Not going to lie, this is kind of a rant...
I just want to preface this by saying I am EXTREMELY passionate about customer service. With that being said, since when did people stop caring about the customer in customer service. Actually I take it back, when did customer service start going down the drain
all together?!
Last week we received customer service training from our HR department - mostly because if you are in the business of serving people, it's always good to have refresher courses. Obviously these are going to be specific to my job description, but I think these things can all apply in some way when we work with people. One of the main focuses was on first impressions. We were given a list of 30 elements, we narrowed them down from 30 to our top 5 things that we believe make a great first impression. Mine were the following:
-Friendly greeting "Hi! Welcome to our clinic!"
-Introduce yourself with name and title "My name is Amanda I'm the receptionist that spoke with you on the phone"
-Focus on the person without distractions
-Offer to help "Can I help you with your registration? Would you like some water or tea while you wait?"
-Use the customer's/patient's name(if you know it) "Ok Mrs. Smith, thank you so much for coming in it was great to see you again."
Now, there's a LOT more that goes along with that, including answering the phone with a smile, remembering a personal aspect about their life; for example, I work in a perinatologist's office (high risk pregnancy) and my coworkers and I like to remember what the sex of the baby is and what name they have picked out. I feel, espeically in the medical field, people are already sick, tired, and/or scared and deserve to be treated with great customer service.
I'm a strong believer that smiling is contagious and you should 'kill em' with kindness' - so it's really hard for me to wrap my head around people that are in this kind of business and could care less about what it stands for.
Now, I completely understand that you yourself might have had a hard morning, no coffee, an arguement with a spouse - I get it. I totally have those days too when I'm just in a funk. However, it's so so so important to not forget what you do and why you're doing it. You were hired to give (well in my case at least) great customer service and if you're doing less than that you're simply not doing your job....
Am I making any sense? Does anyone else feel this way when you talk to a worker at a fast food place or your insurance company?
The economy is bad people this = You should be on top of your customer service game or someone is going to swoop right in and take your spot who is willing to smile once in a while.
WHEW! I'm taking a deep breath and counting to ten...1....2.....3....
Take a minute, step out of your shell, go above and beyond, and do it with some heart.
via here
I just want to preface this by saying I am EXTREMELY passionate about customer service. With that being said, since when did people stop caring about the customer in customer service. Actually I take it back, when did customer service start going down the drain
all together?!
Last week we received customer service training from our HR department - mostly because if you are in the business of serving people, it's always good to have refresher courses. Obviously these are going to be specific to my job description, but I think these things can all apply in some way when we work with people. One of the main focuses was on first impressions. We were given a list of 30 elements, we narrowed them down from 30 to our top 5 things that we believe make a great first impression. Mine were the following:
-Friendly greeting "Hi! Welcome to our clinic!"
-Introduce yourself with name and title "My name is Amanda I'm the receptionist that spoke with you on the phone"
-Focus on the person without distractions
-Offer to help "Can I help you with your registration? Would you like some water or tea while you wait?"
-Use the customer's/patient's name(if you know it) "Ok Mrs. Smith, thank you so much for coming in it was great to see you again."
Now, there's a LOT more that goes along with that, including answering the phone with a smile, remembering a personal aspect about their life; for example, I work in a perinatologist's office (high risk pregnancy) and my coworkers and I like to remember what the sex of the baby is and what name they have picked out. I feel, espeically in the medical field, people are already sick, tired, and/or scared and deserve to be treated with great customer service.
I'm a strong believer that smiling is contagious and you should 'kill em' with kindness' - so it's really hard for me to wrap my head around people that are in this kind of business and could care less about what it stands for.
Now, I completely understand that you yourself might have had a hard morning, no coffee, an arguement with a spouse - I get it. I totally have those days too when I'm just in a funk. However, it's so so so important to not forget what you do and why you're doing it. You were hired to give (well in my case at least) great customer service and if you're doing less than that you're simply not doing your job....
Am I making any sense? Does anyone else feel this way when you talk to a worker at a fast food place or your insurance company?
The economy is bad people this = You should be on top of your customer service game or someone is going to swoop right in and take your spot who is willing to smile once in a while.
WHEW! I'm taking a deep breath and counting to ten...1....2.....3....
Take a minute, step out of your shell, go above and beyond, and do it with some heart.
I get what you are saying. I work in retail and deal with about 200 people each work day. I think when it's that many people and about 50% of them are SO rude to you, it's hard to keep your head up at the end of the shift. Sometimes I just get to a point where I really don't care. (I usually feel guilty about this later) I think it's a combination of customers becoming more and more ridiculous (were all getting use to sitting behind computer screens instead of dealing with people) and the people giving the customer service being fed up.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree!! Even if you are having a bad day, that does not give you the right to not give someone the good customer service they deserve. It's really not that hard to be nice, and in return, you can help make a person's day better (or your own).
ReplyDeleteP.S. I want your job! How did you come to work there? Did you have to take a course to become a medical receptionist? (Is that what you are?). =]
Thank you both for your comments, I truly don't mean to offend anyone if you don't agree with my thoughts, it's just something that's been on my heart and mind a lot lately.
ReplyDeleteJackie - what's your email address? :) I will email you the specifics!
Agreed girl, AGREED!
ReplyDeleteUsed to work as a Customer Service rep for my Dad's VOIP company and someone my co-workers killed me with their attitudes. I always try to be positive and upbeat and customer's were way friendlier and less angry when you "killed 'em with kindness."
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with this!! I work for my dad (air conditioning company) during the summer! Let me say people get CRAZY when they're hot. But you just deal with it, be polite no matter what! if not, you'll lose business!
ReplyDeleteI'm with you. There have been days when I've been in a bad mood, but I still know that when I get to work, or even to class, I need to put on a happy face and be pleasant. Especially when I'm at work, answering phones and greeting people. It's just what you have to do.
ReplyDeletethis is a MAJOR irratant wit me.. IM a bitch. but if I CAN smile all day, SO CAN YOU. grrr...
ReplyDeleteThanks Amanda! It's jackie.steele123@gmail.com
ReplyDeleteIf you are keen to expand your customer base, obtain increased responses for your trade advertisements, regularly maintain in touch along with your customers and associates and overall enhance Customer Relations Management (CRM), then acquiring a Toll Free Numbers and toll totally free company number is the straightforward answer.
ReplyDelete