Customer Service Notes

What Is Customer Service?

  • Customer service is what businesses do to ensure customer happiness and satisfaction.
  • It begins when a customer enters a shop, restaurant, or attraction and continues after the purchase.

Quality Customer Service

  • Customers have varying expectations based on their needs and wants.
  • Meeting these needs and wants is crucial for providing quality service.
  • Online customer service is important; businesses should ensure online information is easily accessible.
  • Attending to online inquiries, requests, and complaints quickly and efficiently is key.
  • Customer feedback spreads rapidly online, greatly affecting a business's reputation.
  • Exceeding customer expectations leads to satisfaction, turning regular customers into repeat customers, and eventually into loyal customers.

Importance of Quality Customer Service

  • Quality customer service leads to positive experiences, repeat business, and customer recommendations.
  • Customer loyalty ensures business continuity.
  • Customers seek a full experience, wanting to feel special through personalized service and updates on promotions.
  • After-sales service and support in maintaining products are also important.

Skills or Qualities Needed for Providing Quality Customer Service

  • Quality customer service involves exceeding customer expectations.
  • Service staff should anticipate customer needs and offer solutions proactively.
  • Essential skills and qualities include:
    • Approachability
    • Customer focus
    • Knowledgeability
    • Clear communication skills
    • Problem-solving skills
    • Ability to close the customer experience positively

Examples of Quality Customer Service

  • Travel and Tourism: Tour guides with good knowledge and a friendly demeanor.
  • Hospitality: Front desk staff who are welcoming, well-groomed, and efficient.
  • Retail: Sales staff who can explain product features, warranties, and payment options.

Customer Service vs. Customer Experience

  • Customer Service: Actions taken by a company, primarily by frontline staff.
    • Example: Approaching customers, after-sales service, service recovery.
  • Customer Experience: A holistic approach involving all business interactions.
    • Example: Positive experience when calling a customer hotline for returns.

Service Excellence

  • Businesses that anticipate customer needs provide excellent service.
  • Examples:
    • Priority entrance for those needing assistance such as parents with strollers or customers in wheelchairs.
    • Providing pens for left-handed customers.

Creating a Positive Service Culture

  • Customers expect good service, especially when paying more.
  • Some customers are impolite or make unreasonable demands.
  • Service staff may be underpaid, yet good service is still expected.
  • Customers often don't provide positive feedback or tips.
  • Rude or abusive behavior is never justified.
  • Constructive feedback should be provided through available channels.
  • Complimenting staff for good performance is important.
  • Being mindful, respectful, and focusing on creating a positive environment is essential.

Providing Customer Service

  • Customers enter stores for various reasons (buying, gathering information, browsing).
  • Salespeople should meet customer needs and make them feel welcomed and important.
  • Prompt attention is expected.

Approaching Customers

  • An appropriate time to approach a customer is upon entry.
  • Acknowledge their arrival with eye contact, a smile, and a polite greeting, even when serving another customer.

Types of Approaches

  • Greeting Approach: A simple, friendly greeting (e.g., "Good morning").
  • Service Approach: Offering assistance with a polite question (e.g., "How may I assist you?").
  • Product Approach: Asking a question to encourage purchase if a customer shows interest in an item.
  • Combining Approaches: "Good morning, Mrs. Chan. How may I assist you?"
  • The purpose of each approach is to make customers feel comfortable and welcome, encouraging them to buy and return.

Product Knowledge in the Service Industries

  • Product knowledge is essential for quality customer service.
  • Service staff must understand a product's features and benefits.
  • Good product knowledge meets customer needs, increases satisfaction, and encourages repeat business.
  • Examples:
    • Travel and Tourism: Tour guides planning itineraries, knowing history, and staying updated on attractions.
    • Hospitality: Waiters recommending dishes, knowing ingredients, and providing information on promotions.
    • Retail: Sales assistants knowing product features, benefits, care instructions, and after-sales service.

Importance of Product Knowledge

  • It is the responsibility of every frontline staff member, regardless of their role.
  • Staff must continuously update their knowledge.

Presenting Product Information to Customers

  • Finding Out Customers' Needs and Wants
    • Salespeople should ask the right questions and listen carefully to determine customer needs.
    • Approaches for different customer types:
      • Customers who know what they want: Let them try the product immediately.
      • Customers who are browsing: Inform them of new arrivals or special promotions.
      • Customers with a general idea: Ask open-ended questions, listen, and observe body language.

Presenting the Product

  • Recommend a product and make a presentation after finding out the customer's needs.
  • Customers are more likley to purchase if they understand the product, its features, and benefits, and how to use it.

Techniques for Effective Product Presentation

  • Hold the product carefully and with pride.
  • Tell customers about the unique features and benefits of the product.
  • Demonstrate how to use the product and, if possible, let the customers hold or use it.
  • Listen to customers' queries and provide detailed answers.
  • Use positive words such as "comfortable", "interesting" or "attractive" to describe the features of the product.
  • If necessary, repeat the product's features and benefits several times, especially if they match the needs that the customers have expressed.
  • When the product is available
    • Inform the customer about the specifications or features of the product he or she is interested in; and
    • Suggest other related products that the customer may want to buy.
  • When the product is not available
    • Suggest another design that has comparable specifications;
    • Explain the features of the alternative design slowly and clearly to show that it also meets all the customer's needs and wants;
    • Highlight the unique selling points of this alternative design;
    • Persuade the customer to buy the alternative design;
    • Encourage the customer to ask questions; and
    • Give the customer time to try this alternative design.

Handling Customers' Questions and Objections

  • Questions or objections indicate customer interest.
  • Use this opportunity to persuade the customer.
  • Good product knowledge helps turn objections into reasons to buy.
  • Listen carefully and provide more information or remind them of how the product meets their needs.

Techniques for Handling Customers' Questions and Objections

  1. Turn a negative remark into a selling point.
    • Point out to customers that what they see as a negative aspect of the product may also have positive functions.
    • For example, "The auto-lock feature of this suitcase may be troublesome but it will keep the contents of your suitcase safe if you ever forget to lock it."
  2. Use the "yes, but" response.
    • This is to agree with the customers first and then point out an advantage that can adequately offset their concerns.
    • For example, a customer may not want to buy a larger bed to replace his existing small one because of the need to replace all his bed sheets. You can respond by emphasising the advantages of a bigger bed, such as better sleep and more space to stretch out comfortably.
  3. Encourage customers to share their concerns.
    • Ask customers to tell you about their concerns.
    • As the customers elaborate, they may provide you with clues on how to address their concerns. The more information you have, the more you will be able to provide solutions to the customer.
  4. Correct misconceptions.
    • This method should be used when customers are misinformed. However, be sure to do this tactfully so as not to come across as rude.

Completing the Customer Experience

  • The ultimate goal is to complete the sale and ensure a positive customer experience.

Signals of a Positive Experience

  • Remarks such as, "This is exactly the item I am looking for."

  • Looking happy with the product and not looking at other products.

  • Asks for other products that can complement the recently purchased product.

  • Show appreciation to customers when closing the customer experience.

  • Offer name cards for further questions.

  • Exceed competitor offerings through better after-sales service.

  • Fees earned for providing repairs, maintenance and warranty service can also bring in more business revenue and profits.

Providing After-Sales Services

  • After-sales service is assistance provided after a purchase.

Types of After-Sales Services

  • Returns, refunds, and exchanges.
  • Repairs, maintenance, and warranty services.
  • Customer service hotlines.
  • Handling customer complaints.

Handling Customers' Enquiries and Requests

  • Salespeople must know business operating policies, including return, exchange, and refund policies.
  • Satisfactorily meeting requests leads to customer loyalty.

When handling customers' enquiries, salespeople should:

  • Listen to the customers carefully;
  • Clarify with them by asking questions to get a better understanding; and
  • Provide them with relevant and accurate information.

Handling Requests for the Return of Unsatisfactory Products

  • Handle returns tactfully to turn unhappy customers into satisfied ones.

Three types of product-return policies

  1. Replacement
    • Replace it with a similar product.
  2. Exchange
    • Offer to exchange it with a different product.
  3. Refund
    • Give a refund.

Importance of After-Sales Services

  • Savvy customers research before buying and expect businesses to meet their needs effectively.

Performing Service Recovery

  • Service recovery is the process of addressing service breakdowns or failures.

Service Breakdown and Service Recovery

  • A breakdown occurs when customers complain about a product or service.
    • Common causes: unfriendly staff, unmet expectations, unavailable products.
  • Complaints offer an opportunity to build customer loyalty if handled well.
  • Service recovery involves solving customer problems.

Steps to Service Recovery

  1. Listen carefully to the complaint. Give customers full attention.
  2. Be patient. Do not interrupt customers when they are describing their unhappiness.
  3. Apologise to the customers for the inconvenience caused.
  4. Acknowledge their feelings and assure them of help to solve the problem.
  5. Ask questions if more information is needed.
  6. Offer solutions.
  7. Refer customers to more senior staff if unable to provide them with an acceptable solution.
  • Businesses must understand customer contact stages throughout the sales interaction.
  • Strive to provide consistent quality customer service.