Customer Service - gone mad!

Introduction

Blogging is a relatively new phenomenon which has only been around for about 10 years.  Finally in response to requests from client companies and delegates I am going to use this blog as a medium to keep in touch with both on current development issues and points of view.

I also intend to use this blog as part of my own personal development and CPD.  

Anyone who has met me will know that before starting this blog I will have read around the history, background and what makes a good blog.

It was a very strange sensation sitting in front of an empty screen ready to make a start.  An experience that anyone about to start an assignment will recognise.

So, off I blog....

Customer Service gone mad!

This week on my way to a training venue, I stopped off at a pizza restaurant to eat.  I was a bit surprised when the woman welcoming me started the conversation with ‘How can I help you?’  The obvious response would be ‘A table for one’, but because of the question I was sorely tempted to ask if she could arrange to service my car; if she was able to recommend a dog suitable for an asthmatic or what the best route would be to my destination; there were so many things I would find helpful.

This approach to customer service drives me mad.  Yes we want an organisation’s approach to customer service to be consistent, helpful and welcoming, but surely what we really want as customers is to be treated in a manner which is genuine and meaningful.

Phrasing should be appropriate and comfortable for the person who has to say it.  When the corporate way of answering the phone takes over from common sense you not only get “Good afternoon, Siemens Reading, Tracy here how can I help you, but you also get: "Good afternoon, Siemens Staines....”.  However surely this is only marginally worse than: "Good Morning, welcome to Aardvark Engineering, Tracy speaking, how may I direct your call?”.

Good afternoon must come first, while we take time to ‘tune in’ to the person speaking, then the name of the company.  Before we get passed on, and before the end of the call, we need to know ‘my name is Tracy, so if you need to contact us again, just ask for me’.

If I hear ‘no problem’ once more I will scream.  ‘That’s fine’ would give me so much more confidence.  As soon as I hear:”No problem”, it makes think there might have been a problem.

Make me feel, happy, make me feel I matter and be yourself!

So if you phone me, I sincerely hope what you will hear is: “Good Morning, Development Matters”, and I’ll do the rest.