2.  Customer Perceptions
 To the Customer you ARE the company
 Organizations with Happy Customers are
more successful
 Financial Benefits
 Happy Customers come back
 Happy Customers tell their friends
 Providing good Customer Service doesn’t come
naturally to everyone.

3. R Reliability – Deliver on Promises with dependability &
accuracy
A Assurance - Knowledge, courtesy, ability to convey trust,
competence and confidence
T Tangibles - Facilities appearance, comfort, look and feel of
Marketing materials, etc.
E Empathetic - Degree of caring and individual attention the
customer receives
Responsive - Willingness to help promptly – without
R distraction

4.  Organizational commitments
 Promises made via advertising, marketing, policies,
contracts, etc.
 Common Expectations
 Customer expectations are often based on
assumptions and past experience
 Personal Promises
 Agent to customer promises
Often the challenge is to reshape customer expectations.

5.  Assurance Factor
 Product Knowledge & Company Knowledge
 Listening Skills – Active listening skills
 Communications Skills - includes verbal and written
(in-person, phone, and email service)
 Problem-Solving Skills
 Tangibles
 Take pride in your environment, yourself, your
workspace and any forward-facing delivery
mechanisms (online and marketing materials too!)

6.  Empathy
 Recognize the Emotional State of the Customer;
validate their feelings
 Treat each person as an individual
 Responsiveness
 Respond quickly
 Set Expectations – deliver on those expectations
Research shows that the most frustrating part of
waiting is not knowing how long the wait will be.

7. Forbidden Phrase . . . Replacement . . .
 I don’t know . . .
 “Good Question, let me look into that for you.“
 We can’t . . .
 “That’s a tough one, let’s see what we can do” (find an alternative)
 You’ll have to . . .
 ”Here’s how we can help you with that.”
 Hang on a second, I’ll be right back. . .
 “I’ll need to ask an associate to be sure, are you able to wait while I
check into it?”
 No . . .
Find a positive alternative. “We are all out of stock, but we can give
you rain check or a similar product at the same price.”

8.  Pay attention to Content & Intent
 Ask great questions
 Tips:
 Tune in to the other person
 Limit distractions
 Don’t jump to conclusions
 Take notes and reflect information back
 Be prepared – use a Question Map/Flowchart
 Turn off your own worries

9.  Helps build strong working relationships
 Enhances teamwork and communications
 can make work fun and enjoyable
 has a positive impact on attendance and retention
People who have friends at work are more productive
and loyal

10.  Use Icebreakers & Introductions – be creative
 3 Truths & 1 lie
 Helps people learn about each other in a fun way
 Doodles
 Helps open up discussions
 facilitates getting to know each other
 Scavenger Hunts
 Building activities – balloon sculptures, coffee
cups towers, airplanes, etc.