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Slowing Down the Fast Talker - 3/24/26


Jeffrey had always been told by his manager to figure out the issue quickly and wrap up the conversation as fast as possible.  So, Jeffrey was hyper-focused at finding that one key word that could identify the issue and help him to transition quickly to what might be some possible Read more

Don’t Bury the Lede - 3/17/26


Mary was working at the office, and she received an e-mail alert from the water company.  There was a water outage in her neighborhood.  It looked like it was going to be a couple hours to fix the issue. Sure enough, a few hours later around mid-afternoon, Mary received another Read more

Confirm the Real Issue Before You Start Solving - 3/10/26


Have you ever gone “down the rabbit hole?”  It involves going deep into some topic, some discussion – with analysis that creates complexity as much as it resolves it.  And that dive into the rabbit hole often starts with a simple question. Going down that rabbit hole takes time and Read more

One Question to Prevent a Follow-up Call - 3/3/26


The way some performance metrics work, you would think companies would prefer for their staff to talk to the same customer 4 times on the same topic for 8 minutes each rather than talking to them once for 10 minutes.  Many management metrics are too focused on average length Read more

Stay Calm When the Customer Isn’t - 2/24/26


There are all sorts of others’ emotions that you have to deal with as a customer service professional.  The other person could be anxious or upset, they could be angry or agitated.  It can run the gamut of emotions, but for you to deal with them in the best Read more

Don’t Begin with the Dead End in Mind - 2/17/26


Habit #2 of Stephen Covey’s “Seven Habits of Highly Successful People” is “Begin with the End in Mind.”  It speaks to the need to have a clear vision or goal for what you’re trying to ultimately achieve, so you understand the purpose of what you’re doing.  It helps you Read more

Explain without Over Explaining - 2/10/26


The customer has a question, and we have an answer.  They need to learn something, and we’re in the position to be the educator.  There’s a process they have to go through, and we need them to understand. We know so much, and we could impart so much, but sometimes Read more

Look for a Stop Sign - 2/3/26


As a customer service professional, what you say matters.  The information you’re providing is useful.  The direction you’re giving the other person is helpful.  But... As you’re speaking, you also need to be reading.  Reading the other person.  Watching the customer, determining whether and how they’re receiving what you’re sharing.  Read more

When They Want the Supervisor - 1/27/26


Maybe you did your best with the customer, or maybe the customer didn’t even give you a chance.  They want to talk to your supervisor.  They see you, notice your title does not have “supervisor” or “manager” or “director” or “President and CEO” in it, so they want to Read more

Identify Your Point of Empathy - 1/20/26


I was watching a webinar recently on empathy.  The speaker mentioned that empathy - to a large extent - is something that you are born with.  It’s something that’s very difficult to learn.  And while I agree that some people are predisposed to being empathetic and understanding of others Read more

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Look for a Stop Sign – 2/3/26

Posted on February 3, 2026 in Customer Service Tip of the Week Please leave a comment

As a customer service professional, what you say matters.  The information you’re providing is useful.  The direction you’re giving the other person is helpful.  But…

As you’re speaking, you also need to be reading.  Reading the other person.  Watching the customer, determining whether and how they’re receiving what you’re sharing.  And sometimes if you’re really watching the customer – their behaviors, their expressions – you can read their signs, and sometimes the signs say STOP.  They say PAUSE.  They say LET THEM TALK.

When you’re sharing something with the customer or you’re talking to them, and they are flipping through their paperwork or scrolling the phone for some information, they’re not paying attention.  That’s a Stop Sign.

When they look at the clock or their watch, or their eye contact strays elsewhere, that’s a Stop Sign.

When you can tell they’re trying to talk or convey some information or physically moving in such a way that they’re about to burst unless they get their turn to speak, that’s a Stop Sign.

When the brow gets furrowed, like they’ve just been asked to lay out a blueprint for World Peace or provide the algorithm that Google uses to prioritize web searches, they may be unclear or confused.  That’s a Stop Sign.

At this point, it’s not about what we’re saying, it’s about how we’re listening to their body language.  It’s how we’re focused on how they’re receiving or not receiving our message, how they’re paying or not paying attention.

Sometimes the best thing to do in a conversation with a customer is to know when to stop speaking and ask them about their thoughts, or ask if they have something to share, or ask if anything is unclear.

 Look for a Stop Sign.

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Identify Your Point of Empathy – 1/20/26

Posted on January 20, 2026 in Customer Service Tip of the Week Please leave a comment

I was watching a webinar recently on empathy.  The speaker mentioned that empathy – to a large extent – is something that you are born with.  It’s something that’s very difficult to learn.  And while I agree that some people are predisposed to being empathetic and understanding of others (having that innate level of concern for others’ situations and their feelings), I have also witnessed people who became more empathetic over time.  They learned what it means.  They learned the importance of it.  They intentionally strived to build their habits and skill sets to be more empathetic.

Some of us find it difficult to be empathetic because we – understandably – feel like we don’t know exactly what that other person is going through; we’ve never truly been in their shoes.  But to be empathetic, you don’t have to have had the same life experiences of the other; with empathy, we’re simply trying to create a cognitive understanding, and utilize that knowledge to serve the other person better, to treat them better.

Creating Empathy for a Situation You’ve Not Experienced

For example, the customer may be upset that they received an unexpected fee on their bank statement, and they’re complaining to you.  Maybe you’ve never gotten an unexpected bank fee, but you’ve been charged more than you expected for the hamburger or the clothing or the service on your car.

Your season ticket holder may be upset because the seats that they’ve been in for years are moving next season due to some reorganization of the grandstands.  You’ve never had this exact situation happen to you, but your monthly 8:00 a.m. physical therapy appointment was just moved to an afternoon slot because your therapist is going part-time, and her hours are changing.

The local home builder walks into your offices because she’s upset that her plans didn’t pass, and that’s going to add at least 2-4 weeks to her project.  You’ve never been in that exact situation, but you applied to take night classes, and the application wasn’t approved due to some missing paperwork, so it’s going to take longer than expected to begin.

If you’re not the most empathetic person in the world, that’s OK.  Many of us were not born with that natural inclination.  But we can learn to empathize, and it doesn’t require that we’ve actually been in the exact situation that our customers are experiencing today.

Find Something Similar, Not Something Exactly the Same

Ask some questions to truly understand their situation, think of something similar you’ve been involved with, and use that understanding to build up your own empathy for what they’re going through.  You don’t have to tell them your similar story, but use that story to at least create some internal empathy for the other person.

Identify Your Point of Empathy.

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When You’re the Educator, What Should You Teach? – 1/21/25

Posted on January 21, 2025 in Customer Service Tip of the Week Please leave a comment

The best customer service professionals are also excellent educators.  Not only within the organization, but I’m talking specifically about the role they play as educator with their customers.  With all the self-service options that technology provides, customers often have the opportunity to do things on their own, to investigate on their own, to address issues on their own.

Unfortunately, technology is not always self-evident.  It doesn’t always think like customers think.  It doesn’t often convey what the customer needs to know when they need to know it in a way that the customer can absorb, understand, and use moving forward.

So, if we want to be the best of customer service professionals, we need to be excellent educators.

Let’s say we have a customer named Christopher.  About what do we need to build Christopher’s awareness?  What does Christopher need to know to get things done?  What knowledge does Christopher need to build in order to have the best experience possible with our organization?

Ask yourself (or your customers) these types of questions, because these questions build your understanding of what content is required in your educational endeavors with customers.

Does Christopher need to be more aware of technology options such as mobile apps, self-service website functions, chat functions, automated phone options?  And does he need to know how to navigate those mechanisms?  Does he need to know how to place in order, how to check status, how to follow-up directly with the right person, how to see if a service is completed or a delivery has been made?  Does Christopher need to know the services available, the features available, the different ways to experience your product or your service, your event or your facility?

To strengthen your role as an educator of customers, first identify what the key content is where they need to be more knowledgeable or better trained.

Identify what THEY need to know in order to have the best experience possible.

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