This customizable two-day soft-skills class introduces the student to basic customer service skills needed to provide world-class service in a technical environment.  The seminar focuses on the communications skills that analysts need to enhance customer satisfaction, resolve issues more quickly, and decrease unnecessary follow-up calls. 

Participants in this class will develop the skills to:

·          Create a satisfied customer in every situation

·          Control the call

Benefits to the company are:

·          More satisfied customers, even if they start out angry

·          Reduced cycle times

For more information on Customer Service Skills for Techies, please call KR Consulting at 817-577-7030 or complete an information request form by clicking here.

The seminar’s activities will include:

Overview of Customer Service Skills in a Technical Environment:

·          The power of a positive attitude

·          Golden rules of customer service

·          Customers aren’t always right, but they are always the customer

·          Managing yourself

·          The importance of teamwork

·          How to create a professional image

This module sets the stage for the rest of the course by examining the basic building blocks of providing world-class customer service.  We start with a service attitude assessment and explore why a positive attitude is so important.  That attitude overflows into how we approach our customers.  We put ourselves in the customer’s shoes and learn some basic, common sense guidelines about service.  Teamwork is needed in customer support so we can learn from each other.

Communicating Professionally:

·          Communication styles

·          Listening skills

·          Questioning skills

·          Empathy, apologies and headlining

·          Client Sensitivity – how to deliver bad news

·          Do’s and Don’ts to avoid angering a customer

·          Negotiating with a customer

·          Dealing with a talker

·          The art of handling an angry customer – steps to take, steps to avoid

·          Communicating cross-culturally

Putting ourselves in the customer’s shoes gives us an understanding of their situation.  Even if the customer is wrong or demanding, we can learn how to treat them with respect, courtesy and professionalism.

Why should we fix the customer before we fix the problem?  Because customers can’t appreciate your problem solving skills until you’ve acknowledged the emotion surrounding the problem!  We start with Active Listening, practicing our new skills by using a Talking Stick.  We discuss how to use empathy, apologies when necessary and headlining to create a satisfied customer.

Sensitivity to the client is important because it helps us deliver bad news in an acceptable way.  It all goes back to empathy – walking a mile in our client’s moccasins.  Negotiating with a client is most successful when you use a win-win approach.

How can you avoid angering a customer?  It’s all in the way you handle their problem and the words you choose.  We talk about the do’s and don’ts of creating satisfied customers with every interaction, using the “Fighting Words” exercise and skits on what to do to project a professional image.

Angry customers shouldn’t ruin anyone’s day – they are an opportunity to create a loyal customer!  If you follow five proven steps to creating a loyal customer out of an angry one, you will no longer dread that irate caller. 

Anatomy of a Good Customer Interaction:

·          Greeting the customer

·          Creating a clear and meaningful problem statement

·          Exploring the conditions of the problem

·          Resolving the issue to the customer’s satisfaction

·          Closing the call

·          Documenting the interaction and steps taken

In this module, we will discuss and practice the six steps in a typical customer interaction.  Greeting a customer sets the tone for the entire encounter.  Creating a clear problem statement helps us solve the right problem.  Asking the right questions not only helps you get the information to solve the problem, but helps you control the call.  Fixing a problem is the easy part – that’s where we excel!  Closing and documenting the call creates satisfied customers.

Effective Problem Solving Skills:

·          The seven steps in problem solving

·          Trying the easy or obvious fix first saves time

·          The intermittent vs. reproducible problem

·          Narrowing down the root cause

Every technical engineer needs to solve problems effectively.  This seven-step problem solving methodology helps analysts resolve problems more quickly and thoroughly.  Both the customer and the analyst are happy when this process is used.

For more information on Customer Service Skills for Techies, please call KR Consulting at 817-577-7030 or complete an information request form by clicking here.