Many will say that there is an art to customer service. There isn’t a magic set of instructions that you can follow to make every customer happy. However, there are ways that you can guide yourself and your employees towards being better customer service providers. In fact, there is actually a lot of software out there that can help you to train yourself and your staff.
The number one thing to think about when you start working on customer service skills is attitude. A positive attitude goes a really long way. Deciding to have a positive attitude may be all that it takes to make it possible. Decide that serving others is not a step down on the social ladder. Decide to find things to be happy about, despite how bad your day may be going. Decide to appreciate having a job, no matter what the job is. Decide that no one will take away your positive attitude no matter how much they try to drag you down with their negativity.
Listening is the next most important thing to think about. You’re wasting your time helping someone understand something that they’re not interested in, no matter how positive you are. Not only that, but you can actually push them away by continually telling them things that they don’t want to hear. Customer service requires people skills. The only way to obtain them is by listening intently to people. Read their body language. Learn how people act when they’re looking for certain things. You can really hone your skills and be on your way to providing a professional experience if you take the time to look and listen to each customer.
Building a good team of customer service providers is very important. Reward and give praise so that good deeds don’t go unnoticed. Coach your team briefly, yet regularly to keep them motivated. This is especially important during busy times of the year or day. Let your team know that you appreciate them being there because you wouldn’t be successful without them. Also, help your employees to be appreciative of the customers. It can be easy for people working in a customer service environment to complain about customers with the staff. If you become aware of this type of talk, remind your employees that none of you would be here if it weren’t for the support of those customers.
Lastly, take into consideration the feedback that you get from customers and employees. This lets them know that their opinions and feelings are of value, and not overlooked. With team building, training, coaching and praise, you can build the perfect customer service team that will help your business to succeed.
About the Author: John Garvey is on the staff of Only Garment Racks, a leading online source of clothing racks including garment racks. Find a high quality clothing rack or garment rack at http://www.onlygarmentracks.com.