Benjamin and Stephen (and me) on Creating a Culture of World-Class Customer Service

Recently I called the billing office of my healthcare provider about a bill I should not have received. They quickly tossed me to the Billing Investigation department where the woman I spoke with was condescending and repeatedly insisted it was all my fault. 

The fact that the charges had been coded incorrectly (by their office) was somehow my fault because I didn’t call my insurance company prior to my routine doctor’s visit to verify coverage. Really??

Needless to say, I was angry and frustrated and told the story far and wide, including writing a personal note to my physician cancelling my next appointment.

Ultimately, after a few weeks, the issue was resolved to my satisfaction, but it left a really sour taste in my mouth.

Bad customer service on so many levels. 

The point isn’t whether my bill was corrected or not but, rather, that I did not have a positive and satisfactory customer service experience.

It’s likely you’ve also had one or two experiences with crummy customer service. What, specifically, could the customer service rep have done better or differently to ensure your satisfaction with the experience even if the outcome wasn’t what you wanted?

Let’s start at the very beginning…
A great customer service experience starts with listening. It’s as simple as that. That, and remembering that every employee in your company is a customer service representative.

Stephen Covey says it so well, “Most people do not listen with the intent to understand; they listenwith the intent to reply.”

Expanding on that down a natural path towards the desired outcome of a stellar customer service experience, I’ll share some critical components from our personal and professional experiences and invite a favorite philosopher from the 1700’s, Benjamin Franklin, to add his wisdom. Hopefully you’ll find it resonates.

1. Remember your goal — To give your customer an outstanding customer service experience.

B.F.: “When you have a goal, obstacles are actually teaching you how to get where you want to go—carving you a path.”

2. Know your product/service 100% confidently. 

• If you know less than your customer does about the company/product/service you represent, you are doomed before you start. You should feel and sound confident, to inspire trust in the customer. 

B.F.: “By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.”

3. Listen to understand. 

• Ask for clarification or confirmation if you aren’t 100% sure you understand.
• If the customer is communicating in writing, read carefully before answering. Remember there’s no voice inflection in an email so it’s easy to misunderstand their message or intent. And yours. 
• As a customer, nothing is more frustrating than getting a response that answers a question you didn’t ask or a problem you didn’t present.

B.F.: “He that can have patience can have what he will.”

4. Be respectful.

• Your customer is the most important person in your business.
• Your customer is already stressed by having to reach out to you.
• They are a person who deserves your respect. They are your customer.

5. Be polite. Even when your customer is not.

• Take a deep breath and try to see the issue or conversation from their viewpoint. Be polite.

B.F.: “Tart words make no friends; a spoonful of honey will catch more flies than a gallon of vinegar.”

6. Be prompt.

• The longer your customer waits for your response, verbal or written, the more upset they get and the harder it will be to solve the issue to their satisfaction 

B.F.: “You may delay, but time will not.” 

7. Be sincere and honest. 

• People respond much more positively to people they receive as sincere and honest.
• Skip the script. Or at the very least, make it sound real.

B.F.:  “Honesty is the best policy.”

8. NO selling!

• Please, please don’t try to sell them something when they have reached out with a problem, issue, or question. Please.

B.F.: “Tricks and treachery are the practice of fools that don't have brains enough to be honest.”

9. Ask how else you can help them. Not IF there’s anything else you can do. 

• Asking how else you can help them is an open-ended question that invites them to think about their response instead of a quick yes/no answer.

B.F.: “There are three kinds of people: those that are immovable, those that are movable, and those who move.” 

Some things haven’t changed in 300 years. Be the one who moves so that your customer walks away from your customer service interaction with a smile and a great story to tell.