2. SUMMARY
1. DEFINITION OF CUSTOMER SERVICE
2. RULES AND TIPS FOR CUSTOMER SERVICE
MANAGEMENT
3. TYPES OF CUSTOMERS
4. COMPLAINTS AND APOLOGIES
5. ASSESSING CUSTOMER SATISFACTION
3. 1. What is customer service:
general definition
Customer service is the sum of what an
organization does to meet customer expectations
and produce customer satisfaction.
your organization should have systems in place to
find out what customers expect of you and what
would make them happy with the service you are
providing.
5. There are many models of customer service but all
agree that organizations should have clear
answers to the following basic questions:
1. Do customers have a clear idea of the service
they can expect from you?
2. Do you gather high quality information about
your customers and what they want on a
regular basis?
3. Can you be contacted easily?
4. Do you have competent and well trained staff?
5. Do you respond quickly to queries and
requests?
6. Have you made it easy for customers to
complain and make suggestions about the
quality of your services?
7. Do you involve your customers in the
development of products and services?
6. Customer service can be used as a framework to look
at all aspects of your business:
1. Image and presentation
2. Promotion of services
3. Contact and communication with customers
4. Service delivery
5. Monitoring and improving services
6. Resolving customer problems
7. Customer relationship management
7. Key to customer service is getting all members of your
organization to embrace it through training and
development, at individual and team level. Creating a
culture of customer satisfaction starts with effective
management and leadership and having clear measures
for customer satisfaction in all aspects of the business.
This can be encouraged through:
• Creating your own Customer Charter or Code of Practice
• Benchmarking your activities against other organizations
• Creating and monitoring specific measures of customer
satisfaction
(practice 1)
