1 Customer Service II PG Diploma in Hospitality Management Customer Service and Quality Systems – Session 2

2 Objectives Understand importance of good customer service Use good listening and questioning techniques Follow standards of good practice when using the telephone Understand the principles of handling customer complaints Design a training course on “Handling Customer Complaints”

3 Review Questions Why is Customer Service important? What is meant by an internal customer and why is this idea important? What expectations does the customer/guest have of the organisation? What expectations do employees have of their working environment? What expectations does the employer have of the employee? Why is it important to project a professional image? What should you do to project a professional image?

4 Life-time value of a customer = Estimated Annual sales x Potential no. of years as customer Mrs. Brown spends an average of £100 a week, which is £5,200 a year Let us assume she uses our establishment for ten years Life-time value of this customer = £5,200 x 10 = £52,000 Life Time Value of a Customer

5 Ripple Effects That’s not all, the ripple effect says that an upset customer tells, on average 11 other people, who in return will tell 5 more people maybe even more, so the actual loss could be: No of people likely to hear of the loss: (11*5) = 67 Loss of business from each : £5200 p. a. Total loss in a year = 67 x 5200 = £348,400 p.a. This could lower the sales figures, which in turn could mean job cuts!!!

6 Face-to Face Communication What can you do to ensure that you are effective at face-to-face communication?

7 Communicating When communicating we want to:- Be listened to Be understood Have our ideas accepted Have some action taken as a result Have a follow-up check to make sure that the action did take place to the receiver’s satisfaction

8 Effective Communications Increases quality of service Saves time Improves customer care Avoids misunderstandings Builds good relationships Creates a positive atmosphere Encourages open discussion Allows for achievement of goals

9 Ineffective Communications Hampers relationships Wastes time Affects customers and colleagues Destroys morale Creates a negative atmosphere Builds a negative reputation Hampers achievement of goals

10 Four Messages What you mean to say What you actually say What the other person hears What the other person thinks they heard

11 Listening Chinese whispers Why do people find it difficult to listen? Do not understand Think we hear things that are not said Make things up Tiredness

12 Good Listening Look at people Turn off negative thoughts Lean towards people Start with the first word Don’t jump ahead Do not interrupt Nod Ask Questions Stick to the subject Use their name and use “you” Ask closed questions to check understanding

13 Questioning Technique Open Questions Who - What - Why - Where - How – When Used to find out what the guest is thinking Give examples of open questions Closed Questions Do you?, Are you?, Is it?, Have you? To summarise and check back the facts Give examples of closed questions

14 Questioning Exercise Working in pairs, you are to write a play script for a customer service problem. One student should adopt the point-of-view of a guest who has the problem of a minor annoyance that he was not intending to complain about. The other student should use open-ended questions and closed questions to find out about the problem and to begin the process of resolving it.

15 Using the Telephone What do you use the telephone for? What standards should be applied when: –Answering the phone? –Taking messages? –Transferring a call?

16 Why use the Phone? To assist in providing customer care To take bookings To make arrangements For information gathering Looking for customers Solving customer problems

17 Telephone Answering  Smile … as you answer the phone Aim to answer within 4 rings Offer a greeting - as appropriate Avoid asking people to hold Say “Company / Department / Your Name” Offer help e.g. “How may I help you?” If you do not answer within 4 rings say to the caller “Thank you for waiting”

18 Handling the Call When you have found out the caller’s name, use it Deal with the specific enquiry Ask if any other assistance is required Say ‘Thank you’ and ‘Goodbye’ Let the caller put the phone down first in caser they wish to ask anything else

19 Transferring the Call Explain to the caller why the call is being transferred and to whom you are transferring Explain to the person you are transferring to, the caller’s name, and what the call is about - be factual but not emotional Use the caller’s name

20 Transferring cont. Transferring: If no-one answers offer to: – Transfer to another person / department – Attempt to deal with it yourself (if appropriate) – Put the call back to switchboard / Take a message Take ownership

21 l When taking a message take all the details and repeat the message and any information back to the caller : – Name – Telephone Number (including STD Code and extension as appropriate) – Brief message – Name of the person / section the message is for – Time and date of the call Take personal responsibility to make sure messages are passed on quickly to the correct person / section Telephone Messages

22 Always respond to any messages from a caller – whoever they are – remember you are projecting the image of the company When you receive messages, do not wait for callers to call you – you will be less in control of the situation if they ring you back first Get as much information as possible about the situation before you call people back – create a professional image Acting on Messages

23 Customer Complaints For each customer who complains, how many are dissatisfied but do not tell you?

24 Handling Complaints What are they? An opportunity to: make things right turn dissatisfied customers into delighted customers show you care turn complainers into ambassadors

25 Calming Customers Listening Actively show you are listening Empathy Show that you do care and are concerned Agreeing on Common Ground Find something to agree with

26 Your LAST Chance L isten A pologise S olve T hank – Make the most of your LAST chance!

27 Designing a Training Course Define your delegate profile Identify your learning objectives Decide how to enable your delegates to learn these points using different activities eg. Listening to the instructor, class discussion, group discussion, reporting back to the whole group, role play

28 The Lesson Plan Introduction Activities Conclusion

29 Exercise You are a junior manager in a top quality hotel. You have been asked, at short notice, to give a short training course to new recruits inexperienced in the industry, on the subject of “Handling Customer Complaints” Design a lesson plan for your training session