How I despise customer service. Allow me to enumerate. Infinite loop of irritating hold music. The compulsion to acquire new goods and services. The low-quality call to a foreign place was outsourced.
A customer service call may be an exasperating conclusion to an unpleasant encounter. You’re distressed and in search of understanding, yet all you discover is a disappointment. Could Company X have made a different choice? Probably, but if you follow these customer service recommendations, you’ll be in control of your next argument.
1. Always be prepared.
Seems straightforward, doesn’t it? Unless you’ve spoken with Company X multiple times, you’re probably unfamiliar with the information they want. Before you contact, make a note of every tracking number, account number, itemized statement, and order number. Customer support personnel are held accountable for masochistic management’s cruel call-handling metrics. The duration of the call, resolution (whether the consumer calls back within an allotted period of time), and randomly monitored calls are all strictly monitored. The bottom truth is that they desire to assist you swiftly and totally in order to avoid a superior cracking a whip.
2. Be courteous.
All-day, customer service workers interact with angry, frustrated, and/or enraged individuals. Every single day. While you may disagree with a credit refusal, yelling “the customer is always right!” will not help. Maintain a cheerful demeanour, and the rules may become bendable. Be another obnoxious client and the rules will be established in stone.
3. Be aware of when to call and when to write.
If you want a pricing quotation, wish to add or remove a feature, or require an explanation of a bill, e-mail is the most expedient method of communication. Contact customer service with any repair problems or credit requests. Repair professionals will need to troubleshoot and gather access information in the event that a technician is required. Credit requests may be processed through email; but, it is far simpler to respond with a generic “credit rejected” message than it is to deny credit to a real, living person.
4. Establish a record.
If anything is not operating correctly, immediately contact the firm. If there is a cable, satellite, or phone outage, Company X will be able to diagnose and resolve the issue only if they are alerted of the situation. Additionally, this creates a record of correspondence in case you want a credit or refund at a later date.
5. Maintain a persistent but not annoying demeanour.
Numerous businesses have credit policy standards that mandate initial rejection of any request that is not a previously documented “out of service” problem or a known billing mistake. These rules may be loosened the second time a credit request is filed. If you’ve followed the “be courteous” recommendation above, your credit request may be granted.
Adhering to these five principles will assist you in obtaining your desired outcome in the most effective way possible. Keep an eye out for the next part to learn how to irritate the customer support experience and effectively postpone resolution!