Essentials of Customer Service

Course overview

In this course, participants learn techniques to shape the direction of customer service in an organization, including mapping, researching, acting on, and evaluating moments of truth. Course participants learn how to develop and implement a customer service strategy to achieve service excellence. Additionally, the course focuses on typical trouble spots in dealing with angry customers and guidelines for avoiding conflict. The course instructs learners in how to handle a customer complaint by defusing the tension, investigating the problem, and coming to an agreement on a solution. Furthermore, the course covers types of internal customers and how to identify internal customer relationships. Course participants learn about the importance of getting to know internal customers, identifying expectations, and acting on those expectations. The course provides guidelines for providing internal customer service excellence and learning basic etiquette tips for answering, managing, and ending client service (CS) calls. The course instructs learners how to make a good impression by listening, using questions to probe for more information, minding tone, and empathizing with the customer. Course participants learn ways of reflecting or adapting to customers' styles, as well as guidelines and techniques for each stage of an on-site client service (CS) visit: preparation, arrival, service, wrap up, and follow up. This course includes guidance on how to project service excellence by making a good impression in the field, through starting on a positive note, setting clear expectations, listening actively, and working to improve customer understanding. Lastly, the course covers improving client service (CS) by building rapport with customers, paying close attention to customer needs, connecting with the customer, and being positive. Participants also learn how to empathize with customers by relating experiences, reflecting emotions back to them, and normalizing difficulties.