In responding to customer requests and complaints, it's great when we can give them what they want and say 'yes'. But that isn't always possible. Even when we've tried our best and been creative, there are still times when we have to go back with a...
The showing of empathy is so important in delivering a positive customer experience. Customers (and colleagues) need you to understand: their situation, their needs, their priorities and their emotions. But you don't just need to understand, you need to show you understand, and this is the...
Sometimes, sorry seems to be the hardest word. Yes, sometimes saying sorry hurts, and you take an emotional hit when you offer an apology - both when you genuinely feel you have something to apologise for, and when you don't. But an apology is one of the...
Have you ever experienced passive aggressive behaviour from someone in a customer service role? Have you seen it in your team? Have you seen it in yourself? It can be seen in a range of behaviours: the go-slow / unresponsiveness / sarcasm / repetitive, scripted or monosyllabic...
Rapport building for introverts Initial rapport building can be a struggle for some introverts. It's not that they can't build rapport (they can be great at it) and it certainly isn't that they don't like talking to people (introverts value conversation and relationships as much as extroverts):...
When Should You Ask for Customer Feedback and When Should You Not? Customer feedback is crucial for knowing what your customers do and don’t like – and what you can do about it to improve your business. But how do you know when is the right time...
Customer service accountability is one of the most common traits of an excellent customer experience. There are 2 main reasons for this: For a truly excellent customer experience, everyone has to stand up and be counted. One weak link in the organisational chain and the customer...
Is there such as thing as universally superior client service? In that, if an experience is superior for one customer, will it be superior for another? Or do you need to focus on your customer experience positioning? Many seem to think so. Books, blogs and consultants...
If you work in customer service, or have any customer/client facing role, you are likely at some point to encounter angry customers. And they’re not just angry – they can also be irrational, impatient, unreasonable, and a little wild and personally aggressive towards you. Handling these encounters...
Service credibility is everything for professionals ‘The quality of being convincing or believable’ is a key component of trust, and can also be a differentiator – with more ‘credible’ service providers being well placed to win work against their competitors. But what makes someone ‘credible’? Ask many professionals and they would...