Conrey is for Closers

Not so long ago I wrote a post about some phone customer service issues here. After a brutal experience trying to register a new router for the Integrum offices here’s some more tips for those who don’t get it. Please share these liberally with any of your people who answer phones:

• NEVER tell the customer who dials in through your phone tree that they’ve reached the wrong department and you can’t help them.   If you can’t help them help them get to the person who can – directly, not through the phone tree again.
• NEVER tell them that they have to hang up and call a different number or go through the phone tree again.  If they could figure out the phone tree, they wouldn’t be talking to you.
• LISTEN to the client – I know this seems like common sense, but stop asking questions and listen for a minute
• ANSWER the questions the client is asking – If someone asks you how to register a product, don’t ask them what their internet provider is – it doesn’t matter.
• BE HONEST when you are truly unable to help them in anyway.   Don’t blame them for having a problem you can’t solve, but try to leave them on a good note.

Its really not hard to provide good customer service on the phone, but it is very easy to do it wrong.   As soon as you start treating your phone calls as though they made and lost you money, you’ll start realizing that they really are making and costing you money.