CHAPTER 2

1. CTS 217: Computer Training & Support CHAPTER 2 Customer Service Skills for User Support Agents

2. Chapter Objectives • In this chapter, students will learn about: • The importance of communications skills and customer service relationships • Reasons support agents listen and read carefully • How agents build and communicate understanding • Aspects of effective speaking and nonverbal communication • How to develop a personal communication style

3. Chapter Objectives • In this chapter, students will learn about: • Strategies for telephone communications • How to develop an incident management strategy • Understanding personality types and work styles • Strategies for difficult clients • Guidelines for client-friendly communications on support Web sites • How to build excellent customer service

4. Introduction • Excellent communication and interpersonal skills are often more challenging for new support workers to learn and use than technical or business skills! • Users not satisfied with technical answers only • Goal for every request: customer satisfaction and excellent customer service • Email, F2F, chat, phone

5. Communication and CS Skills • Communication: 2-way process listening & responding • 1-way: web sites and blogs • A customer-service ethic • an organization-wide philosophy • shared by everyone • viewpoint: client relationships and client satisfaction are the most important aspect of a business • Need communication skills for top notch CS • Hear and understand user’s problem and reflect your understanding

6. Communication and CS Skills • Satisfied vs. dissatisfied customers • Stress customer service excellence • Satisfied customers are likely to be repeat customers • Dissatisfied customer incidents usually take longer to handle • Dissatisfied customers generate: • Lengthy calls (escalates cost) • Repeated callbacks • Complaints and ill-will (word of mouth) • Incidents that must be rerouted • Product returns and refunds • Poor support staff productivity

7. Communication and CS Skills • Devoted to customer service • Provide clients with information, service, or solution they need • Explain to customers what can be done for them if the problem cannot be solved • Treat clients with respect and courtesy • Communicate to clients when they should expect to receive the service or information they need • Return calls or e-mails when promised even if no progress has been made • Remember: attitude, reactions, voice, tone (customer value) build client satisfaction

8. Communication and CS Skills • Three essential comm. skills • Listen carefully • Build understanding • Respond effectively (communicate)

9. Listen Carefully • Problem description • Listen, no interruptions (Table 2-1 p. 59) • Language used to describe the problem • Clues to caller’s experience level • Avoid language that is too complex/technical • How the caller describes the problem • Tone of voice (frustrated, angry, distracted) • Use of technical terms • Figure 2-2 (tips and obstacles) p. 61 • Strategy: Look for a communication skills course to build listening skills

10. Types and Purposes of Listening

11. Build Understanding • Develop empathy with a client • Empathy: An understanding of and identification with a client’s situation, thoughts, and feelings • We all started somewhere… • Why call is important (e.g., report for CEO) • Example: “It sounds like you’ve had a frustrating morning, but I think I can help you with this...”

12. Build Understanding • Try to express the problem in your own words; do they agree that you understand? • Communicate to a client that you view him or her as a person rather than a phone call or a problem • Techniques: • Visualization • Inclusive language: We, rather than I • Smile!

13. Respond Effectively • It’s all about communication! • Recognize the importance of a sincere greeting • Begin with call greeting (icebreaker) • First impression of you and company • Example: This is Janet in Computer Support. Thank you very much for calling. How can I help you? • NOT fake or bored – be enthusiastic • Thank you – value the call/customer • Write down his/her name…..USE it. First or Mrs./Ms./Mr.

14. Use Scripts Appropriately • Script • Prepared sequence of questions and statements used to handle parts of an incident • May include decision points and branches to handle different situations • Tip: Don’t read lengthy scripts or responses to questions; restate in your own words if possible • Know when to deviate from script • My call to HP

15. Use Tone and Style Effectively • HOW can be more important than WHAT • Top of p. 65 (dissatisfied vs. satisfied) • Formal vs. informal; casual or professional (blend) • Nonverbal behaviors (next slide) p. 66

16. Nonverbal Behaviors

17. Effective Personal Comm. Style • Use clear, succinct (brief) speech • Speak slowly but not so slowly as to sound condescending • Use short sentences; avoid jargon • Avoid a rising inflection at the end of sentences • Avoid empty phrases • Pauses are okay • Phrase communication with clients positively p. 67-68

18. Challenges of Telephone Comm. • Telephone clients evaluate: • Telephone menu system • Length of time to answer call • Initial greeting (1st impression) • Nonverbal communication also contributes to the success of telephone communication

19. Telephone Dialog Skills • Support agents need to learn effective ways to (dialog on p. 69): • Greet a caller • Put a call on hold • Transfer a call • Terminate a call • Role-playing scenario p. 69-70

20. Develop Incident Mgmt Strategy • Incident management strategy • Techniques, tools and strategies that support specialists use to move through an incident effectively and efficiently from initial greeting to the end of the incident

21. Goals of Incident Management • Provide user with information she or he needs • Manage stress levels for both the user and support agent • Ensure that the incident progresses from start to finish in an effective and efficient way • Make the user more self-reliant

22. Resources forIncident Mgmt • Organizational policies on incident management and expectations • Strategies covered in training programs • Observation and imitation of respected senior support agents • Personal communication style • Feedback on strengths and areas for improvement

23. Incident Mgmt Guidelines • Policy knowledge, how to use phone and software, and guidelines • Ask goal-directed diagnostic questions (keep call moving forward, based on script or experience) • Be honest (don’t cover up problems) • “I don’t know” (watch tone, refer, research) • Apologize (run around, on hold, ill suited product) • “Thank you” (caller and call important) • Incident mgmt, not user mgmt • Can advise them but not force; don’t judge • Instill self-reliance (help themselves)

24. Customer Service and Personality Types • Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) • A personality analysis tool commonly used in business and industry to identify worker personality and work style preferences

25. Four Dimensions of Personality • Where do you direct your energy? • Introvert (I) versus Extrovert (E) • Private/quite expressive/social • How do you process information? • Sensing (S) versus Intuition (N) • Direct communication create ways to process • How do you make decisions? • Thinking (T) versus Feeling (F) • Logic/analysis personal values • How do you organize your life? • Judging (J) versus Perceiving (P) • Structured/well-organized flexible/explore

26. Understanding the MBTI • Use: helps agents understand how users and coworkers view the work world and behave differently in it • Two examples of 16 possible personality types • ISTJ (Introvert, Sensing, Thinking, Judging) • ENFP (Extrovert, Intuition, Feeling, Perceiving) • Each person is a mixture of the four types • No personality type is correct or best • Most people are a mixture of pure types • Most common IT personalities: ISTJ & ESTJ

27. Strategies for DifficultCalls • Difficult call is one that requires special handling strategies because the user is angry, not communicative, rude or abusive, or exhibits other challenging attitudes • Focus on: • the specific problem • getting the needed information to the client • providing excellent customer service in a respectful manner • getting on to the next incident

28. Users Who Complain • Give ample opportunity for the user to voice complaints • May be helpful to let them vent frustration • Use empathy (p. 79 at top) • Don’t take the complaint personally • Tip: Remember that complaints can be a valuable source of feedback

29. Contacts by “Power Users” • Power user is one who is technically knowledgeable, or thinks they are, or who believes they warrant special treatment • Use inclusive language that makes the user feel like a member of the team • Use an authoritative tone • Don’t diminish their self-importance

30. Incidents That Get Off Track • Refocus the incident • Apologize for lack of prompt resolution • Summarize the basic problem information • Offer to continue to work toward a solution • Examples on p. 80

31. Users Who Are Upset or Angry • Let users vent their anger • On hold too long, talked to many people, tired of explaining the problem • Reassure user that the problem is an important one and that you are willing to help resolve it • Remember that angry users may continue to vent • How can I help resolve this to your satisfaction? • Avoid defensiveness • Follow up to build trust

32. Users Who Are Abusive • Abusive user is one who is rude, uses inappropriate language, or makes personal attacks on a support agent • Goal: • Abusive  angry  successful call • Follow the support organization’s policies and procedures for this type of incident • Terminate or ask them to use more professional language?

33. Users Who Are Reluctant to Respond • User is confused, lacks confidence, or doesn’t understand the ?’s • Use very simple language • Avoid technical jargon • Try different kinds of questions • Open-ended vs. yes/no • Give positive feedback when the user provides useful information • Suggest exchanging information in a different mode (e-mail, chat session, face to face)

34. Users Who Won’t Stop Responding • Use behavior that indicates the call is over • Summarize the incident and describe the conclusion • Thank the user for calling • Express your belief that the problem is solved • Use short answers that don’t provide a lead-in to additional conversation or communication

35. Client-Friendly Web Sites and Web 2.0 • First generation (Web 1.0) • Primarily one-way communication with users • Cost-effective method of communication with users • Second generation (Web 2.0) • Promotes collaboration among users • Emphasizes social aspects of Web • MySpace & Facebook

36. Web Site Tools • User forum: organized discussions • Community members Dell web site • Blog: message posts • Make posts and community comments on posts • FAQ: Frequently Asked Questions • Knowledge base: information archive • Someone else has probably already experienced your problem • Web sites: should be easy to use and exhibit customer service (reflection of business)

37. Purposes of Support Web Sites • Provide product information • Take sales orders • Access technical support • Provide software updates and downloads • Facilitate communication with end users • Encourage communication and collaboration among users • Provide user forums and blogs as comm. media • Provide links to related sites

38. Accurate Up-to-date Well-organized Avoids information overload Avoids graphics that download slowly Organized by clients needs Uses small units of information Effective navigation aids Correct spelling Correct grammar Criteria forEval. a Support Web Site • Content • Organization • Format • Mechanics Let users know it exists – search engine, bus. cards

39. Comprehensive Client Service • Excellent customer service is based on specific values, attitudes, and actions • Clients are the primary reason for the support organization’s existence – keep them informed • Willingness to take extra measures to satisfy clients • Ability to provide client satisfaction depends on adequate support resources (staffing, equipment, budget) follow up surveys • Excellent client service skills apply to telephone, face-to-face, and written communications orientations! • Most important chapter in book • Have to be more than just knowledgeable

40. Chapter Summary • Communication and interpersonal skills are the foundations of excellent customer service • Listen carefully to a user’s problem description, language and tone • Build understanding by restating a problem and through empathy with a user • Respond effectively with a greeting, use of scripts and an appropriate tone and style • Nonverbal communication such as posture, facial expression, eye contact, gestures, and voice quality affect communication results

41. Chapter Summary • Develop a personal incident management strategy • Practice to develop a personal communication style • Learn to use telephone dialog skills effectively • Develop a personal incident management strategy • Basic personality types (the MBTI) can help explain differences in communication, learning, and work styles among users and coworkers • Difficult incidents and users require special skills and strategies

42. Chapter Summary • A support Web site is cost-effective, but its design should be client-friendly • All forms of communication with users benefit from a comprehensive approach to customer service