Effective Customer Service - Assignment Example

Name: Tutor: Course: Date: 1. What do you already know about clarifying customer service needs accurately and using appropriate communication techniques? -From my own experience, clarifying customer service needs accurately and using appropriate communication techniques involves applying interpersonal skills effectively to identify and clarify the customer needs and expectations. It is important for the organization to develop appropriate client service procedures, products and services as well as build rapport with their customers. It is crucial for the organization to ensure professional ethics whilst communicating with its customers. There is also need to deliver services that meet the clients’ rights and uphold the relevant legislative requirements. However, organizations should be prepared to manage complex customer situations. 2. What are own experiences diagnosing problems matching service delivery to customers and developing options for improved service within organizational requirements? -The task of diagnosing problems, matching service delivery to customers as well as developing ways for improved service should be an all-inclusive effort. This means that all people in the organization must engage in and focus on customer satisfactory. It is important to note that these tasks are not done in isolation because once the problems have been diagnosed, and then matching of service delivery to customers has to be done by developing the appropriate ways to improve services in organizational requirements. Therefore, in order to ensure successful service delivery to customers all these efforts must be applied on regular basis. 3. Have you given advice to colleagues about improvements in customer service that is relevant, constructive and promotes the improvement of customer service delivery? Give details of one such instance. -Yes, my colleague and I we were newly recruited sales representatives for a sales company. As a way of testing our sales capabilities, the sales and marketing supervisor assigned to us some equipment to sell to move around the offices in a certain town to sell them. It was so funny that the items we were given could not relevantly sold in places such as the offices. This included utensils, clothes, small containers and shoes. Therefore, my colleague went in a certain office and found that the manager was so busy that he opted to chase him out of the office. This colleague felt very much annoyed and he insisted to quit the sales job. I took the initiative to advice him accordingly, telling him that the sales job requires being understanding and not giving up easily because some customers will be annoying others encouraging. 4. Have you had any experience in structuring and presenting information on customer service needs using business technology? Describe your experiences and elaborate on the positive and negative aspects of these experiences. -Yes, I have used a database management system to structure and present information about customer service needs. This required the knowledge of data management and analytics, marketing automation and insight-driven marketing as well as workforce effectiveness. It cannot be denied that customer service is crucial to all organizations regardless of whether it is involved in small, mid-sized or large businesses. However, the quality of service offered can either improve or degrade the existing customer loyalty to the organization’s reputation. I have discovered that organizations that are more responsive to customer inquiries, complaints and other needs often stay on the competitive edge. Therefore, it is critical for contemporary organizations to understand how new technologies are used to anticipate the customer needs as well as tailor them into their business processes. This would help to effectively serve the customers and more fundamentally enhance the efficiency of their businesses in terms of cost-cutting. 5. Fill in the missing words: In order to focus customers’ requirements an organization must ________ and ________ to its customers. -Must understand and identify the needs that are important to its customers. 6. How can organizations achieve successful identification of customer needs? -Organizations that effectively manage their relationships with customers become successful in their businesses. Therefore, successful identification of customer needs requires an organization to analyze the purchasing habits, opinions and preferences of its customers. It is also important to profile individual and group market segments so as to market the services and increase the sales volume. However, organizations should be flexible in the manner in which they operate to meet the changing needs of its customers, enhance customer service and marketing capabilities. 7. Suggest three methods that managers can adopt to improve their ability to listen to customers. -Promoting a corporate social responsibility that makes employees happy who can in turn create happy customers. -Understanding their customers and building customer loyalty -Focusing on selling more to the current customers -Develop effective management of customer complaints and delivery services 8. Briefly outline two of the suggestions provided as to how an organization can become customer focused. - From the corporate social responsibility point of view, it can be noted that employees engage in the identification of job-related issues that organizations must pay attention to in order to enhance heir work experience. Therefore, listening to and engaging employees in business directions motivate them to focus on customer satisfaction. -Understanding customers is crucial to providing them with good services. Therefore, managers should be aware that offering good customer care they must deliver on their promises. However, great customer care requires the managers to know their customers very well to the extent that they can easily anticipate the customers’ needs or exceed their expectations. 9. With your study partner, colleague or learning group make a list of your experiences, either as a customer or as a seller, where an organization’s system or procedures have prevented satisfying the customer’s requirements. -While working as sellers in an alcoholic brewing company, the system or procedure of Keroche brewing company was very restrictive on allowing customers to drink from the brewing site. -The system could not allow the customers to take the drinks on credit -Old customers who applied to the company to be considered as agent sellers for the alcoholic drink could not be granted the license -Customers who were under 18 years of age were not allowed to buy a drink or involve in any transaction with the company. 10. Does your work group agree with the customer needs model you have studied in this chapter? No 11. Would your group adopt this model when dealing with customers? No 12. Are there any other characteristics of your own customers that you should be aware of? Yes, -The customers place of origin -The age of customer -The customers level of education -Occupation type -The language spoken by the customer –English, French, Arabic etc 13. How well does your organization meet customer requirements? In light of what you have learnt in this chapter, in what ways could your organization improve its service levels? -Top Image effectively meets its customer requirements by paying attention to the feedbacks from customers. The customer relationship management system in all our agents collects data about the customers’ complaints and views regarding the mobile banking services offered to them. The system analyzes the data and the processed information is retrieved by strategic managers for quick decision making to resolve the arising issues. -The organization could improve its service levels by ………… 14. Have you obtained customers’ checklists of what is important? YES/NO a. If yes, list them. b. If no, how can you obtain them? Yes, the checklists of what is important include; -The target customers are clearly defined -The needs of these target customers are well understood -The objectives for how focusing on the needs will impact the target customers are clearly sated -The experience of customer service delivery is designed based on every stage of customer lifecycle- this begins with initial roll-out to continuous customer support -A plan has been made to evaluate the impact of customer service deliver on target customers -Appropriate resources and time is allocated to continuous plan to enhance customer experience -Regular gathering of feedback will be done to monitor customer experience 15. Do you know the meaning that your customers infer to each of the items on their checklists? YES/NO a. If yes, list them. b. If no, how can you obtain them? Yes, Combining customer checklists around key processes in the organization could allow the employees to evaluate what they do. It is also important to note that developing and reviewing customers’ checklist should be done as a group. This is to ensure that the dynamic customers’ needs are well understood and delivered appropriately. 16. What techniques does the organization use to incorporate customer requirements in its decision making? Making a list of these customer-focused methods. -Fulfilling the goals of market –oriented service delivery and product development, organizations are required to incorporate customer satisfaction into their decision-making processes of service provision and product configuration. Every organization has its own direction regarding what customers or clients that it serves as well as the specific functions it performs for the customers. The direction that an organization takes is referred to as mission or realized strategy. Top image adopts competitive strategies which are used as its basis for consumer decision-making. The organization adopts customer-focused methods that promote a combination of quality experience, service, cost and time management of customer needs. A technique for customer order preference is applied at Top Image and prioritization of competing design options is also a key approach to incorporating customer requirements in its decision making processes. 17. What methods does the organization use to listen to customers? Also list these. -The three major ways through which Top Image organization relies on to understand and listen to customers include; -putting itself in its customer’s shoes -Acquiring feedbacks from customers by asking them their views on the services offered -Using the data collected in the organization’s customer relationship management system (CRM) because it provides valuable information about the customers which enables to understand the customer needs. This involves investigating the data the organization hold on its customers by analyzing the patterns to tell when its customers often make orders. 18. Do you consider that the organization remembers and listens to customers or is it engaging in the folly of self-assessment? Write a brief summary of the organization’s actions and highlight any differences in approach from those covered in the text above. -Yes, Top Image organization carefully remembers and listens to its mobile banking customers. The organization has Trade Representatives (TRs) in each region where its services are offered. It is the responsibility of the TRs to train, respond to the needs and complains rose by customers through mobile banking agents in every region where the organization offers its services. Therefore, in every region where Top Image executes its services, there are mobile banking agents who first receive complaints and views from customers. The agents inform the TRs of the customers’ grievances and opinions and it is the duty of the TRs to respond to the needs of customers and report to the final manager. 19. Visit two stores in your area and discuss with the managers and staff their policies for delivering timely service. Record their findings and discuss them with your study partner, colleague or learning group. -The manager responsible for trading material used in mobile banking service, has a database that stores the names of Trading Representatives, their mobile phone and ID numbers, regions assigned and material taken daily are recorded in the database. The TRs who mishandles the company material is fined on his or her salary. -The purchasing manager also holds the same information about the TRs and the two works closely to ensure the trading material for mobile banking are carefully managed. They monitor how TRs use the material in their assigned work stations, but also ensure that TRs have enough trading material. 20. What is meant by the term “Customer feedback”? Give three examples of how you receive feedback from your customers. -Customer feedback is the information that comes directly from customers concerning their level of satisfaction or dissatisfaction perceived of the products or service delivered to customers. It is the process of feeding businesses with information a bout products and customer service. At Top Image, marketing research surveys are used to collect huge amounts of information from mobile banking customers. Through its customer care representatives, the organization receives complaints from its customers and provides prompt resolutions. 21. Give examples of networks of relationships you have formed that have resulted in excellence in service. -Partnering with different organizations to share the costs of delivering used cars -Establishing transaction contracts with schools to supply them with green vegetables daily -Sharing the website of HelpAge International to advertise the service of selling second laptops -Supplying milk to local hotels 22. Describe a situation where you are a customer and are in contact with an individual or a group in an organization that you would describe as your network, i.e. a person or group of people you know and trust to service you needs. -As a customer at Keroche Breweries, I have a sales agent who receives orders from me. Normally, I cover for the drink charges well in advance to ensure that I get enough drinks and distribute them to other local sellers. The sales agents packs for me the drinks according to the amount of money and orders that I make. Therefore, the sales agent ensures that I get the drink on regular basis and he is very trustworthy in providing the service to me. 23. You should ensure that you can identify whether the organizations are exhibiting push or pull methodologies and the impact that this has on customer service.Describe how your organization interfaces with its customers using web technology. -At Top Image, it is strongly believed that more organizations will often be pushed and enhanced performance pull together as a team. Rather than pushing solutions on people with great force of argument, the management pulls solutions out of the employees to meet customer requirements. Top Image interfaces with its customers through use of a mobile phone to bank and send money across different networks. Therefore, customers use mobile banking web technology to pay their bills, send or receive money from other registered people. 24. Locate at least six web sites of organizations that advertise their services via the web. -APPLE - www.apple.com - eToys. A retail website that sells toys through the Internet http://www.etoys.com/home/index.jsp -Amazon-www.amazon.com -Yelp, Inc- an American-based Internet Company that runs a local search website - Bruceclay- is full-service internet marketing company with full agency -www.bruceclay.com/ - -Google-www.google.co.ke- provides different services for people as well as businesses. -Safaricom- that involve in online banking services through Mpesa accounts 25. Describe the most appealing site from those that you have found and give reasons for its appeal. -Google-www.google.co.ke- provides different services for people as well as businesses. The organization also offers a variety of tools to support different businesses to succeed on the web. The advertising programs for Google organization range from simple text to bigger media ads. The organizations enable businesses to get customers. -eToys company is a retail website that sells funny toys through the Internet that meets the various needs of young children. 26. Describe your experiences sending emails to organizations and the response rate you have had. -As a marketing representative, I have sent several emails to different organizations to establish contracts for businesses. A number of organizations did not respond to the emails and those that responded took too much time to give their feedbacks. Well installed network in the organizations enables to reach a large number of people. Not all people read their emails on regular basis. Communicating business transactions via emails is important for references. 27. Discuss this section with your manager and look at why your organization may not in fact be succeeding at web interface with its customers. -We have discovered that Top Image organization may not be succeeding at using the web interface with its customers because of the language barriers. Some mobile banking customers are illiterate, and thus following the procedures for mobile banking services becomes very had them. Poor network coverage or inadequate accessibility to the Internet makes the customers lazy users of the web services. Some web interfaces are not user-friendly to the customers, and thus discourage them to effectively interact on the web. 28. Describe how you promote customer service strategies in your organization. -At Top Image, we identify the target customers and make continuous research to determine what exactly the customers want. Calling our customers to find their satisfaction level with our mobile banking services is our main culture for customer service. Therefore, we clearly communicate our service standards and expectations to customers who use our mobile banking services. We also provide consistent mobile banking services across our agents by regularly interacting with our customers to understand their evolving needs. Most fundamentally, our front-line customer service agents are empowered to solve the arising problems with customers on the spot. 29. What is your knowledge of budget resources and how they are allocated to fulfill customer service objectives? -Managing budgets resources is important just like managing other investments within the organization. It is concerned with knowing how much time, resources and money are needed to run various tasks that promote effective delivery of services to customers as well as the understanding the benefits that are created in return. It is important to note that time, costs and resources are critical to equipping employees with competent behaviors and skills for effective management of customer needs. In order to fulfill customer service objectives, budget resources are allocated based on factors such as the actual cost of training sales representatives, call center and customer service staffs as well as developing management skills. It is also important to forecast the training budget over a period of time and how to measure up against the competition. 30. Describe the procedures used to resolve customer service difficulties in your organization. -Creating and adhering to a customer service policy plays a significant role in ensuring effective service delivery and long-term relationships with customers. It is common in business to deal with upset customers. However, the biggest challenge is how handle or manage the situation in a manner that will leave the customer seeing you and the company as great. The following could be the best customer-oriented approach to resolving customer service difficulties in an organization; -Listening cautiously to what the customer says without interrupting him or her -When asking the customer questions, do it with care and in a concerned manner -Always put yourself in the customer’s shoes or situation because as a business owner your main objective should be to solve the issue at hand and not to argue against -It is important to apologize without putting any blame on the customer because when the customer realizes that you really feel sorry, it helps to end the situation -Inquire from the customer the most acceptable solution to you, for instance, whether if or not the customer can suggest the best solution. Most importantly, endeavor to be a partner with your customer particularly on matters that regards solving a problem. 31. Describe how coaching and mentoring are used in your organization to overcome difficulties in meeting customer service standards. -At Top Image, coaching and mentoring are used as training opportunities to empower employees in particular, Trade Representatives on matters of Knowing Your Customer (KYC). Through coaching and mentoring, new employees are equipped with the appropriate skills and knowledge of how to deliver the mobile banking services to our customers. These training processes are also important because employees are trained on the money laundering schemes and how they affect effective customer service delivery. 32. Describe the process of implementing strategies decision in your organization to better improve customer service. -In order to enhance customer service at Top Image, the process of implementing strategies decision begins with identifying our target customers so as to determine their needs. We are committed to clear communication of our service standards and expectations both in the organization and to our customers. Our culture of customer service is aimed at enhancing agency leadership that communicates the value of customer service. The management endures that all employees can assess the impact of their services to the customers. Our external strategy helps the customer service management of Top Image to trace how the mobile banking services of our agencies are designed, marketed as well as delivered to our target customers. The company also ensures that it acquires and retains competent employees who are trained on how to resolve mobile banking customer service problems. 33. What is your organization’s mission statement? If you do not know, discuss it with your study partner, colleague or learning group and find out reasons why staffs are not aware of it. Briefly express it in your own words. -To know our customer and to respond to the changing needs of the Mobile banking customers. 34. “All organizations need a clear customer vision.” Describe what this statement means and outline how it may be achieved. -Achieving a clearly defined overall customer vision, requires an organization to create its agency’s focused vision based on the information or process of implementing strategies decision within the organization to better improve customer service. However, a customer vision statement need to be simple but also clarify what is not expected of the customer. Most importantly, organizations should continually reflect on their visions, goals as well as monitor the manner in which their agents are delivering services. This involves being creative about how organizations execute and deliver new services. Organizations should be ready and willing to alter their practices so as to integrate improvements. It is crucial for the organizations to live up to their promises by adopting external and internal strategies that clearly reflect their vision. 35. “Customer complaints can have either a positive or a negative influence on an organization.” Discuss your views on this statement, providing appropriate supporting evidence. -It is true customer complaints can cause either a positive or negative influence on an organization. Responding to the customer’s complaints a violent manner will automatically worsen the situation and annoy the customer more. The customer will decline using the services of the organization because he or she cannot be listened to, and thus will go out tarnishing the reputation of the organization. On the other hand, a polite approach to and understanding of the customer’s complaints or needs makes him or her feel valued and attended. This helps to build a strong customer-organization relationship because the customer’s complaints are listened to and resolved promptly, leaving him or her a satisfied client. 36. Identify four barriers that get in the way of meeting your organization’s customer service objectives. -Poor communication skills that lead information barriers-sometimes important information needed by one group may be hidden by another, making it inaccessible -Misalignment barriers that occur as a result of departmental differences or direct oppositions -Bureaucracy is also one way that cause difficulties in meeting customer service objectives at Top Image -Issues of overworked and underworked staff which makes the employees lose morale of focusing on customer satisfaction 37. How can these barriers be overcome or eliminated completely? -By conducting a routine audit of the rules and practices to spot out individuals that block success instead of to protecting its organization as well as restructuring the performance improvement systems. This would help the organization to effectively align its outcomes with pursued goals. However, it is important to understand that doing away with barriers takes courage which requires strong commitment from the management above. It will also require the commitment and participation of all employees across organizational levels. Top Image need to know that the manner in which it communicates with its customers can enhance its performance has a direct or indirect impact on the organization’s decisions and actions. 38. Find out what happens to customer complaints in your organization. Are they put in a ‘too hard’ basket or are they handled efficiently and promptly -Customer complaints at Top Image are carefully and promptly handled beginning from regional level to organizational headquarters. The mobile banking agents at regional level reports to the Trade Representatives (TRs) about the complaints and opinions collected from the customers. The TRs responds promptly to the needs of the customer and seeds the feedback to managers at the company’s headquarter for strategic decision making. 39. Discuss with your study partner, colleague or learning group ways in which the handling of customer complaints could be improved. -Effective handling of customers’ complaints leads results in greater customer loyalty. This is because good recovery makes the most annoyed and frustrated customer to become loyal people. The customer service management should demonstrate a commitment to manage complaints from customers by creating a complaints management system. It should be understand that top-level commitment to management of customers’ complaints helps to determine both the objectives and incentives for involving all personnel to focus on consumer satisfaction. Therefore, it is the responsibility of the management to develop the necessary policies and procedures for prompt and fair customer complaint resolution. Complaints should be seen as important form of communication, and thus must be handled through creating customer loyalty, goodwill and face-to-face discussion. Generally, effective complaint management can be handled through steps such as establishing a specific location to receive all the complaints, developing a system to record them, the complaints should be processed and recorded in the system and acknowledged. However, it is critical to carry out more investigations and analysis about the raised complaints so as to resolve the associated problem in a consistent way with the policies of the company. It is also important to make a follow-up on the complaint raised as a way to end the problem and ensure that the customer becomes satisfied with the services offered. 40. Explain to one of your customer service operators the five golden rules of handling dissatisfied customers. Ask this person to advise you the next time they are faced with such a situation and discuss how they handled it given the knowledge you were able to give them -A number of unsatisfied customers will not come out openly and tell their service providers that they are not satisfied. In most cases, the customers opt to leave quietly and later influence others not to involve in business with you. Therefore, when customers complain it should be taken as a golden opportunity to meet the customer’s needs and retain the business with him or her. The first rule is to allow the customers express their feelings. This encourages them to openly get their frustrations known. Secondly, avoid unnecessary arguments with your customer and never tell him or her that there is no problem with you as this can be taken as fighting words. Thirdly, share your views in a more polite way and be responsible for that particular problem without making excuses. Fourthly, take immediate action to end the situation because promising the customer a solution and taking too much to act will make the matters worse. Fifth, empower your available employees to become more flexible in matters that require resolving complaints. Read More