Welcome to: Telephone Courtesy & Customer Service © NETg, Telephone Courtesy & Customer Service, Third Edition

Learning Objectives Recognize the importance of providing high quality customer service Practice proper telephone techniques Improve listening and questioning skills to clarify customer needs Establish action plans to improve telephone skills and customer service S1

Agenda Introduction 20 minutes Module 1: Quality Customer Service Module 2: Proper Telephone Skills 175 minutes Module 3: Understanding Customer Needs 35 minutes Module 4: Managing the Customer’s Perception Conclusion 10 minutes S2

Starting Well Handling the Telephone Mastering Voice Inflection Using Your Best Voice Addressing the Caller Answering the Telephone Practicing Effective Listening S3

Working Through the Call Managing Objections Learning the Art of Negotiation Making the Service Follow-up Call Asking Questions Making the Outbound Service Call Delivering Bad News S4

Putting It All Together Managing Different Caller Behaviors Managing Telephone Messages Managing the Customer Callback Avoiding Statements That Give the Wrong Impression Managing Technology Closing the Conversation S5

Voice Inflection Exercise Ask participants to pair up and read this sentence to each other in a normal voice: “Michael didn’t show up for work this morning.” Now say it with a: Surprised voice Casual tone Secretive voice Questioning voice S6

Voice Projection Energy Rate of speech Pitch Quality S7

Addressing the Caller The seven basic ways to address the caller: Mr. Miss First Name Ms. Sir Mrs. Ma’am S8

The Basics Use four telephone courtesies: Be enthusiastic Greet the caller State your organization or department Introduce yourself Offer your help Be enthusiastic Use friendly phrases Smile! S9

Callers Usually… Make statements Offer objections Ask questions S10

How to Improve Your Listening Listen for statements, objections, and questions. Take notes. When in doubt, ask questions. Focus on conversation. Use confirming statements. During long conversations, ask questions. S11

Kwong’s Negotiation Review pages 26-27. Complete the response on page 27. Review pages 28-29. Take turns practicing negotiating as Kwong on page 28. When you are the customer, follow the script. When you are Kwong, try to use the skills learned rather than reading Kwong’s script. S12

Making Action Plans for Outbound Calls Greet the customer. Introduce yourself. State the purpose of the call. Deliver your message in a friendly way. State any customer benefit. Ask for agreement. S13

Exercise: Managing Different Callers Prepare to share with the group: Overview of your caller type Some of the tips suggested for responding to this type of caller Your situation Your response to the questions S14

Using Voice Mail Don’t stop answering the phone. Return calls promptly. Update messages frequently. Forward calls if necessary. Read the system manual. Prioritize messages. S15

Closing the Conversation Thank the customer for calling. State appreciation for business. Assure that promises will be fulfilled. Leave the customer with a positive feeling. S16