Building Customer Relations by Listening

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How does really good service contrast with just O.K. service or bad service?
It really depends on how responsive the company is to inquiries, sales, and complaints. Do your customer service representatives demonstrate a sense of urgency when it comes to helping? Are they proactive, instead of just responding to customers? Are they acting out of integrity and following up when they say they will, instead of ignoring the problem or dropping the ball?

O.K. or worse service gives the customer the sense of nothing more than a business transaction. Excellent service is a personal interaction that builds relationships, encourages repeat business, and gets the customer telling their friends about your company. Of course, it's important for your associates to be knowledgeable about the product and accurate about company policy, but there are also soft skills involved here and a need for personal bonding with the client.

In a bad transaction, the customer may get the product, or get their question answered, but they don't feel good about how they were treated.

What are some practical ideas for improving service at a small business?
Start by asking your associates what they think would help improve the service they are giving, over the telephone, online, and in person. Just by asking, you'll gain great ideas from them as well as their trust and commitment, because they'll feel valued as employees.

Next, ask your customers about what's working, what's not working, and what kind of customer service they would like, ideally. They are a key source of information for you. Some companies use survey cards or online surveys, others do formal voice-of-the-customer research. If you can't do any of that, just ask customers informally when you interact with them as the business owner. Anything is better than doing nothing and assuming you know how your customers are feeling.

What things does your firm emphasize during customer service training sessions?
We tape people in realistic, tough customer service scenarios so they can hear themselves and listen to what they're doing right as well as make suggestions for how they can improve. We start with the greeting that a business gives its customers, because it's so important to make that connection immediately. Are the words you're using tragic or magic? Is your tone of voice flat, rushed, or unwelcoming? Particularly on the telephone, your tone of voice makes about 80% of the impression on the customer.

You want to come across upbeat, sincere, and competent. Don't use phrases like "hopefully," "I'll try," "you need to talk to someone else," or "that's not my department." Those words chip away at the customer's belief in you and your firm. If they feel they're getting cut off, or rushed off, or provoking an angry response, that's tragic for your business.

In terms of positives, use the customer's name as soon as you hear it. Tell the customers right up front that you can help them. Even if you can't solve their entire concern, you can get them some help and it's amazingly effective to tell them that at the start. Something else is to empathize with the customers, understand their concern, and let them know you care. When someone gets treated like that, the interaction will be effective, efficient, and they'll leave the company with a more positive feeling about the organization as a whole.

Karen E. Klein is a Los Angeles-based writer who covers entrepreneurship and small-business issues.