Battling with Customer Service: How to Win the War, Part 1 of 2
#1: Understand your customer service goals.
#2: Trust your instincts.
#3: Donate to charity.
***Part 2 of this blog is coming soon***
The most important thing you can do when dealing with a difficult situation is to understand what you’re trying to achieve and why it’s so important for the customer service agent both on the receiving end and on their end to grasp that as well. Successful companies are able to speak in terms that customers can easily relate with, describing how they feel in an empathetic way instead of a corporate manner. For instance, Southwest Airlines describes their goal as "connecting people," whereas United Airlines focuses on "uniting people.” Both of these statements can be boiled down to the same thing: flying you from point A to point B, but which one is more relatable? Which one makes you feel more like a person and less like a number – the kind of person Southwest Airlines wants to connect with?
The airline industry is notorious for terrible customer service. According to Melanie Shreffler, writing for Forbes , “airlines employ the most difficult-to-please workers in the country”. On top of that, as Shreffler points out, “most don’t have a college education and many are temps working at call centers lacking any semblance of job security or respect.” A common complaint has always been that agents don’t know their customers, and the policies of airlines reflect this. For example, United Airlines will deny boarding to a passenger if they fly with a pet. Other carriers are much less stringent.
The problem is not with the customer service agents themselves but instead with wanting to connect in such a way that they can make a change while still completely within their realm of control. It comes down to an understanding of how important it is for both agents and customers alike to have empathy for each other – and how important it is for there to be respect from both sides when a situation arises where either driver or passenger can't be pleased.
And more than that, it is about the issue of respect. Remember this phrase: "I know you are but what am I?" It's a familiar saying to anyone who has ever dealt with an angry customer service representative at one of the big three internet companies that provide phone services: AT&T, Sprint, or Verizon. These companies, as well as others like them, have become so large that they have built entire systems around the policies of their customer service representatives to attain any level of control they can. They have long since divorced their customers from any connection or respect that they might have had for them previously. The whole system has now become built upon a foundation of indifference – and to many, completely inhuman.
The issue here is that when you are on the receiving end, everything you’re hearing from the phone representative from AT&T is completely alien to you. You now have no idea how to respond or what their motivation was when they were on the line with you. And without understanding the motivation, you can’t understand why they did what they did.
On the other side, a customer service representative at a large telecommunications company has very little connection to you. It is no longer enough for them to just do their job and get through it as quickly as possible so that they can go back to whatever it was they were doing before – in most cases, working extremely long hours with very little respect from their employers. For many of these workers, the phrase “not my problem” has become their mantra. This problem is only going to be further exacerbated by the fact that these companies are becoming increasingly resistant to change or new ideas when it comes to customer service policies.
On top of that, a customer service representative is only armed with whatever training they have received in regards to their policies. In this case, training that is designed to make them appear insincere, uncaring and hostile. The problem here is that customer service representatives don’t actually hate you – they hate their jobs, and very often hated their lives well before customer service became their main source of income.
There are three important points to keep in mind for anyone dealing with a negative customer service experience:
Give the customer service representative the benefit of the doubt when talking about why they did what they did (and plenty of grace if you aren’t satisfied). Try to comprehend their position and the situation they are in (if it's a big company, try to talk to a supervisor before taking it to the next level). Try not to act like you’re better than them – even if you are.
If you are looking for a way out of this situation, then understand that some customer service representatives will only be satisfied by going over their heads. If your goal is simply the best possible outcome for everyone involved (including the customer service representative), then try offering something that might make both parties feel better: a donation or contribution to a charity of their choice. Sometimes this can work wonders – especially if dealing with a large corporation. Asking for a refund on an item you bought and never received is likely to be met with resistance. However, it’s unlikely that the person you spoke with – even if they are incredibly miserable – will want their name associated with something so unrelated to their job.
If you don’t like the company you are working for, then try to find another one where both yourself and your customer service representative feel better about what they are doing. This may be easier said than done when working in a highly competitive industry, but being disappointed can make anyone leave the industry of their own accord (this is especially true for those who love their jobs).
Change your perspective. If you feel like a customer service representative is being short with you, then try to think about what they are dealing with on their end – even if it is just an automated phone that doesn’t allow them to say anything beyond a greeting or time spent on hold. Sometimes they have no other option but to be short.
The Customer Service Rules
So, what are the actual rules we can follow to make the customer service process function more smoothly? The good news is that it is actually much simpler than you might think. In fact, it almost seems cliché to say it: "the customer's always right." But if you think about it for a moment, there is actually a lot of truth in that phrase.
Conclusion: We are all in the same boat and want to come out of this with a win-win situation. But, in order for that to happen, we need to be kind, respectful, and honest.
Conclusion: If you don’t like your current job, or are having some issues at work, then consider making an exit or switching companies if possible.
It’s a bit of a reality check for some people when they realize just how easy it is to get a bad reputation. The key is to remember that you don’t feel better after speaking with someone who has been rude or hostile towards you – and neither does anyone else on the other end of that level of hostility.