Goals for Today:
1. Learn what you should and should not promise a customer.
2. Understand how to resolve issues with clients.
3. Learn specific tips from James about how to keep customers happy and how to grow your business through happy customers.
By way of introduction, let’s begin by understanding how valuable an account is. To be honest, I am not really a motivated customer support person. In other words, customer support by itself doesn’t really give me a rush. However, profit does make me excited. Read this article to learn how I motivate myself to provide great customer support!
Next let’s look at some things that we should not do. This is basically a list of promises that will cause you customer support nightmares later on.
What not to promise a customer
Here are a few short tips.
1. I love this statement: “Exercise integrity at the moment of choice.” That means at the moment when you must choose to be honest or to get the sale, you choose honesty. Your response when a customer asks for something you can’t do and will be upset by your refusal: “Bob, I am committed to making you satisfied, and I am going to work on a solution. But I cannot do what you are asking.” This statement also goes for your schedule. You had planned to make cold calls but something else comes up that would be more fun. Or you have finished your scheduled work and think, “I am so busy; maybe I could cancel my family time.” …DON’T DO IT!!!! Let this statement sink into your mind. Write it on a card and put it on your mirror to read every day. “Exercise integrity at the moment of choice.”
2. Treat your customers like equals. Most agents either look down on or up to their clients. I look my clients right in eye as their equal. They are a business owner; so am I. They had to start from the ground up; so did I. They want good service at a fair price; so do I. They expect people to do what they say they will do; so do I. Learn to emulate your clients. Start to act like a business owner and become the equal of your clients. Don’t ever look down on them as if their goals are not as high as yours; you cannot judge the goals of others. Also, don’t look up to them as if you are a lowly sales rep begging people for business. You are the equal of your clients. This is how you should treat them and the treatment you should expect in return once you have proven yourself as a reliable provider.
3. Act; don’t talk. Too many sales agents are great at talking people into something. But once they do, they do not know how to execute their plan and fulfill their commitments. Most agents try to talk their way out of customer issues by shifting blame or coming up with false solutions and incorrect diagnoses to the problem. Stop talking, and start acting. Your customers want you to fix the problem, not talk your way out of it. Ask this question the moment you get off the phone with an upset or unsatisfied client, “What is the next action I could take to resolve this issue?” Then take that action immediately.
I hope these short tips will help you develop a more robust customer service process.
Shawn Espenlaub