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What makes higher
performance customer service? There are three elements:
a) Being
happy and willing to serve
b) Being
fully ‘present’ with the customer and not being preoccupied with problems
at home or work, which can result in ‘bad’ moods
c) Using
appropriate words, behaviour and actions
Being happy and
willing to serve; and being full 'present' are the two most important
elements in achieving higher performance customer service.
Using appropriate
words, behaviour and actions is not enough for higher
performance customer service, because 60 percent of all communication is
received from facial expressions, tone of voice, gestures and body
language. This non-verbal form of communication
overrides communication by words when the words and the non-verbal
communication do not match.
For example, when we
are using an appropriate greeting and behaviour like ‘good morning’
(without real enthusiasm) and a smile (which is ‘put on’ or ‘false’):
customers can tell. Customers do not feel welcome and know that we are not
interested in serving them; and turn away. When we are 100
percent congruent, customers know and feel that we are happy and willing
to serve from both our words, tone of voice, facial expressions and
body language; and they automatically respond positively.
So communication must
be 100 percent congruent or ‘authentic’ to be effective that is: what we
are saying must match what we are communicating non-verbally. How can we
do this?
By transforming or
changing from within.
Sometimes we are
willing and happy to serve, but are plagued by ‘bad moods’ (because
of problems at home or at work) so we are unable to be fully present and
attentive to the customers’ needs and wants.
Can 'bad' moods be
changed instantaneously into 'good' moods?
Yes, they can: By
transforming or changing from within.
Participants experience these changes in our 2-day course, in two ways:
1)
‘Centreing’ or ‘speaking from the heart’. We all have this natural ability
to be ‘centred’. When we do, we are connected with our powerful ‘real’
selves that allow us to think, feel and act in self-empowering ways.
What does
‘centering’ or ‘speaking from the heart’ do?
It immediately establishes rapport or connection with customers.
For
example: smiling a ‘genuine’ smile. A genuine smile should lift customers’
spirits even without the necessity for words. It enables us to take
control of the communication situation by establishing an immediate
connection or rapport with customers. Customers’ attention is
automatically captured and they are willing to listen and are triggered to
return with a ‘genuine’ smile of their own. The stage is now set for 100
percent congruent communication to take place on both sides. We and our
customers will then come up with appropriate words, behaviour and
actions to match the congruency they feel within.
Hostile
or angry customers can be easily ‘calmed’. When we remain ‘centred’
when dealing with unhappy customers, they are automatically triggered to
return to their natural, ‘centred’ positions and communicate from this
position.
2)
Changing ‘bad moods’ into ‘good’ moods instantaneously with ‘centreing’;
and empowering concepts, principles and tools from Emotional
Intelligence, NLP and other sources.
At the end of the course, participants will know how to 100 percent
connect and communicate with customers at all times.
Please register early as the class has
been restricted to 12 participants,
so as to give participants ample time to master the skills learnt. |
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Merle Celine Magness holds a BA (Distinction) from the
University of South Australia in Communication and Media Management and
has been trained as a trainer in The Singapore Institute of Management’s
Course Leader’s Course. 