Customer Service Best Practices
 Most equipment dealers know that difficult customers and situations “come with the territory.” When dealing with expensive transactions or equipment breakdowns, even the most mild-mannered customer may get upset. What is important is learning how to deal with these encounters and mitigating any negativity that may result. This is where customer service best practices come into play.
Whether you are dealing face-to-face or on the phone, these situations are more than mere challenges. If you can’t handle them professionally, resolve the problem, and satisfy your customers, they will switch over to your competitor. It’s that simple. Inevitably, they will tell others they were not satisfied with your service. Believe me; bad news in the equipment distribution business does travel fast. Customers belong to the same associations and they talk to each other at construction association and Farm Bureau events and in the field. The result will be an assault on your reputation – something no distributor can afford.
Whether you are a dealer principal, salesperson, parts manager, or service manager you need to handle difficult or irate customers with the utmost professionalism. This requires shifting into the right mind-set and communicating with them in a confident, competent and non-combative manner. As a start to the process, follow these important guidelines to help you through a tough encounter:
Step 1: Maintain your cool. First and foremost, prepare yourself for what is to come. There may be angry words, personal affronts, and highly charged emotions. This is the kind of situation where it is easy to lose your cool and become defensive – especially if you think the customer is being unreasonable.
Your mounting stress can lead to increased anger, which will only make your customers even more upset. By learning to put some distance between you and the situation, you can control your emotions. This is what I call the “Be Cool” mindset; it is the best protection you have from the angry person confronting you.
Let’s assume you are a service manager and you receive a call from an irate customer who is trying to deal with an equipment problem. The customer is very challenging, but you remind yourself that he or she is not as technically proficient as you are. Therefore, you can be more sympathetic to his or her problem. Assume the “Be Cool” attitude. Be patient, (even if your service department is swamped!), stay calm, and reassure them that you will help them solve the problem.
Do not sound impatient or say anything to make it worse. Now is not the time to remind them that they shouldn’t have touched anything and that you had given them the proper maintenance procedure when you delivered the machine. Instead, be cool and start a positive approach. Begin by asking a few questions and talking the customer through the problem, step by step. Reassure the customer along the way. If you can’t talk it through, get help to them as quickly as possible.
2. Admit you are wrong. Take responsibility immediately if you or anyone in your company made the mistake. Even if there is some doubt, settle the problem someway. This is hard to do since ultimately there is a financial responsibility in all of this. Nevertheless, own up to the situation. Hopefully, if you handle everything quickly, the financial burden will be light. At the very least, you will have saved a customer and that will mean business in the future. Everyone can make a mistake-don’t make another one by turning off your customer.
3. Know what the customer wants. Generally, an angry person just wants to vent his or her anger. Usually, that means taking the anger out on someone else — in this case, you. You will get the brunt of it even if you are not to blame. Often, a customer will take it out on you even when the technicians did not respond fast enough or the new equipment purchase was not delivered when promised.
It is always best to let the customer have their say before you respond. Let them blow off steam. They can vent and calm down. Once that happens, they usually just want reassurance that:
- You are concerned about them and their problem.
- They will be taken seriously.
- You are capable of handling the situation.
- They will be given your undivided attention.
- They will be treated with respect.
- They can expect a fast response.
- They will know you are on their side.
- They are important to you.
- Your words communicate empathy.
4. Do not judge or correct. Never judge or correct a customer. If they are angry with you, refrain from making any statements that are judgmental or you may cause the customer defensive. Now is not the time to say, “Why didn’t you make sure you maintained the excavator properly?” Or, “Why didn’t you change the oil?” Now is the time for action; now you must solve the problem.
Apologize, empathize, and help them in every way possible. If you can solve the problem and send them out the door as a happy customer, then you have handled the situation well. Studies show that deftly handling tough situations and solving problems with professionalism yields the opportunity to build stronger business relationships.
5. Apply verbal cushions. When a customer is angry, you can diffuse the situation by applying “verbal cushions,” a communication technique taught by customer service trainers. These words and phrases “cushion” a customer’s complaint and will help you to service them more effectively. The verbal cushions below communicate a sense of concern, promote cooperation, and display empathy. Memorize them so that you can apply them in challenging situations.
- “I apologize this occurred, John.”
- “I can understand why you are upset.”
- “I’m very sorry this has happened to you.”
- “I apologize if there’s been a misunderstanding.”
- “I can understand why you would be unhappy.”
- “I understand your position.”
- “Thank you for bringing this to my attention.”
- “I understand. This is crucial to the job you’re doing.”
- “I recognize the urgency involved. Let me take care of this immediately.”
6. Calm out of control customers. When dealing with customers who use foul language and just won’t back down, steel yourself against the onslaught and stay calm. This is never easy. Your first reaction might be to yell back at them, become defensive, and continue to support your position-right or wrong. Now, more than ever, use verbal cushions such as:
- “Sir, I haven’t said or done anything to disrespect you in any way. May I ask the same of you?”
- “Let work this out in a professional manner.”
7. Be proactive in problem prevention. Progressive dealers practice Proactive Complaint Prevention. They make it a strong part of their culture. Make sure your dealership has the appropriate, timely systems and procedures in place to avoid problems that can cause customers to become difficult. Consider taking the following leadership actions to ensure that you are ready for any situation:
- Make the creation of a “Service Excellence” culture a major strategic initiative in your company.
- Communicate service excellence continuously and make sure your people take it seriously.
- Provide training to employees on the soft side of customer service and write specifics on how they should think and act as brand ambassadors who will positively represent your dealership.
- Create a written service policy with the highest standards for service excellence.
- Enlist the support of high-performance teams to create guiding principles on how you will communicate, act, and operate that demonstrate the core values of honesty, integrity, caring, professionalism, and respect. These are some suggestions to put in place:
“If a customer calls with a problem, we will own the problem and make sure their problem is resolved.”
“Before we leave home each day, we will make sure all parts ordered have been shipped, and make sure backorders have been found.”
“If a customer needs a part and we don’t have it in our inventory, a team
of three people will jump in and help the parts manager locate what they need.”
“We will apologize immediately if customers have had to wait, or if they have a complaint.”
“If our service technician will be more than ten minutes late, he or she will call the customer to let them know.”
“We will double-check every order, shipment, and billing entry.”
“If a shipment or order will be late, we will call the customer to keep them informed.”
“We will always make sure a customer stays informed. We will provide progress updates at all times, and let them know we are working for them.”
“If a customer is waiting for important information and we can’t obtain it quickly, we will call them to let them know we are still waiting, and will advise them the moment the information comes through.”
“We will always strive to give the customer more than he or she expects.”
“We will follow up with customers to make sure they are taken care of and are happy with our work.”
8. Take the leadership role. Work with your team or enlist the help of a professional to create guiding principles that are specific to your business. Print them out so everyone has them and consistently update them.
The following are additional leadership actions to take that will help you to avoid problems:
- Document complaints and talk about how they could have been avoided.
- Work to uncover and eliminate any service flaws.
- Instruct sales reps and service managers to under-promise and over-deliver.
- Strive to seek ways to make it easier for customers to do business with you.
- Train your employees in the philosophy and actions of teamwork.
- Commit to servicing your “internal customers” as well as your external customers.
- Record and distribute service excellence rules so they permeate your entire business.
- Hold weekly meetings to discuss “Hits,” “Runs” and “Misses.”
- Create a Problem Resolution Report for executives so they can stay informed and can pick up the phone and call customers to make sure they are happy.
9. What do you do when you can’t help a customer or do as they ask? Let them down gently using a verbal cushion that displays professionalism and demonstrates empathy.
There is a lot to do but there are huge rewards for the successful dealers. |
