Help Desk Soft Skills
By Ali Elganainy
Customer Service
Communication Skills
Troubleshooting Skills
Phone Etiquette
Agenda
1. Communication Skills
““We have two ears and one mouth, so we should listen more than we say.”
Zeno of Citium
Active listening
> What is Listening??
> How is it different from Hearing??
Levels of listening
Level 8Level 7
Level 6Level 5
Level 4
Level 3
Level 2
Level 1
Facilitative listeningempathic listening
active listeningattentive listening
misunderstood listening
biased listening
pretend listening
passive listening
Keys to Good Listening
Limit your talking
Can’t talk and listen at the same time
Concentrate
Focus on the conversation. Practice shutting out outside distractions and personal concerns
Don’t Interrupt
A pause doesn’t always mean the individual is finished speaking
Listen for ideas….not just words
Get the whole picture, not isolated bits and pieces
Take Notes
Helps you remember important points
Interjections
An occasional, “Yes,” “I see,” etc. shows that your listening. However, don’t overuse them
Listening Do’s and Don'ts
Don’ts
• Listen to respond
• Allow dead air while listening
• Be distracted by external noise
• Rely on memory
• Be emotional or defensive
Do’s
• Listen to understand
• Use verbal nods and acknowledgements
• Concentrate on the message
• Take notes
• Be open to feedback
Communicating
> What communicating is??
> How could we effectively communicate??
Types of Communication :
Vocal Communication =
• Verbal: Spoken word, interviews, meetings
• Non-verbal: o Visual: Body Language, symbols, gestures, posture, facial expressions o Written: e-mails, memos, letters
• Pitch• Inflection• Clarity• Tone• Use of Words• Rate• Enunciation
Conversation Cycle
inform
invite
listen
acknowledge
conversation
The Communication Process
channel
message
feedback
Hello, how are you?
Sender I’m fine and you?
Receiver
Face to Face communication equation:
Facial ex-pression and
body lan-guage50%Tone of voice
40%
words or content 10%
Phone communication equation :
Tone of voice82%
words or con-tent 18%
communicationTH
E 8 ELEMEN
TS OF EFFECTIVE CO
MM
UN
ICATION
BARRIERS TO
COM
MU
NICATIO
N
• Idea• Person• Intention• Attention• Duplication• Understanding• Acknowledgeme
nt• Space
• Attitude• Poor listening• Lack of interest• Assumption• Jargon• Cross-cultural
differences• Emotional
responses• Physical
distractions• Pace
Acknowledge
-The customer’s presence-The customer’s responses
Appreciate
-The customer’s time-The customer’s patience-The customer’s business
Assure
-Take responsibility-Project a ‘can do’ attitude
Building Rapport
Appropriate responses:
I understand your concern…
I can appreciate…
I know it can be…
I’m sorry you had to …
That sounds wonderful…
Congratulations…
That’s great…
Empathy
communication
NOW LET’S PLAY A GAME
2. Customer Service
““Literally everything we do, every concept perceived, every technology developed and associate employed, is directed with this one objective clearly in mind – pleasing the customer.” Sam Walton, Owner & CEO, Wal-Mart
Customer Service
> What is the Customer Service ??
> How could we deliver an World Class Customer service to our clients ??
Who are Customers?
Customers could be Internal (your colleagues or your heads)
- OR -
external ( people we support)
However,
Customers are people who need your assistance. They are not an interruption to your job, they are the reason you have a job..
What is Customer Service?
Identifying and Understanding Customer Needs
> Meeting and exceeding these needs, consistently.
> Not just gaining but retaining customers.
> Working actively to improve products and services.
Customer Service
- Good customer service = Lasting relationships.
- Average customer service = Steady relationships.
- Poor customer service = Lost business.
Why do customers leave companies?
Death
Leav
ing th
e cou
ntry
Friend
s Adv
ice
Go to C
ompe
titor
Disatis
factio
n From
Serv
ice
Disatis
factio
n From
Staf
f0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%
1% 3% 6% 9% 13%
68%
What does the Customer Desire?
>Friendliness >Empathy
>Fairness
>Participation >Alternatives >Information
Know your customers.
Know your product or service
Commit to quality service
Don’t get personal, even if Customers do.
Be prepared for rejection – just apologize for bothering them and graciously get off the phone.
If you need help – get a supervisor.
Your Greeting and ending message ,,, make it professional and great.
Rules for Great Customer Service
Rules for Great Customer Service
Treat people with courtesy and respect.
Never argue with a customer.
Don't leave customers hanging:
Always provide what you promise.
Assume that customers are telling the truth.
Focus on making customers, not making sales
Make it easy to buy.
Rules for Great Customer Service
Doing ordinary things in extraordinary way.
Going beyond what’s expected.
Adding value and integrity to every interaction.
Being at your best with every customer.
Discovering new ways to delight those you serve.
Surprising yourself with how much you can do.
Delighting a Customer
Instead of:Say:مسموحلي / مش أل
اختصاصي مش ده او شغلي مش ده
معرفش
اهدي
غلطتي مش دي
كده تعمل الزم انت
مشكلتك / شكوتك
اني لحضرتك اعمله هقدر ..... اللي
لحضرتك هتأكد
هيقدر/ اللي القسم الشخصهو حضرتك وهحول…. يساعد
طريق ..... عن حضرتكلمساعدتك هنا وانا لحضرتك جدا بعتذر
نعمله نقدر اللي ايه نشوف اذنك بعد خلينا
كده نعمل ممكن
بحضرتك / الخاص االستفسار الموضوع
NOW LET’S PLAY A GAME
3. Phone Etiquette
““To be of good quality, you have to excuse yourself from the presence of shallow and callow minded individuals.”
Michael Bassey Johnson
Phone Etiquette
> Is business phone etiquette important??
> How could we deliver an impressive Image via phone ??
Mental P.I.C.T.U.R.E.
PICTURE
itchnflectionlarityonenderstandingatenunciation
Mental P.I.C.T.U.R.E.
Pitch :High or low?, Low carries better and is also more pleasant
Mental P.I.C.T.U.R.E.
Inflection: Use voice to express ideas or moods Don’t talk in a monotone
The voice naturally rises on a questions or inquiry Voices fall at a “period,” decision or completion
Mental P.I.C.T.U.R.E.
Clarity :Common,
everyday applies the same as face-to-face conversation
Mental P.I.C.T.U.R.E.
Tone : Many times it is not what you say, but how you say
it. Voice should reflect sincerity, pleasantness,
confidence, and interest
Mental P.I.C.T.U.R.E.
Understanding :Avoid talking with anything in your mouth (gum, pencil)
Mental P.I.C.T.U.R.E.
Rate : Rate of speech should be adapted to personality of
contact. “Fast talkers” can arouse suspicion. “Slow talkers” can be irritating.
Enunciation : Clear enunciation will help avoid misunderstanding
and need to repeat yourself
Mental P.I.C.T.U.R.E.
Greeting
Try to answer the phone on the SECOND ring
Answer with a friendly greeting
Keep your voice clear.
Our greeting “ مساء/صباح الخير )اسمك( مع حضرتك ” .
Smile - it shows, even through the phone.
Ask the caller their name, even if their name is not
necessary for the call, and use it!
Keep the phone two-finger widths from your mouth.
Hold Protocol
Explain why
Ask for permission
Say how long it will take
Put the caller on hold
Apologize for the delay
Thank the caller
Ending
Try to answer the phone on the SECOND ring
Keep your voice clear.
Our ending “ شكرا التصالك ب” .
Smile - it shows, even through the phone.
Repeat CST name at least twice before ending
Keep the phone two-finger widths from your mouth.
NOW LET’S MAKE A
ROLEPLAY
4. Troubleshooting Skills
““Effective troubleshooting is a multifaceted exercise in diagnosis and deliberation, analysis and action.” Stephanie Krieger, SR. Program Manager, Microsoft
Troubleshooting
> What is the Troubleshooting means?
> How we should effectively Troubleshooting ?
What is T.S. ?
Troubleshooting is a form of problem solving, often applied to repair failed products or processes. It is a logical, systematic search for the source of a problem in order to solve it, and make the product or process operational again
If you don’t know why a fix works, it probably doesn’t. It may appear to work by coincidence, but a workaround is not a fix.
If the fix doesn’t work consistently, it most likely doesn’t work at all.
Whether you’re working with software or hardware, computer technology is rooted in logic. If a fix seems unruly or overcomplicated, like the challenges in reality TV shows, there’s probably a better way. In this case, there’s a simple, consistent solution. You just have to change one setting in a dialog box (you’ll find the details of this particular fix at the end of this article).
Troubleshooting
The troubleshooter was not an expert in that particular application, so she started from what she knows—networking. Based on the fact that the user could log in to other applications and was working remotely, the troubleshooter hypothesized there had to be something about his connection that was a problem for this particular application. She researched the system requirements for the application and then connected remotely to his computer
Ask
Through a series of basic questions, the troubleshooter determined the user works remotely. However, the user is able to access both internal and external sites, as well as other internal applications. Everything appeared to be working normally, and the user had never had connectivity issues before
Narrow
Verify
When connected remotely, the troubleshooter saw a network setting she believed might be causing the issue. She changed the setting and the user was able to log in, but she didn’t leave it there. The troubleshooter had the user verify other connectivity and found that the change prevented him from accessing certain Web sites. She tried a different change to the same setting that let the user log in without disrupting other connections
Troubleshooting
Your success or failure lies in what you choose to eliminate, and more importantly, why. It’s a game of Pick Up Sticks where you evaluate, reason, then remove any obstacles that get you closer to resolving the problem without breaking anything else. How you make those choices depends entirely on the questions you ask and how you interpret the answers.
Troubleshooting is a process of elimination
thanks!Any questions?
?