Employees in every business, large or small, interact with people on a daily basis. Whether working with customers, vendors, creditors, investors or other employees, customer service can make or break a company.
1. Customer Service Can Make
or Break A Company
Employees in every business, large or
small, interact with people on a daily
basis. Whether working with customers,
vendors, creditors, investors or other
employees, customer service can make or break a company.
Over time a company may be able to determine whether or not their customer service
representatives are providing great service by conducting customer surveys and analyzing direct
customer feedback. The problem with this type of measurement is that surveys take a long time to
administer, are based on opinion, and represent just a slice of a company’s overall customer base.
Feedback, on the other hand, is usually aimed at a specific customer service representative, and
often times come from an unhappy customer. Such limited, generic data doesn’t allow an employer
to make timely adjustments that will improve the overall performance of the company.
So if feedback is less than reliable; surveys can take too long to generate actionable suggestions;
and HR is having a difficult time finding viable customer service representative candidates with
acceptable skills; how can employers build deliver excellent customer service and position the
company as a service leader?
The answer is through ongoing customer service training. Employers can start with assessing
customer service commitment: do employees see a leadership commitment to service excellence
and are employees personally committed to customer service?
Handy customer service books and e-books are available that include tools, tips, and techniques in
sales, after-care, and delivery of service that creates raving fans. Assessments and certain e-
learning courses explore topics such as customer service effectiveness, telephone service
effectiveness, telephone skills, complaint handling, customer focus, call center customer care,
supplier partnering, and problem solving. Powerpoints, one-page storyboards, and even interview
question guides are available to assist human resource professionals and trainers hire and mentor
employees
Although creating a service culture may sound daunting for a small business, these tasks can all be
achieved in a relatively short time frame, thanks to the ample resources available on the Internet.
2. Quality training and coaching products can now be delivered to managers and employees instantly,
at a cost that fits almost any budget.
The best way to build a company culture that just exudes excellent customer service people is to
hire the right employees the first time by using customer service skills testing. Validated and
reliable customer service pre employment tests can be completed online by candidates and
delivered to hiring managers immediately.
But hiring the right people is not enough. Training, coaching, and mentoring employees in the art
and science of customer service is worth every minute and dollar you invest. Customer service is
often the competitive edge that separates a world class organization from the average company.
Customer service pre employment tests can help ensure that employers hire the right people but
customer service training will insure that customer service associates are confident and prepared in
their work, and confident employees generate confidence and loyalty from customers.