Posts Tagged ‘customer service tips’

Customer Service masterclass training – Leicester / Northampton – 24th – 25th August 2010

Monday, March 8th, 2010

Customer Service masterclass training - Leicestershire / Northamptonshire – 24th - 25th August 2010. 2 day course ideal for anyone who talks to customers on the telephone in a customer service role : customer service, contact centre, call centre, internal sales etc.

Customer Service 2 day training - Autumn 2009

Customer Service 2 day training - February 2010

Customer service course will cover key communications skills for offering exceptional customer service. Includes questioning skills, listening skills, mixed messages (why the message you send is not the message they receive) plus we’ll show you how the first 6 words you say to someone over the phone can tell the other person 40 plus things about you.

If you want more customers, and to develop more loyalty from the people you currently sell to, we’ll show you how. Get more customers, more often, who will stay for longer and spend more. Follow the link to find out about the dates of all forthcoming open courses. http://www.tomarket.co.uk/courses.php

2 day customer service course ideal for anyone in Birmingham, Cambridge, Leicester, Northampton, Kettering, Corby, Stamford, Grantham, Wellingborough, Loughborough, Coalville, Oadby, Oakham, Uppingham, Rutland, Derby, Coventry, Nottingham, Hinckley, Lutterworth and all parts of Leicestershire and Northamptonshire. 24th – 25th August 2010.

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Posted in Forthcoming courses, communication skills, customer handling, customer services, telephone techniques | No Comments »

Exceptional customer service is about effort – it really is that easy

Monday, August 10th, 2009

Exceptional customer service and it’s really not that exceptional is it, is about effort. The businesses who do will prosper and those who don’t won’t ! It really is as simple as that.

Last week I went to a local town and was searching for a particular ordnance survey map. I visited 3 shops who sell maps. The first didn’t have the one I wanted on display. So I moved on. Shop number 2 had a small display and a lady stood behind the counter. “Do you have any others apart from these, as the one I want isn’t here ?” I asked. “No only those” she replied. “OK, when will you next have more stock in ?” I persisted. “We have a delivery every couple of months or so.” ‘Wow’ I thought, not exactly racing out of the shop then are they ?  

“And can you order the ones you want ?” I followed up with. “No, not really we just get issued with this small range.” At no point did she suggest that she could order it, not did she suggest another solution. I was unimpressed.

Shop 3 also didn’t have the map, and so I returned to shop 1 and asked the busy manager if she had any more stock. She said that she didn’t but she would be seeing the rep on Wednesday. She said that she was willing to call him, if I was prepared to wait 5 minutes. I did and she went off to make the call.

The outcome ? Well she is getting one dropped off on Wednesday afternoon, so guess which shop will be getting my map business. It may only be an £8 purchase, but it’s still all about effort. Make sure that you go the extra mile, and are willing to help people. Not only will your actions solve more customer problems, and help you maximise any opportunity, but also you’ll impress them !

And in these times where there is less money going round the economy, there is more need to make sure you get more than your usual share.

This is one of many important topics we cover on our 2 day customer service masterclass courses. The venue for the next course is likely to be the East Midlands and so is ideal for any customer service, contact centre, call centre personnel in Kettering, Wellingborough, Northampton, Peterborough, Corby, Market Harborough, Lutterworth, Leicester, Loughborough and Northamptonshire. http://www.tomarket.co.uk/courses.php gives you dates of this and other courses.

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Posted in Customer service management, Forthcoming courses, communication skills, customer handling, customer service team assessment, customer services | No Comments »

No actually I don’t want anyone to do my packing thank you ! Customer service tip

Friday, July 24th, 2009

For goodness sake ! No really ! I nearly swore then !

For heaven’s sake when you’re designing your customer service process, or when you’re offering customer service yourself, for goodness sake use a bit of common sense. Of course we’re all brought up with the mantra of exceeding customer expectations, or delivering exceptional customer service and all the best practice in customer service training, but be a human too !

I walked into Sainsburys and bought just one item, a one pint of milk. So I don’t know what that weighs, around 1 1/2 lbs I guess. Because I only had one item I went to the one item till. The guy’s opening gambit line to me was “Would you like help with your packing ?” Really he did. He didn’t smile as he said it, he really meant it.

Use a bit of common sense when dealing with your customers in business, and treat them as individuals and prove that you are one too ! Think outside the square and be prepared to go beyond the process and the system. People will thank you for it and remember your great service.

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I’ve noticed – retailers giving added value – top sales tip

Monday, February 9th, 2009

While walking around the shops last weekend, I noticed something about the way they offered their services to me that was impressive. We can all apply these principles.

In one shop I have a loyalty card which they stamp when you use it. It is fairly straightforward it rewards you with 10% discount and you pay a fixed amount for the card. It then expires after 12 months.

However over the 12 month period the hand written expiry date has sort of worn off. It has a busy life in the wallet of a male, and I’m sure the inadvertent capsizing of a canoe in a French river last summer which soaked everything in my pockets was the final straw.

Anyway the shop (unable to clearly see the expiry date) made a quick decision to put 2 months extra on it. This worked well ! I, the customer came away feeling like I’d got a special deal (because I had) and yet it cost them little.

Furthermore I was impressed at this keeness to go the extra mile and to offer some added value to my customer service experience and would it make me more likely to shop there again – you bet !

So the retailer has built a little more loyalty to it’s brand. Job done !

In another store in the same day, it seems they were offering a free gift if you spent over £30. I went to the till twice and made a number of small purchases. The manageress served me the second time and although I hadn’t spent the ‘qualifying amount’ she gave me the free gift anyway. Again it made me feel special. I got a deal that supposedly wasn’t available to everyone. That shopkeeper was offering added value in customer service.

Quite simply make your customer feel special, and offering them added value or going the extra mile will often be enough to turn them into a loyal customer. Offer exceptional customer service and it’s the little things that add up.

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Posted in Selling advice, communication skills, customer services, retail sales | No Comments »

Good customer service is easy – use your eyes and ears !

Wednesday, December 10th, 2008

The easy thing about ‘teaching’ exceptional customer service standards is that all of us are customers in our every day lives when we’re not trying to deliver exceptional customer service.

So whenever you interact with a business, take a few seconds out afterwards to stop and consider how the experience made you feel and what the key things were that made you feel like that. Identifying these things will help you work out the key parts of good and bad customer service.

Then simply “do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” Easy really !! 

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Do unto others as you would have them do unto you

Tuesday, April 29th, 2008
The following tip is plain good sensible advice. But it needs saying nevertheless. Diane Hall submitted this tip after a retail customer service course in Northampton.   She wrote “My tip is treat everyone as you would wish to be treated yourself. This has stood me in good stead since the course and it is making dealing with the public so much more rewarding.”   Can’t argue with that ! The training courses cover this in more detail. They are held across the Midlands : Birmingham, Leicester, Northampton, Cambridge, Milton Keynes, Corby, Kettering, Wellingborough, Solihull. You can find out more about course dates by following this link http://www.tomarket.co.uk/courses.php

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