If you’ve been keeping up with the MeloTel Blog, then you know that a big part of our company’s mantra has to do with “making customers’ lives easier”. And while we remain very confident that our services help for that to happen, we know that it’s our customer service that really makes the difference. Serving our customers over the phone is a major part of our each and every day. And, as a result, we know just how important the telephone remains to be.
It doesn’t matter how tech-savvy and internet-crazy our world has become. Customers prefer to speak to live representatives, over any other form of communication, when dealing with a business. It’s important, of course, to have top-of-the-line phone technology in place so that you can service your clients efficiently. The VoIP Commercial Phone Services provided by MeloTel help for business owners all over Canada to do just that!
As you may have guessed, many of our clients run call centres. In such businesses, one thing is for sure. The more employees you have working the phones, the better your customer service practices need to be. It’s important to make each and every customer interaction a special one in order to maintain your brand’s sparkling reputation as an excellent customer service provider. And each member of your team needs to be on board.
Here are five ways to provide superior service over the phone:
1. Get the name right. We live in Canada. One of the greatest aspects of our country is that it is inhabited by people from all over the world. As a result, you’re bound to interact with people who have names that you may find difficult to pronounce. There’s no shame in asking customers to pronounce their names so that you can say them correctly. It shows respect. And it will help you to establish a strong customer relationship from the onset. This can go a long way.
2. Listen up. A person’s name shouldn’t be the only thing that you are attentively listening for, of course. Don’t assume that each person’s call is with respect to the same issue, even if the concerns sound similar. Make sure that you are actively listening so that you understand the needs of your caller the first time they are explained. Addressing the wrong issue is bound to diminish your ability to help your customer, only leading to a bad customer experience.
3. Smile. In our last blog, we highlighted how smiling can make a world of difference in the world of customer service. And that is true even when the customer you are servicing can’t see you. Smiling, while on the phone, will inevitably help you to put forth a pleasant demeanour. Good customer service is most easily recognized by a friendly and polite approach. Do your best to provide service with a smile throughout each and every interaction.
4. Keep it simple. Sometimes, less is more. And in the case of explaining what you plan on doing to satisfy your customer, you want to keep your language plain. Some people get put off by the overuse of industry jargon that they don’t necessarily understand. Stick to the point and keep your verbiage plain enough that it can be easily digested. Your customers will appreciate you making things easy on them.
5. Recap. There’s no harm in proving that you’ve gotten it right. In fact, your customer will appreciate that you have paid attention to detail when you go over what it is you have discussed during your call. This will also help you to iron out any details that you may have missed. Recapping, at the end of your call, is a great way to show that you’ve both listened to and understood the concerns of your client. This will help to develop your reputation as dependable.
For more information on our Commercial Phone Services, please don’t hesitate to call us at 1-888-MELOTEL!
