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Good Customer Service - Would you like fries with that?
We all like to be treated with good customer service -- respect
and kindness -- when receiving services or purchasing products,
but how many of us are conscious of our own attitude and body
language when the roles are reversed and we are the...
How to Build Customer Relationships
Copyright 2005 Jennifer McGroary
Building a lasting relationship with your customers is a vital
marketing strategy in ensuring the existence of your business.
Making your customers unhappy even once can impact their
likelihood of ever...
How to Calm Cranky Customers Without Blowing Your Stack
There isn't a day that goes by that I don't hear another small
business owners complaining about some of the customers they
have to do business with. Some of them REALLY are legitimate
complaints, but after listening to 100's of...
Internal Customer Service – The Key To Productivity & Growth
by Carole Nicolaides © 2002 http://www.progressiveleadership.com Customer service is the foundation on which businesses are created. Unless you understand your customers and treat them with respect, you will go out of business. That is a well-known...
THAT'S ONE NEAT TRICK! TURNING COMPLAINERS INTO LOYAL CUSTOMERS
No matter what business you're in, it never fails. Every so often, you get one of those customers that seems to make an effort to find something to complain about. Maybe they're unhappy with your customer service, accuse you of selling faulty...
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Battling with Customer Service: How to Win the War, Part 1 of 2
Customer service, how I loathe thee. Let me count the ways. The
never-ending loop of obnoxious hold music. The pressure to buy
new products and services. The poor-quality, outsourced call to
a distant land.
A call to customer service can be an infuriating ending to a
frustrating experience. You're upset and looking for empathy,
but all you encounter is disappointment. Could Company X have
done something differently? Probably, but if you follow these
tips when dealing with customer service, you'll be in the
driver's seat for the next dispute.
1. Be prepared.
Seems basic, right? Unless you've called Company X several
times, you're probably not familiar with their required
information. Have every tracking number, account number,
itemized statement, and order number before you call. Customer
service representatives are held responsible for torturous
call-handling metrics designed by masochistic management. Length
of call, resolution (if the customer calls back to the company
within an allocated amount of time), and randomly monitored
calls are measured stringently. Bottom line: they want to help
you quickly and completely, lest a superior crack a whip.
2. Be nice.
Customer service representatives speak with upset, irritated,
and/or irate people all day. Every day. You may not agree with a
credit denial, but screaming "the customer is always right,
(expletive)!" will not help. Be pleasant and the rules may be
malleable. Be another unpleasant customer and the guidelines
will be set in stone.
3. Know when to call, know when to write.
If you need to request a price quote, add/remove a feature, or
ask for explanation of a bill, e-mail is the
most efficient
route for your correspondence. For repair concerns or credit
requests, call customer service. Repair specialists will need to
troubleshoot and get access information should a technician need
to be dispatched. Credit requests can be handled via e-mail,
however, it is easier to reply with a "credit denied" form
letter than to deny credit to a real, live person.
4. Get on record.
If something is not working properly, call the company
immediately. If there is a cable, satellite, or phone outage,
Company X will only be able to diagnose and correct the problem
if they are notified a problem exists. This also establishes a
record of communication should you need to request a credit or
refund at a later date.
5. Be persistent, but not obnoxious.
Many companies have guidelines for dispensing credit that
require denial the first time for any request that is not a
previously-reported "out of service" issue or a known billing
error. The second time a credit request is made, these
guidelines can be relaxed. If you have followed the "be nice"
tip above, you may be rewarded with your credit request.
Following these five tips will help you get what you want in the
most efficient manner possible. Stay tuned for the next
installment to find out how you can aggravate the customer
service experience and actually delay resolution!
About the author:
Gwendolyn Lee is a statistician and analyst of Internet-related
metrics for rubber stamps and stamping products at www.rubberstamps.net. She
has researched and implemented business models to maximize
profitability, efficiency and advertising tracking.
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Customer Service Group: Resources for improved customer service ... |
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Customer Service Training Customer Service Skills Training Service |
Service Quality Institute is the leader in Customer Service Training with customer service training skills products and consulting with over 34 years ... |
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ICS: Institute of Customer Service |
The Institute of Customer Service is the professional body for customer service whose primary purpose is to lead customer service performance and ... |
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International Customer Service Association |
Promotes the development and awareness of the customer service profession through networking, education and research. Activities, publications ... |
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Customer Service Jobs on CareerBuilder.com |
Looking for customer service jobs? Start your job search at CareerBuilder, the leader in job search sites, and access hundreds of thousands of jobs today. |
customer-service.careerbuilder.com |
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The New York Times Home Delivery - Subscribe |
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homedelivery.nytimes.com |
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Customer service - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia |
The modern concept of customer service has its roots in the craftsman economy ... Delivering customer service begins with understanding what customers want. ... |
en.wikipedia.org |
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Customer service representatives |
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www.bls.gov |
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Customer Service Training |
Customer Service Training, Seminars, Coaching, and free articles to improve repeat business, happiness, and professional image. |
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Customer Service |
(It may help the reader to notice the role of customer service in the overall ... Additional Resources in the Category of Customer Service and Satisfaction ... |
www.managementhelp.org |
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azcentral.com faq - azcentral.com Help - Arizona Republic Customer ... |
azcentral.com faq - Welcome to the azcentral.com help center where you can find answers to azcentral.com and Arizona Republic customer service questions. |
www.azcentral.com |
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CafePress.com : Help Desk : Customer Service |
Email Us Send us an email and we will respond to you within 24 hours. Call Us Toll Free 1-877-809-1659 Customer Service Hours ... |
www.cafepress.com |
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Customer Service Week - The Celebration Source |
Provides how-to information, gifts and decorations for successful Customer Service Week celebrations. |
www.csweek.com |
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Nashville - Tennessean.com - Middle Tennessee Customer Services |
Customer service, advertising or news-related questions or problems (615) 259-8000. ... (615) 242-7253. Email Customer Service customer @tennessean.com. ... |
www.tennessean.com |
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Customer Service Institute of Australia - dedicated to Australian ... |
CSIA is a professional, membership-based body dedicated to improving the standards of customer service both at an individual level and at a corporate level ... |
www.csia.com.au |
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The Globe and Mail: Home Delivery Customer Care: Home |
The most authoritiative news in Canada featuring articles from The Globe and Mail, breaking news coverage, national news, international news, sports, ... |
https: |
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Customer Service from FLORIDA TODAY |
We're here to bring the finest customer service to your doorstep. ... Customer Service Hours Monday - Friday: 6:30 a.m. - 5 p.m. ET Saturday: ... |
www.floridatoday.com |
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magazine customer service |
https://secure.customersvc.com/ servlet/Show?WESPAGE=mo/home.html&MSRSMAG=MO - Similar pages |
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Customer Service – 8 Rules For Good Customer Service |
Good customer service is the lifeblood of any business. You can bring in as many new customers as you want, but unless you can get some of those customers ... |
sbinfocanada.about.com |
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Help | IndyStar.com |
Customer Service • Terms of Service • Send feedback about IndyStar.com • Subscribe Now • Jobs with us. Use of this site signifies your agreement to the ... |
www.indystar.com |
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