Customer Service Tools and Techniques
Arranging Follow-Up Not all customer problems can be addressed immediately. Many situations call for some form of follow-up or additional communication.For example,if you don’t have an answer to a customer’s question, you might arrange to find out and call the customer back within a few minutes. Proper follow-up tells the customer he or she is important to you. Arranging follow-up should include three things: explaining what you will do between now and the actual follow-up, giving a specific time by which you will get back to the customer; and offering a choice as to the form and timing of the follow-up (e.g., you call back, you send an e-mail, the customer calls you). Needless to say, when you arrange a follow-up, you must be able to fulfill your promise—and you must do so. Assurances of Effort When customers don’t feel you are making an effort, they get angry. On the flip side, when customers feel you are making an effort above and beyond the call of duty, they are less likely to target you for angry behavior if they can’t get what they want. An assurance of effort is a statement that tells the customer you will do your best to meet his or her needs. For example: “I can see you are in a hurry and I’m going to do my best to get this wrapped up in a few minutes.” Notice that an assurance of effort is different from an assurance of results.You can always assure the customer that you will try, even if you do not yet know if you can give the customer what he or she wants.
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