How to Define the Customer Service Department

The customer is always right according to successful customer servicers

If you're skeptical when you hear the words "customer" and "service" together, you're not alone. Despite the flowery slogans and signs that promise warm and friendly service, customers too often experience what might best be described as benign neglect. If you're in a position to establish a customer service department, you have an opportunity to make lots of people very happy simply by training staff to listen carefully and respond accordingly. Knowing what customers need will guide you in how to define the customer service department.

Instructions

1. A customer service department is made up of dynamic people able to deliver the service and quality promised by their company -- and deliver it in a reasonable amount of time.

2. A customer service department treats people courteously. Staff members should do everything they can to satisfy patrons' needs, and they should feel empowered to make reasonable decisions to solve problems. Their responses to questions should always be polite and to the point.

3. A customer service department acts on the principle that the customer is always right. It should offer an experience that is so positive that the customer feels satisfied -- even if a dispute turns out to be resolved in the company's favor.

4. A customer service department does not operate simply on the cliche of "exceeding expectations" because customers may be looking for reliability, safety or other concerns that have nothing to do with expectations.

5. A customer service department is available to patrons on many levels. It works intelligently and courteously to attain fair resolution of problems and leaves the customer satisfied, regardless of the complexity of the issue that needed attention.

6. A customer service department never makes patrons feel stupid, angry, taken advantage of, cheated or used. Reassurance and respect are the threads that are woven into the fabric of every resolution that takes place between the company and the customer.

References

• Customer Service Manager
• Customer Service Point
• BizWatch