customer Service Quote – Robert Lucas

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Customer Service Quote – Robert Lucas

Customer Service Quote - Robert W. Lucas

 

“Effective customer service is often the deciding factor in a globally competitive world” Robert W. Lucas, Author of Please Every Customer.

National Customer Service Week was established by the International Customer Service Association (ICSA) in 1988 as a way for businesses and organizations to recognize the efforts of their customer service professionals. In 1991 President George H. Bush declared National Customer Service Week. In 2013, the theme was “United through Service”.

The idea behind the week is for organizations to celebrate service by doing things to boost employee morale and motivation through recognition and rewards for their efforts in satisfying customer needs, wants and expectations. By raising customer awareness across the organization and also reminding customers how vital they are to the individual employee and organizational success, companies can potentially enhance employee morale and increase customer and brand loyalty.

For useful resources and information on how to create a positive customer-centric environment in your organization, check out the ICSA and Alexander Communications Group websites.

For additional proven ideas and strategies on how to enhance the quality of service that you build with customers and to help aid customer and brand loyalty while increasing retention, get a copy of Care Packages for Your Customers by Barbara Glanz.

About Robert W. Lucas

Bob Lucas has been a trainer, presenter, customer service expert, and adult educator for over four decades. He has written hundreds of articles on training, writing, self-publishing, and workplace learning skills and issues. He is also an award-winning author who has written thirty-seven books on topics such as, writing, relationships, customer service, brain-based learning, and creative training strategies, interpersonal communication, diversity, and supervisory skills. Additionally, he has contributed articles, chapters, and activities to eighteen compilation books. Bob retired from the U.S. Marine Corps in 1991 after twenty-two years of active and reserve service.

Make Money Writing Books: Proven Profit Making Strategies for Authors by Robert W. Lucas at Amazon.com.

The key to successfully making money as an author and/or self-publisher is to brand yourself and your company and to make yourself and your book(s) a household name. Part of this is face-to-face interaction with people at trade shows, library events, book readings, book store signings, blogging or guest blogging on a topic related to their book(s). Another strategy involves writing articles and other materials that show up online and are found when people search for a given topic related to a topic about which the author has written.

If you need help building an author platform, branding yourself and your book(s) or generating recognition for what you do, Make Money Writing Books will help. Bob’s popular book addresses a multitude of ideas and strategies that you can use to help sell more books and create residual and passive income streams. The tips outlined in the book are focused to help authors but apply to virtually any professional trying to increase personal and product recognition and visibility.

Preparing Customer Service Representatives

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Preparing Customer Service Representatives in the 21st Century Preparing Customer Service Representatives

Preparing customer service representatives in the twenty-first century has become a prime strategic initiative in many organizations. That is because they face many challenges in achieving customer satisfaction, increasing customer retention and building customer loyalty that their predecessors did not experience. Technology continues to move at a break-neck pace, while the world economy shifts continually and causes companies to regularly re-evaluate how to best deal with competition. Add to this mix changing customer demographics with culturally-based needs, wants and expectations, and you have a potential prescription for failure.

Customer service representatives in the twenty-first century face many challenges in achieving customer satisfaction, increasing customer retention and building customer loyalty that their predecessors did not experience. Technology continues to move at a break-neck pace, while the world economy shifts continually and causes companies to regularly re-evaluate how to best deal with competition. Add to this mix changing customer demographics with culturally-based needs, wants and expectations, and you have a potential prescription for failure. The concept or practice of customer service is not new throughout the world. In fact, customers are the core of every business. As such, they should be the top priority for every organization. This includes internal Preparing Customer Service Representatives in the 21st Century(employees) and external customers.

The concept or practice of customer service is not new throughout the world. In fact, customers are the core of every business. As such, they should be the top priority for every organization. This includes internal (employees) and external customers.

Successful managers recognize the need to reduce their customer churn rate and realize that if their customers go away, so do their jobs and organization. This is why truly customer-centric organizations strive to attract, hire, and retain the best qualified and capable customer service representatives (also known as customer care professionals) that they can find. They also pay competitive wages, provide industry-comparable benefits and continually train everyone in the organization. This training includes product and organizational culture information, as well as, the customer service skills necessary to effectively interact with all types of customers face-to-face and via technology.

In addition to effectively training employees, customer-focused organizations also ensure that all supervisors and managers have been trained in ways to effectively coach and mentor staff members. They also ensure that written policies and procedures are in place to provide guidance on expectations and processes so that all employees know what is expected of them. Also, to help employees deliver the best customer service possible, organizations must provide the most up-to-date software and equipment available, if it is required to help deliver stellar customer service.

Preparing Customer Service Representatives in the 21st Century A final means of preparing customer service representatives for the challenges that they will likely face on any given day is to empower them to make decisions, when necessary to satisfy a customer or resolve and issue that arises.

For ideas and strategies on better preparing customer service representatives and other employees for the tasks required in their jobs, check out two of my books – Please Every Customer: Delivering Stellar Customer Service Across Cultures, Customer Service Skills for Success and the American Management Association self-study course, How to Be a Great Call Center Representative. This latter resource results in a certificate of completion from the American Management Association once a final exam is taken and submitted to the association.

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