July 6, 2017
In every customer interaction, there are only two possible outcomes. The customer is either going to have a positive experience that improves their perception of the company and brand or the complete opposite will occur. No matter how granular the change in opinion, the stakes are huge.
Customers who have a positive experience are more likely to become repeat customers or even brand evangelists. They will be more likely to share their positive experience to their friends and families, which can lead to even more customers. On the other side of the equation, negative experiences lead to negative reviews, bad publicity, and an equally negative anecdote shared with those close to the customer.
Yet, the difference between these two responses to a customer interaction is largely in the hands of the contact center agent. If they have the right skills and approach the situation diplomatically, they can salvage a rocky start to the customer experience.
The Dos and Don’ts of Customer Service
Check out our infographic below. It lists some of the most common dos and don’ts of the customer experience. While these tips on their own may not be enough to navigate every customer interaction, they provide an excellent baseline from which to begin customer experience training.
Dos:
- Do Smile When You Talk
- Do Record All Calls
- Do Use Positive Language
- Do Have a Social Media Strategy
- Do Slow Down Your Speed
Don’ts
- Don’t Lose Patience
- Don’t Forget to Set KPIs for Each Channel
- Don’t Make the Customer Wait for an Answer
- Don’t Interrupt the Caller
- Don’t Transfer the Caller or Place on Hold without Asking
The Customer Experience is About Consistency
One of the most crucial aspects of the customer experience is to maintain consistency. Regardless of the channel, time of day, or situation, the customer should be able to expect a similar experience. These baseline dos and don’ts are a good start to that process, but it is hardly the end. From here, you need to make sure your messaging, website, IVR, and so on convey the same tone and create a consistent experience.
Where Do You Go from Here?
Once your contact center team understands the basics of customer service, the next step will be to unify the messaging. Work on a call script that will help your agents maintain a consistent message when interacting with your customers. It’s important that the call script is both flexible enough to work in a real life conversation but detailed enough that it is helpful to both the customer and the agent.
Download Mindsight’s Ebook: Call Center Strategy 101
Success in the contact/call center is a multi-faceted challenge, but there are decades of experimentation and best practices to draw from when building your own operation. Download Mindsight’s Ebook Call Center Strategy 101 to learn about the fundamental principles that make up a successful contact/call center in the 21st century. Times may change, but the fundamentals of the customer experience will always remain the same.
Download Mindsight’s free Ebook today.
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About Mindsight
Mindsight, a Chicago IT services provider, is an extension of your team. Our culture is built on transparency and trust, and our team is made up of extraordinary people – the kinds of people you would hire. We have one of the largest expert-level engineering teams delivering the full spectrum of IT services and solutions, from cloud to infrastructure, collaboration to contact center. Our highly-certified engineers and process-oriented excellence have certainly been key to our success. But what really sets us apart is our straightforward and honest approach to every conversation, whether it is for an emerging business or global enterprise. Our customers rely on our thought leadership, responsiveness, and dedication to solving their toughest technology challenges.
Contact us at GoMindsight.com.