7/27/2019 Customer Service Excelence
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Raising the Bar in
Customer Service
Travel Guard
7/27/2019 Customer Service Excelence
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Focus Skills Listen attentively to the caller to ensure
understanding of the request Re-state the caller’s question in order to clarify
before offering solutions
Explain reasons for asking informational
questions Set up follow up calls on cases effectively
Interrupt conversation (when appropriate) atkey points effectively to retain control of call
Control the call through to an effective “close” Avoid asking irrelevant questions or for
unnecessary information
Utilize a systematic approach to problemsolving
7/27/2019 Customer Service Excelence
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What is Quality Customer
Service?
7/27/2019 Customer Service Excelence
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What Callers Expect from Us
Caller should always feel as though they havecalled the right place - even if they didn’t
Caller should feel as though we are happy toassist them
Caller should feel like we know exactly how tohandle their situation, even if we don’t know
Caller should feel like their call/case is the onlycase we are working on
Caller should feel like they received clearanswers to their questions or clear direction
Caller should feel that we care about their
situation and want to help them find a solution!
7/27/2019 Customer Service Excelence
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Key Elements of Quality
Customer Assistance Service
Speed of Response
Understanding of the Problem
Bridging StatementsConcise Explanations
Accuracy
Professionalism
Resolution
ProblemResolutio
n
Professionalism
Accuracy
Identif
y
Proble
m
Bridging
Statement
s
Speed of
Response
7/27/2019 Customer Service Excelence
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/customer-service-excelence 6/23
Key Customer Service Skills
Mastering Voice
Inflection
Addressing the
Caller
Effective Listening
Identifying Client
Needs Asking Questions
Managing Different
Caller Behaviors
Delivering Bad
News
Managing Caller
Perceptions
Closing theConversation
7/27/2019 Customer Service Excelence
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Using Your Best Voice
Energy: The energy in your voice reflectsyour attitude and enthusiasm
Clarity of Speech: Enunciate clearly
Rate of Speech: A normal rate is 125 wordsper minute. Speaking faster can createproblems – slow down
Pitch: This can be a low, medium or a high
pitch. Ideally you should vary your tone andinflection
Quality: The above factors make up yourvoice quality
7/27/2019 Customer Service Excelence
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Voice Self-Assessment
Desirable Traits: My
Voice…
Is Pleasant-Sounding
Has Pitch Variations
Has a Normal Rate
Varies in Volume
Has Distinct Articulation
Sounds Like I am Smiling
Has Ample Force
Stresses Proper Accents
Undesirable Traits: MyVoice… Is Nasal Sounding
Sounds Throaty
Is Raspy Sometimes Squeaks
Is Monotone
Is Too Soft
Is Too Loud
Has Too Many Pauses
Does Not Convey aSmile
7/27/2019 Customer Service Excelence
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6 Cardinal Rules of Customer
Service
Avoid Using Company Jargon, slang.
Be Friendly Before You Know Who It Is.
People before paperwork! “Please… Thank you… You’re
Welcome”
Control the Conversation withoutRushing the Caller.
Don’t be too busy to be nice!
7/27/2019 Customer Service Excelence
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5 Forbidden Phrases
“I don’t know.”
“Let me check into this and find out for you.”
“Just a second.”
“It may take me a few minutes to get that information. Are
you able to hold while I check on that?”
“No” at the start of a sentence.
Eliminate it at the start of a sentence.
“We can’t do that.”
“Let me see what we can do.” “You’ll have to …”
“What you will need to do is …”
7/27/2019 Customer Service Excelence
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Statements That Give the
Wrong Impression
“I’m sorry, but John is still at lunch.”
“I can’t find your policy in our system.”
“I’m not sure why you are calling us. You need to callthe claims office.”
“I think she is still on a break. I’ll have her call you.”
“She is in the middle of a big customer problem.Would you like to leave a message?”
“He is at the doctor’s office.”
“She went home early.”
“I’m sorry, but Gene hasn’t come to work yet.”
“Our claims department takes forever to answer thephone.”
7/27/2019 Customer Service Excelence
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Managing Customer
Perceptions “I’m sorry I didn’t call you back. My supervisor had us in
another meeting that lasted all morning.”
“I hope this will solve your problem.”
“I don’t understand why … department didn’t help you?”
“Claims has had a lot of problems lately. I’ll just call overthere and get this straightened out for you.”
“Cathy is in a meeting (or on the phone). Why don’t youcall back later, maybe in an hour?”
“I’m sorry it took so long. Now what was it that you
wanted?” “I’m sorry you were on hold so long. We have a problem
with our telephone system and I didn’t even know youwere on hold.”
“We are short staffed today and I have 24 cases tohandle.”
7/27/2019 Customer Service Excelence
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Controlling the Conversation
Identify the problem quickly – Use probingquestions and problem solving skills
If caller is rambling, wait for a pause, theninterrupt politely and ask for specific question
Move to the actions being taken throughbridging statements
Give concise and clear response to caller’squestions or needs
Recap action plan as needed for clarity
Close the call – Control conversation to the endof the call
7/27/2019 Customer Service Excelence
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Causes of extended hold/talk time
Asking for unnecessary information Caller or the TAC is chatty
TAC does not know information or procedures requiredand needs to look it up while caller is on hold
TAC provides more information than requested inresponding to the client (raising further questions orconfusing caller)
TAC is unsure of the correct response and doesn’t giveconcise answers, prompting caller to ask further
questions Not identifying the core issue/question and spending
time answering something unnecessarily
Not in control of the conversation & allowing for periodsof silence & long pauses
7/27/2019 Customer Service Excelence
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7 Steps to an Effective Call Use Proper Greeting w/helpful tone
Listen actively until you hear the core issue
Re-state to clarify what you believe to be the coreissue. If problem not identified, ask probing questions(who, what, where, when..)
Use Bridging Statements Empathetic phrase to express understanding
Action statement “Here is what I can do for you.”
Identify Solution, Explain Instructions Etc.
Review Action Items to ensure Understanding Close Call - use statements such as:
“Is there anything else I can do for you?”
“Do you have any further questions?”
“When would be the best time for us to call you back?”
and….“Thank you for calling.”
7/27/2019 Customer Service Excelence
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Steps to Effective Listening
Identify the Core Issue or Need
Ask Open-ended Questions to Learn
Caller’s Needs & Perceptions
Reflect Back to Caller in Your Own Words
What You Believe to Be the Problem
(Repeat Until Clearly Understood) before
moving forward with an answer or asolution.
7/27/2019 Customer Service Excelence
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Effective Listening
Use “Bridging Statements” Between theProblem and the Solution
Show Empathy for Their Situation
Express Willingness to Help Find aSolution – “What I am going to do is …” or,“I will be glad to…” or, “I can call ourclaims, travel dept. etc. to find out…”
Replace the word “but” with the word“and”…
7/27/2019 Customer Service Excelence
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Closing the Call
Control the call up to the point that you hang upthe phone
Review actions to be taken with the caller,including timelines to ensure understanding
Ask if there is anything else you can do for thecaller
Thank them for calling or thank them for theirtime (outbound call)
Don’t wait in silence until the caller says theyhave no other questions – stay in control of thecall
Avoid the “dangling ok” at the end of the call
7/27/2019 Customer Service Excelence
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/customer-service-excelence 19/23
Dealing with Difficult Callers
When and how to say “No” effectively whenthe client insists on arrangements, which arenot medically necessary, such as an upgradeduring an evacuation
Client is demanding something not coveredunder the policy
Caller demands information immediately,where TAC needs time to locate the details
and call client back Caller does not agree with the evacuation
arrangements, such as need for escort etc.
7/27/2019 Customer Service Excelence
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/customer-service-excelence 20/23
Identifying the Policy/
Open a Case First - listen and acknowledge client’s
situation/problem, using appropriate empathystatement and reassuring tone of voice. Client shouldfeel that he/she has reached someone, who will find
a solution to their problem. Explain that you service many different policies and
want to ensure that you are providing correctinformation related to their policy.
Explain that you are now going to open a case andwill need to ask them several questions to help useffectively manage their case.
7/27/2019 Customer Service Excelence
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Placing the Caller on Hold
Always ask if the caller would mind if you place themon hold.
Always explain what you are going to do while theyare on hold.
Never leave them on hold longer than 1 minutewithout thanking them for their patience and askingthem if they would mind holding for a moment longer.
Avoid being too casual, - “Hold on a second.” or“Hold please.”
Better to say, “May I put you on hold for a momentwhile I access your policy information or case file?”
Thank the caller for holding and state that you havefound the needed information.
7/27/2019 Customer Service Excelence
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Effective “Hold” Techniques
Caller: “I need to find out if my policy willcover me, in the event I have to canceldue to illness in the family.”
TAC: “I will be be glad to help you. MayI put you on hold while I access yourpolicy information? Thank you.”
After returning to the call: “Thank youfor holding.”
7/27/2019 Customer Service Excelence
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Elements of an Effective
Assistance Call
Was the greeting clear andup-beat and your tone ofvoice helpful?
Did you quickly identify thecore problem & verify
understanding? Did you use appropriate
bridging statements to driveto a solution?
Did you provide concise &
complete responses &explanations?
If call was not regarding acase assigned to you, didyou offer to help?
When asking multiplequestions, did you explainwhy you are asking?
Did you use proper “hold”techniques?
Did you set up clear/concisefollow up arrangements andexpectations?
Did you close the calleffectively by thanking callerfor calling and asking if theyyou help with anything else?
Did you control the call to theend?