3. What is Customer Service?
The ability to provide a service or product in the
way that it has been promised.
An organization's ability to supply their clients'
wants and needs.
The process of taking care of our clients in a
positive manner.
The commitment to providing value added
services to external and internal clients, including
attitude, knowledge, technical support and
quality of service in a timely manner.
The definitions above taken from CustomerServiceManager.com
4. Our Role
You represent group, the IT Help Center and IS&T
First person client sees or talks to on the phone
We influence how people think about us
Clients remember their interaction with you when
they think about our group.
Small interactions have a big impact!
30 seconds might not seem like it could make a
difference but it can & does
There is an opportunity in every moment.
Your Goal: Customer Champion
Customer Champion: A person who actively promotes the image and
services of the department, and supports the needs of the customer.
5. Communication Skills
Our technical knowledge is useless if we are
not able to communicate and translate it
properly to the client.
Different people require us to use different
communication skills.
A difficult person can make you temporarily
lose the skills you have.
Solid communication skills are vital in every
interaction.
6. Client’s Communication Style
Every client has a different style of
communication
Understanding a client’s style is important
Increases comprehension
Improves level of client satisfaction
The Goal: Match client’s communication style
Determine client’s level of technical proficiency
Matching client’s vocal elements & vocabulary
This does not mean yell if they yell
Use same technical terminology as client
7. Excellent Client Service Skills
Activelylistening to the client
Understanding the client’s needs
Remaining flexible to meet expectations
Proactively keeping customers informed
Going above and beyond (110%)
Ican’t stress enough how much we value
when our staff and students go above
and beyond basic expectations.
8. Active Listening
A more interactive process than passive
listening.
Be ready to listen (avoid any distractions)
Do not interrupt
Pause before replying
Don’t be distracted by what you’re going to
say when they finish talking.
Focus on client and acknowledge their issue
Paraphrase what they said for clarification
9. Verbal Skills
Tone of Voice
Words convey only 15% of your message
Enthusiastic,
Excited, Willing
Smile & remain positive
Example “Sure, I’m happy to help.”
Sound confident
Be clear with what you say
Be kind & polite
10. Maximizing Effectiveness
In the next few slides we’ll talk about how these
elements of maximizing the effectiveness of your
communication skills will allow you to be able to
handle every situation
Understanding the client’s needs
Difference between empathy and sympathy
Display confidence
Techniques to eliminate or reduce conflict
Strategies to manage challenging circumstances
with clients
11. Understanding Client’s Needs
25% consists of Understand the
providing the service customer’s need
or support Allow client to
completely explain
Needs a projector incident
Has a virus Empathize with the
client about the
75% of client inconvenience
satisfaction consists Let client know you
of meeting the have dealt with this in
client’s the past or can call staff
psychological needs Tell client how you are
going to resolve the
Needs everything to incident
work and just go right
12. Sympathy vs. Empathy
Empathy (n.): Identifying with and understanding
another person’s situation, feelings, and motives
Sympathy (n.): A feeling or expression of pity or
sorrow
True empathy acknowledges the emotions the
client is feeling
Feeling sorry for them will not help you understand
what they need
Empathy builds rapport, instills confidence
Example: “I understand you are frustrated”
13. Demonstrating Confidence
Why is confidence important?
Establishes credibility
Enhances the reputation of the organization
Increases customer satisfaction
How to be confident:
Speak with conviction
Smile
Maintain positive tone of voice
Take ownership of the request & let the client
know you will help from start to finish
14. Handling Conflict
As you interact with your clients, you must
separate their behavior from who they are as
people.
Don’t take it personally. If they get upset,
remember that the client is most likely mad at
the situation, not mad at you.
If you do this, you will see that your task in
every case is the same:
Stay calm, meet the client’s expectations and
deliver excellent customer service
15. Handling Conflict – Part 2
Techniques to reduce or eliminate conflict:
Think about how you like to be treated
Choose your words & tone carefully
Listen to the client’s concerns
Let the client vent
Empathize with the client
Remain confident
Remember, you choose how
you respond to a client’s
emotions or reactions
16. Challenging Circumstances
You may come across a challenging
circumstance
Examples: Irate client, Inconvenienced client,
Emotional client, Abusive client
In any case, if you utilize excellent client
service skills you will succeed.
If you become overwhelmed, please ask for
help. Don’t wait until its too late. We do not
expect you to handle an abusive client on
your own.
17. Manage Client Interactions
Keep accusatory tones out of your voice.
Say “Please” and “Thank you”
Don’t assume they speak the same
language you do (be it technical or
English)
Tryto think of what the most you can do
to help is,
not the least you must do.
18. Recap-
Virtues of Customer Service
Empathy Humility
Put yourself in their Arrogance has no
position if you place in customer
needed help. service
Admitting you’re
wrong
Remaining Calm Saying “I don’t
Don’t make the user know”
more anxious than Calling in the help of
they already are a staff person
Listening
Patience Allow the user to
Slow down, take vent and explain
your time their issue
19. Conclusion
Using these techniques you should be able to do the
following:
Satisfy clients by using active listening skills
and effective communication strategies
Defuse challenging client behavior
Be a customer champion
Be proud of yourself and the work you are doing
Be a valuable member of the IT Help Center team
Editor's Notes
add value in every interaction, reframe, you have the power, rewrite the story
First, I am going to talk about the role we play in our interactions with our clients and how crucial it is to the success of the organization as a whole.Secondly, we will review what is considered to be excellent customer service skills and why they are important.Lastly, I will teach you how you can maximize the effectiveness of your communication skills to handle every situation.
The IT Help Center is the initial point of contact for our clients. Typically, you will be the first person that the clients sees or hears when they have a request or are reporting an incident.When clients think of IS&T, they mainly think of their previous interactions with us. Hence, we truly influence how people think of us and the entire organization.That 30 second phone call or 30 second face to face interaction may seem trivial but it has a big impact on how clients think of us.
Our value is based upon our technical know-how and it is our job to use this knowledge to help students and staff with their computer questions and issues. Our technical knowledge is useless if we are not able to know communicate and translate it properly to the client. Learning to bridge this gap is key to providing an exceptional experience for each client.
In any interaction, you must first determine the client’s communication style. If you understand how the client communicates, you will be able to better translate what their needs are. You will also be able to match their communication style so that they will understand what you are trying to convey.
In the next slide we will talk about active listening more in depth.
A client will know if you are listening to them or not. Active listening is a more interactive process than just sitting back and staring blankly at the client. When you are actively listening you will be able to know when to let the client talk and when to respond.
Mastering your verbal skills is very important when interacting with clients. The most important aspect is your tone of voice. Words convey only 15% of your message, the other 85% is conveyed through your tone.
In the next few slides we will discuss the following items. If you understand these concepts you will be able to tackle any client interaction.
If you understand where the client is coming from, you will be able to help them more efficiently.
If you are confident then the client will pick up on that right away. Demonstrating confidence will help you avoid a client becoming frustrated.Speak with conviction even if you do not know the answer. Assure the client you are capable of finding the answer no matter what.Let the client know you will help them from start to finish, this increase customer satisfication.
Also, never take it personally. More than likely the client is not mad at you. The best you can do is to stay calm and help them.
No matter how frustrated the client is, if you follow these techniques, you will be able to diffuse the situation. These are very basic skills that really have a big impact. Just think about how you would want to be treated when you need something fixed.
