If you want to be known for excellent customer service, you can’t get away with just saying ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ and call your skills impressive. The good news is great customer service isn’t rocket science. What you do need is the desire to enrich the lives of others while enhancing your own life by developing yourself. Customer Service is not just a job description; it’s a wonderfully rich and fulfilling way of living. Here are 10 GOLDEN RULES for superb service to keep in mind.
Customer service is everyone’s job
• Never say ‘That’s not my job.
• If you see a problem – fix it or better yet prevent it.
• Praise, award and reward – the best General’s give lots of medals.
Follow the new golden rule
• Treat the customer the way they would like to be treated – not necessarily the way you want to be treated.
• A customer is a person not a sale or a statistic.
• Remember that ‘customers’ include outside customers and co-workers too.
Do it right the first time
• Think continuous improvement – of yourself and the way you do things.
• Try to exceed people’s expectations of you.
• Quality means as close as you can possibly get to 0 defects.
Feel the need for speed
• Do it on time – or sooner.
• Answer your phone in less than 3 rings – return all messages within 24 hours.
• Customers are NOT an interruption – they are the purpose of your work.
Know your customer’s needs and wants
• LISTEN to what your customer asks of you.
• CHECK to see if you have met their needs.
• LOOK for ways to go above and beyond.
Know your stuff
• There is nothing more satisfying than talking to a service or product provider who knows exactly what they are talking about.
• Think about things from the customer’s point of view.
• Delight your customers by providing additional information that will enhance their experience.
Keep your promises
• Don’t promise anything you can’t deliver 100%.
• Follow through – do what you say you are going to do.
• Deliver on time – keep the customer informed of your progress.
Honesty is the only policy
• Don’t be afraid to apologize. If you screw up – own up.
• Never badmouth the competition.
• Ban the word ‘no’ – instead suggest mutually beneficial alternative.
Keep your cool
• Don’t let an upset customer upset you.
• Listen and empathize (not sympathize) with your customer’s issue.
• Your customer is not someone to argue or match wits with.
Work for the customer
• Don’t expect the customer to change to accommodate you.
• The customer is the most important person in your company.
• Take the initiative to solve issues to improve the customer experience.
• The customer pays your salary – you are dependent on them.