Customer Service: Stop Sabotaging Your Customer Relationships

If you've called for customer service recently you're familiar
with this recorded message "This call may be recorded or
monitored for quality purposes." I immediately think to
myself, "Oh great, here comes the game of 20 questions."

Now don't get me wrong. I spent many, many years training
Customer Service Reps. (CSR's). I'm all for making sure
customers receive the best possible service. What I'm not
for is the pre-scripted list of questions CSR's are required
to ask, regardless of whether they are applicable to the
situation at hand. I've seen some checklists with as many
as 25 pre-scripted "call quality" standards that CSR's are
required to use. If they don't, and someone happens to
monitor the call, they get marked down. Ludicrous I say!

Let me give you a few highlights from a recent call I made
to my well-known auto club:

CSR: What is the year, make and model of your vehicle?
Me: 2000, GMC, Yukon, Denali
CSR: There is no 2000, GMC, Yukon, Denali (obviously
it couldn't be found in her list of computer options so
she needed to tell me I was wrong)
Me: Yes there is, I drive it every day
CSR: What's wrong with your vehicle?
Me: I don't know. It won't start.
CSR: Does it need to be towed or jumped?
Me: I don't know. I don't know what's wrong with it.
CSR: Well do you think it needs to be towed or jumped?
Me: I have no clue.
CSR: Where is your vehicle?
Me: In my garage.
CSR: Can you push it out of the garage into the
driveway or the street?
Me: No. It's a full size SUV. I can't push it
anywhere.
CSR: Is there another way you can get it out of the
garage?
Me: No. It won't start.

Eventually, after I'd jumped through enough hoops,
the call finally ended.

Chances are it wasn't the CSR's idea to get her
laughs for the day by asking me stupid questions.
Instead, her own company sabotaged her ability to
quickly and efficiently take care of her customer,
by requiring she use a scripted questioning process.

What Could Have Gone Better?
For starters, rather than telling me that the make
and model of my vehicle didn't exist, she could have
said that she was having trouble finding it in her
database, and then asked for verification.

Next, instead of asking me twice about whether the
truck needed to be "jumped or towed", she might
have asked if I had any ideas about what could be
wrong with it.

And finally, considering that she already knew the
vehicle wouldn't start, asking a woman to push a
truck out of a garage seems a little unreasonable.

What Needs To Change?
First, re-think your call quality standards. You may
have too many standards; they may be too focused on
internally created "shoulds", with very little focus
on what matters most to your customers. Involve your
CSR's and customers in the process.

Secondly, empower and train your CSR's to think, act
and personalize service to best accommodate the given
situation. One size does not fit all, or even most!
Teach your CSR's how to recognize different communication
styles, and then how to adapt their personal style so they
can best relate to the customer as an individual. In
other words, teach CSR's how to treat customers how THEY
want to be treated.

And thirdly, continually ask for feedback from CSR's as
well as customers. Make time to find out what's working
and what's not working. Pay attention to what they have
to say. Make ongoing improvements that benefit everyone.
Repeat the cycle.

Companies spend thousands, if not millions of dollars each
year to acquire new customers, yet sometimes they forget
about how to best take care of the customers they already have.

Everyday your customers and your CSR's make decisions about
whether to stay with your company or go to your competitor.
Loyalty is built on good, solid relationships. Your company
relies on the loyalty of your CSR's to service your customers.
And great customer service can set you apart from your
competition. Take action now! Stop sabotaging those
relationships with unnecessary standards that don't really
matter to your customers. Your customers and your CSR's
will love you for it.
with this recorded message "This call may be recorded or
monitored for quality purposes." I immediately think to
myself, "Oh great, here comes the game of 20 questions."

Now don't get me wrong. I spent many, many years training
Customer Service Reps. (CSR's). I'm all for making sure
customers receive the best possible service. What I'm not
for is the pre-scripted list of questions CSR's are required
to ask, regardless of whether they are applicable to the
situation at hand. I've seen some checklists with as many
as 25 pre-scripted "call quality" standards that CSR's are
required to use. If they don't, and someone happens to
monitor the call, they get marked down. Ludicrous I say!

Let me give you a few highlights from a recent call I made
to my well-known auto club:

CSR: What is the year, make and model of your vehicle?
Me: 2000, GMC, Yukon, Denali
CSR: There is no 2000, GMC, Yukon, Denali (obviously
it couldn't be found in her list of computer options so
she needed to tell me I was wrong)
Me: Yes there is, I drive it every day
CSR: What's wrong with your vehicle?
Me: I don't know. It won't start.
CSR: Does it need to be towed or jumped?
Me: I don't know. I don't know what's wrong with it.
CSR: Well do you think it needs to be towed or jumped?
Me: I have no clue.
CSR: Where is your vehicle?
Me: In my garage.
CSR: Can you push it out of the garage into the
driveway or the street?
Me: No. It's a full size SUV. I can't push it
anywhere.
CSR: Is there another way you can get it out of the
garage?
Me: No. It won't start.

Eventually, after I'd jumped through enough hoops,
the call finally ended.

Chances are it wasn't the CSR's idea to get her
laughs for the day by asking me stupid questions.
Instead, her own company sabotaged her ability to
quickly and efficiently take care of her customer,
by requiring she use a scripted questioning process.

What Could Have Gone Better?
For starters, rather than telling me that the make
and model of my vehicle didn't exist, she could have
said that she was having trouble finding it in her
database, and then asked for verification.

Next, instead of asking me twice about whether the
truck needed to be "jumped or towed", she might
have asked if I had any ideas about what could be
wrong with it.

And finally, considering that she already knew the
vehicle wouldn't start, asking a woman to push a
truck out of a garage seems a little unreasonable.

What Needs To Change?
First, re-think your call quality standards. You may
have too many standards; they may be too focused on
internally created "shoulds", with very little focus
on what matters most to your customers. Involve your
CSR's and customers in the process.

Secondly, empower and train your CSR's to think, act
and personalize service to best accommodate the given
situation. One size does not fit all, or even most!
Teach your CSR's how to recognize different communication
styles, and then how to adapt their personal style so they
can best relate to the customer as an individual. In
other words, teach CSR's how to treat customers how THEY
want to be treated.

And thirdly, continually ask for feedback from CSR's as
well as customers. Make time to find out what's working
and what's not working. Pay attention to what they have
to say. Make ongoing improvements that benefit everyone.
Repeat the cycle.

Companies spend thousands, if not millions of dollars each
year to acquire new customers, yet sometimes they forget
about how to best take care of the customers they already have.

Everyday your customers and your CSR's make decisions about
whether to stay with your company or go to your competitor.
Loyalty is built on good, solid relationships. Your company
relies on the loyalty of your CSR's to service your customers.
And great customer service can set you apart from your
competition. Take action now! Stop sabotaging those
relationships with unnecessary standards that don't really
matter to your customers. Your customers and your CSR's
will love you for it.

Lora Adrianse is passionate about helping people build
dynamic business relationships in the workplace and with
their customers. She can be reached through her website
www.connectionscoach.com .

Sales People are NOT Immune to Bionic Automation

If you look up the definition of the word - bionic, here is what you will find:

A machine that is patterned after principles found in humans or nature; for example, robots. It also refers to artificial devices implanted into humans replacing or extending normal human functions.

In the printing industry, automation of many processes has dramatically changed the production of printing. The new digital printing systems take the traditional lithography functions of putting ink on paper and replace it with automated digital technology. In many cases, the untrained eye and even some very well trained eyes can't distinguish the difference. The quality and clarity of the images produced are excellent. This is one reason quick printers have adopted digital print technology.

However, quality is just one of the reasons. The primary reason for new technology adoption is the automated benefits of machines replacing the talented craft of a journeyman printer. Today, journeyman printers are difficult to find and traditional printing is becoming a lost craft like the blacksmith was in the horse and buggy era. The marvel of the automobile revolutionized the transportation industry just as technology and automated communications are revolutionizing the printing industry today.

If Sales Is a Process, It Can Be Automated When you ask a sales professional about what they do, they will tell you that selling is a craft and a process. When you take away the firm handshake, the voice of reason and convincing assurance you are making the right decision, the selling process can be automated. With today's technology and communication tools, 80% of what leads up to the closing sale can be diagramed and processed. This is bionic selling because these functions can be patterned after principles of humans.

If the bionic patterns of the selling process are designed to follow the best practices of selling and automated with the push of a button by a human, you have a great system.

Sales are NOT immune from automation and businesses can either take advantage of automating the selling process or fight the technology. Where does this leave a business that doesn't adopt the automation of a selling process? In a few years, you will find them listed in the white pages next to the blacksmith or you won't find them around at all.

How to Get Started If you are in a manufacturing business like printing, the production system is mapped out for efficiency and speed. Just look at some of today's digital printing systems and you will know what we mean. If you get a chance to ask a printing business owner to layout their production process, they can list this quickly and clearly. Processes in the manufacturing and printing business are foundational and printers are always looking for ways to make the production process more efficient. A perfect example of this is the Six Sigma trend towards quality and precision because it places a focus on the process of manufacturing.

If you ask most business owners to map out their selling process, you will get a blank stare and a questioned look that leads to fear. Most salespeople can't recite the selling process and some, so called experts, don't understand the process well enough to teach it. Here are a few things you can expect from a sales automation system. These are the functions I build into my sales automation solutions.

• Automation of 80% or more of routine sales activities
• On-line features that make selling and selling management a virtual process.
• Automated sales management notification of good and bad performance activities.
• Adoption and execution of the four primary methods of communications.
• A system that salespeople and sales management will enjoy implementing.
• A system that can be adopted quickly and is affordable with guaranteed results.

One of the important factors is the ability to embrace technology and NOT be afraid of change. Every industry uses a slightly different pattern of success and requires a customized sales process. This is where an expert in mapping out your selling process is required. Look for someone who understands your business. Once you have this mapped out, execute the automation with a passion and you will quickly reap the rewards of bionic selling.

by Steve Martinez, President of Selling Magic and a Mastermind Sales Process Automation Guru http://www.impactivator.com.