co-worker | Customer Service Solutions, Inc.

Home  /  Don’t Kick the Problem Down the Road – 9/3/24  /  co-worker

4 Actions for the Customer - 9/10/24


One way to look at the difference between proactive and reactive is that proactive is something that’s often done before it absolutely has to be done.  Maybe it’s something done that really doesn’t have to occur, but your professionalism takes over, and some action or communication that you know Read more

Don’t Kick the Problem Down the Road - 9/3/24


The error was obvious.  Shania is a clerk at a local government office, and she could tell that something was wrong with the permit request.  She was about to reject the request because the address was invalid. If this would have been handled like the normal process, Shania would have Read more

Reflect the Best of Your Customers - 8/27/24


When Alice walks into a business, whether it’s a restaurant or government building, whether it’s a Goodwill or a grocery store, she has a certain way about her.  She’s the customer, and it’s not unusual to hear her say to the employee:  Thanks for being here today! It’s not unusual Read more

Create Your Personal Motto - 8/20/24


Take a look at these mottos: It’s the real thing. Just Do It. Have it your way. Betcha can’t eat just one. Breakfast of champions. Do you know the companies?  The answers are at the bottom of this tip. So why am I asking you about mottos?  And why do almost all of them make me Read more

Create MAGIC with Your Customers - 8/13/24


Years ago, we worked with the Orlando Magic in the NBA, and they needed more consistency in their customer service – they needed a standard of engagement with the fans and their account holders.  They were trying to identify the “Orlando Magic Way” – their desired customer experience with Read more

Build Strong Customer Connections - 8/6/24


We’ve worked in health care, education, local government, finance, pro sports, and many other industries.  And while our clients’ customers are often different, their specific scenarios for engaging those customers are different, and policies and procedures are different - there’s one thing that is pretty similar.  And that is Read more

Running Late in the Rainstorm - 7/30/24


The mom was a little panicked.  She had just left work and had run into an unexpected popup rainstorm, and traffic had come to a halt.  She was on her way to pick up her 4-year old at childcare.  The facility had a policy of charging a fee for Read more

Use AI to Improve Your Performance - 7/23/24


Many companies are integrating Artificial Intelligence (AI) into some aspect of their business.  This could greatly change how they operate, how they communicate with customers. This AI wave reminds me of a story from 20+ years ago when a stock brokerage firm launched a new website that greatly enhanced the Read more

The New Burger Experience - 7/16/24


Floyd loves a good hamburger. Any chance he gets to try a new spin on an old standby, he takes it. Recently, a burger joint opened near his house, and Floyd was very excited! It was owned by and named for a world-renowned chef, so it had to be Read more

Boost Customer Happiness - 7/9/24


There’s a cooking show that a friend of mine watches, and the premise is all about reverse engineering food.  They may take a Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup, analyze it, and determine the ingredients just by tasting it.  Then they figure out a recipe.  The cook will try to make Read more

•••••

Don’t Kick the Problem Down the Road – 9/3/24

Posted on September 3, 2024 in Customer Service Tip of the Week Please leave a comment

The error was obvious.  Shania is a clerk at a local government office, and she could tell that something was wrong with the permit request.  She was about to reject the request because the address was invalid.

If this would have been handled like the normal process, Shania would have marked the request as rejected, and the resident would receive an e-mail within the next week that was automatically generated from the system.

The message would simply say that the request had been rejected and for the resident to contact the local permitting office.

Pause to Find the Cause

But instead of doing what’s normally done, Shania made a little extra effort.  She decided to do a little investigation.  She found out that the resident had submitted the request by filling out a form, and that one of Shania’s co-workers entered the information into the permit request system.  What the resident wrote down and what was keyed into the system were different.  The co-worker had made a keying error.

Shania updated the information in the system, so the permit was officially completed correctly and was allowed to continue through the review process.

Consider the Impact Beyond the Moment

Shania’s simple act of patience, this simple investigation, this simple questioning why somebody would have put in an invalid address – these actions avoided a lot of issues.  The resident didn’t have to wait a week for a rejection notice that they would have to follow-up on and address.  A co-worker wouldn’t have been brought under scrutiny by an angry customer for the error.  The delay in the permit process for the customer would not happen. Additional work for the team to reprocess the request would not have to happen.

By being patient, asking herself a couple key questions based on her experience, and discerning what would be the best approach overall rather than what would be most expedient in the moment – these actions resulted in a better customer experience and time saved for her team.

Pause to find the cause, instead of simply kicking the problem down the road.

Signup for FREE Tips!    Contact Us    More Resources for You    Visit Our Home Page


Brainstorm to Better Yourself – 7/2/24

Posted on July 2, 2024 in Customer Service Tip of the Week Please leave a comment

I’ve led enough sessions with clients on continuous improvement topics to have solid experience on how to lead ideation exercises, brainstorming to develop new ideas.  Oftentimes these sessions start with the right question; the first answers may not be the ultimate solution, but they can serve as a jumping off point for deeper/better ideas from participants.

Brainstorming as an individual isn’t quite as easy an exercise, but it’s something that can create similar outcomes.  If you’re trying to identify ways that you can improve yourself and your role in customer service, it really helps to be asked the right questions.  So hopefully some of the following questions – and particularly your answers to these questions – will help you to find ways that you can be just a little bit better in the future than you are today:

If you had 2 free hours and could do anything possible to uncover ways to better your performance, what great customer service companies would you research?  What co-workers would you shadow?  What team members would you sit down with to just tap their brains for ideas and best practices?

How could you improve your communication skills?  Become a better listener?  Communicate more concisely and specifically?  Become more empathetic of the other person’s situation?

If you had available financial resources or funding, what training or webinars or books or workshops would you engage with to learn?

What are the 3 aspects of customer service where you are best?  What can you do to get better?

What are the 3 aspects of customer service where you have the least experience or you’re not quite as strong?  Who or what can you engage with to get better at those 3 specific topics?

Maybe these questions lead you to one or two ideas that you can take action on to improve.  Maybe these questions lead you to 8-10 different ideas.  Either way, answer these questions to identify opportunities to improve.

Take a few minutes to brainstorm by yourself to find ways to better yourself.

Signup for FREE Tips!    Contact Us    More Resources for You    Visit Our Home Page


The Power of the Pause – 6/25/24

Posted on June 25, 2024 in Customer Service Tip of the Week Please leave a comment

When I’m facilitating a meeting, and it feels like it’s going off-track or the discussion is going a little longer than it should, I may say something like “let me pause the conversation so that…” or “let’s pause just for a minute and consider…”

I don’t like the word STOP.  I don’t like to say “let’s stop that discussion” or “you need to stop talking.”  ‘Stop’ just gets taken as much more of an abrupt, sometimes rude way to cut somebody off.  But suggesting that we ‘pause’ the conversation suggests that it’s not fully closed (although for all intents and purposes, it is closed). It’s a softer way of ending one part of the conversation and then transitioning to another topic.

So, that word – pause – is a useful tool.

Also, learning how to pause is useful.  I’ve received many e-mails recently where the person should have paused before hitting Send.  They should have re-read what was being requested and made sure that their e-mail was addressing the specific request.

I’ve been in conversations where I could tell that people considered going down a negative path, but – instead – they calmly tried to convey their concern about a co-worker or about a situation before transitioning to some potential solutions.  I could tell they were intentionally thinking about what they wanted to say, because there were these subtle pauses during the conversation.

Pausing enables you to be thoughtful.  It enables you to take that emotional intelligence that the “gurus” of the world say we need to have, and put it to use before we just give a reflex response to what’s being said or how it’s being said.

Maybe you are trying to redirect a conversation, you’re wanting to send an e-mail that truly addresses the other person’s points, you seek to go down a path of solutions rather than pure negativity, or you’re striving to convey a little bit of thoughtfulness in your response.

To be more effective and impactful in those situations, tap into the power of the pause.

Signup for FREE Tips!    Contact Us    More Resources for You    Visit Our Home Page


1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 ... 25 26   Next »