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Don’t Skip the Recap - 5/12/26


The playoff hockey game goes on for almost 3 hours.  There’s non-stop action, with plenty of penalties and takeaways and hits against the boards…and a few goals, as well. You didn’t get to watch the whole game because you had other plans, but you wanted to know what happened.  So, Read more

Finalize the Solution with the 6 Step Checklist - 5/5/26


In last week’s Tip, we showed why and how to Use the 6 Step Checklist before Resolving the Issue.  We noted the importance of taking 15 seconds to mentally walk through the Who, What, When, Where, Why, and How to feel confident that you know what’s needed to fix Read more

Use the 6 Step Checklist before Resolving the Issue - 4/28/26


We talk about trying to resolve the issue right the first time, sharing the technique on how to manage the conversation to get clarity on the real issue, need, or goal, and confirming your understanding before moving forward. But what are you trying to clarify?  What are you trying to Read more

Use the Customer’s Words - 4/21/26


The customer is describing a problem on what they call their “computer.” They mentioned that the “screen” doesn’t “move from one page to the other.” They say that the “website’s name is typed at the top,” and it says sample.com with a “line, and then it says ‘home’ after Read more

Affirming the Customer with Empathy - 4/14/26


We’ve spoken and written about empathy for the 20+ years of these customer service tips, noting empathy as the most important quality any individual can have if they want to be great at customer service.  We’ve shared that - in order to serve our customers most effectively – it’s Read more

The Power of Teaching While Helping - 4/7/26


If you’re trying to develop a relationship with the customer rather than just simply handling their transaction and moving on, you are taking a long-term view.  You realize that that individual is someone you want to keep with your business for months or years to come, so it’s a Read more

Bear with Me - 3/31/26


As a customer, you’ve probably called a company and heard the phrase “bear with me.”  At that point, you know there’s going to be some sort of delay.  The CSR is giving you a heads up that there’s going to be additional wait time.  Essentially, they are trying to Read more

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

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Questions to Guide You to Empathy – 5/13/25

Posted on May 13, 2025 in Customer Service Tip of the Week Please leave a comment

“If I was him, I would do ABC…”

If you’ve ever heard somebody say this – whether it’s a friend or acquaintance, whether it’s some TV reporter or podcaster – you may get as frustrated or as annoyed as I do.

I get annoyed because we are not that other person.  We haven’t lived their life.  We haven’t experienced what they experienced.  So, in most cases, it’s hard to tell people what they should do or what we definitely would do if we were in their situation.

But for customer service, there actually is some value in asking a related question.  When we’re engaging with the customer, it sometimes is helpful to ask ourselves:  If I was him, how would I feel?  What would I want to know?  How would I want people to respond to me?

I often note how empathy is the single most important characteristic of somebody who’s great at customer service.  But many of us are not naturally empathetic.  Many of us don’t know what it means to be empathetic.  Sometimes it helps to have little prompts or triggers or questions that we ask ourselves to get into that empathetic mindset.

If we’re getting ready to interact with somebody who is returning a product that was defective or part of it was missing, it helps to ask ourselves:  If I was him, how would I feel?

If I’m interacting with a customer who is brand new and has never had to deal with any of our processes, it helps to ask ourselves:  If I was her, what would I want to know?

If I’m interacting with somebody who just went through our business or financial process, or experienced our entertainment venue or game, or was getting discharged from our medical facility, it helps to ask ourselves: What feedback might they want to share?

If you ever find yourself engaging everyone in the same way and not really reading the other person well, if anybody ever accuses you of not being empathetic enough, just start asking yourself a few questions.  Ask – How might they feel? What might they want to know? What might they want to share?  And use those questions to guide your conversation and help you convey some empathy.

Ask yourself questions that help you better empathize with others.

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Self-empower for the New Year – 12/31/24

Posted on December 31, 2024 in Customer Service Tip of the Week Please leave a comment

Jeff joined the company, in part, because he loved their approach to culture.  Leadership tried to create an empowerment culture.  They tried to develop an environment where, within certain parameters, individual team members could make a decision and feel confident that they would be supported by leadership.

The reality was like the portrait they had portrayed for him when he was interviewing.  He really liked his job, liked the leadership, and enjoyed working at the company.  He felt like a part of a culture that aligned to his values.

As time went on over his first two years, the culture was still good, but the organizational performance started to drop.  Sales began to decline as operating expenses increased.  Profit was pinched.  And all of a sudden, leadership started to turn over.

Who knew how long Jeff would stay at the job?  It was obvious that the culture was changing with or without him.

But Jeff loved being empowered.  So eventually he asked himself the question: How can I empower myself?

He did the following for himself:

Set Goals: He identified what he wanted to achieve, what performance levels he wanted to reach, and he identified actions needed to get from here to there.

Learned New Skills: He taught himself some new skills, learning some of the technology better, becoming proficient at the use of AI and PowerBI, becoming the resident expert in the customer information system.

Understood His Strengths and Weaknesses: He reflected on what he did well and what aptitudes or characteristics of attitudes were somewhat lacking. He asked others to give him a quick 50/50 evaluation: Where do I excel, and where don’t I?  He used this understanding to figure out how to get better.

Found His Work Joy: He identified what he liked most, still, about the company.  He loved going to the common area to socialize briefly with others.  There were certain staff whom he enjoyed chatting with about fishing and football.  He enjoyed leading project teams, and he sought out opportunities to do so.

The culture was changing, and not for the better.  But that didn’t mean that he needed to change not for the better.  He could stay stagnant, or he could grow.  Jeff decided to self-empower.

Map out your own plan to Self-empower for the New Year.

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2024 Holiday Poem – 12/24/24

Posted on December 24, 2024 in Customer Service Tip of the Week Please leave a comment

I sometimes hear it said

That things have never been like this before.

That challenges are unique,

That stresses seem like more.

 

I sometimes hear it said

That we’re asked to do much more with less.

That workloads are increasing,

And we’re resource-constrained at best.

 

And others often say

That things are really very good.

That they enjoy those they work with,

And they appreciate those they serve.

 

Yes, others often walk around

With a smile on their face,

that comes from their within.

That brightens up the place.

 

You see, all these things, both bad and good,

Can be true at the same time.

Things can be challenging, and we feel overloaded;

We enjoy others and feel good inside.

 

It’s amazing how much the external world

Surrounds our every day.

If we let it, it can affect us

In every imaginable way.

 

But the key is “if we let it,”

The key is our control.

Instead of external driving internal feelings,

The internal drives it all.

 

My wish for you as we end this year

Is to find peace and joy and light.

To be full of hope on the inside,

To keep positives in sight.

 

My appreciation for you, as always,

Is of the utmost, as I sit and reflect.

For you who serve your customers,

Deserve big courtesy and respect.

 

Happy Holidays!

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