http://www.betterlifeadvice.com/ Articles at BetterLifeAdvice en-us http://www.betterlifeadvice.com/business-economy/customer-service/10-critical-decisions-for-successful-e-discovery-part-1.html http://www.betterlifeadvice.com/business-economy/customer-service/10-critical-decisions-for-successful-e-discovery-part-1.html Mon, 22 Feb 2010 16:29:56 -0800 http://www.betterlifeadvice.com/business-economy/customer-service/10-critical-decisions-for-successful-e-discovery-part-2.html http://www.betterlifeadvice.com/business-economy/customer-service/10-critical-decisions-for-successful-e-discovery-part-2.html Mon, 22 Feb 2010 16:21:56 -0800 http://www.betterlifeadvice.com/business-economy/customer-service/12-essential-tips-to-finding-the-best-outsourcing-company.html http://www.betterlifeadvice.com/business-economy/customer-service/12-essential-tips-to-finding-the-best-outsourcing-company.html Mon, 22 Feb 2010 16:13:56 -0800 http://www.betterlifeadvice.com/business-economy/customer-service/24-7-9-5-live-chat-e-mail-management-solution.html http://www.betterlifeadvice.com/business-economy/customer-service/24-7-9-5-live-chat-e-mail-management-solution.html Mon, 22 Feb 2010 16:05:56 -0800 247 Live Chat, email management and Call center service 0.19/min 24-7 & 9-5 Live Chat and Email management Solution for your website No Infrastructure expenses and NO employee to recruit. Outsource your Customer support & order taking service to PLACE Support. Place Support is a comprehensive voice-chat-email support service provider. We take care of your customers, providing 24-7 and 9-5 customers support; freeing up your time to focus on other parts of your business. Our unique method allows us to bring these services to you at a very affordable price. We offer: Live Chat Management, Ticket Management, E-Mail Management, Inbound Call Center Service and Order Taking Service We look forward to helping your business grow and helping you create more time for the important things! How unique is PLACE Support? Place support always emphasizes on resolving the issue during the course of live support in real time. We deliver high quality support services through our state of the art software application. Affordable Price structure for all range of business Our support agents are hired and trained according to your specifications. Place support highly dedicated to security and strict policies. Benefits & Advantages: Less expensive labor and infrastructure facilities reduces cost about 70% The resources would be recruited as per the client’s specification Client can involve in the recruitment process and conduct the interview through video conference. A dedicated project leader will be deployed to lead your team You can be in touch with your team any time using IM & Video Conference Detailed QA (Quality Audit/Assurance) and Production reports from our senior staff for each of your team members each month Client can have the advantage of integrating any CRM application for their process. For more visit : http://www.placesupport.com ]]> http://www.betterlifeadvice.com/business-economy/customer-service/5-simple-tips-for-dealing-with-nasty-customers.html http://www.betterlifeadvice.com/business-economy/customer-service/5-simple-tips-for-dealing-with-nasty-customers.html Mon, 22 Feb 2010 15:57:56 -0800 http://www.betterlifeadvice.com/business-economy/customer-service/5-things-not-to-do-with-upset-customers.html http://www.betterlifeadvice.com/business-economy/customer-service/5-things-not-to-do-with-upset-customers.html Mon, 22 Feb 2010 15:49:56 -0800 Here's the lesson here: Had the claims adjuster done and said the right things during my initial phone call, the company would have been able to resolve this problem with a simple explanation and apology. Instead, they paid out nearly $200 more than they had to and had to spend 10 minutes listening to my case. This costly scenario is played out countless times every day throughout the service sector because employees don't know how to communicate with upset customers with diplomacy and tact and in such a way that creates calm and goodwill. In my case, had the claims adjuster responded with, "What we were trying to explain is that your policy covers 50% of your meals plus sales tax. You would have been out of expenses for meals even if you had not experienced the regretful fire. We try to minimize your inconvenience during your loss by covering expenses above and beyond your normal meal expenses. Does this make sense? I'm so sorry for any inconvenience this misunderstanding has caused you." This approach certainly made sense and I would have very likely accepted the 50% policy. But instead, the claim adjuster's attitude incited me and I was determined to accept nothing but full reimbursement. The wrong approach to an already upset customer only makes them more forceful and often results in a much higher payout from the company. I don't want you to have to pay one dollar more than you absolutely have to and to help you manage costs better I'll give you 5 things not to do with upset customers. 1. Don't tell a customer they are wrong. Telling your customer he is wrong arouses opposition and will make the customer want to battle with you. It's difficult, under even the most benign situations to change people's minds. So why make your job harder by starting out on the wrong foot. 2. Don't argue with a customer. You can never win an argument with your customers. Certainly, you can prove your point and even have the last word, you may even be right, but as far as changing your customer's mind is concerned, you will probably be just as futile as if you were wrong. 3. Don't speak with authoritative tone as if you have to prove the customer wrong. Even when the customer is wrong, this is not an appropriate response, as it will put the customer on the defense. 4. Don't say, "We would never do that." Instead try, "Tell me about that." 5. Don't be afraid to apologize. Offer an apology even when the customer is at fault. An apology is not admission of fault. It can be offered to express regret. For example, "I'm so sorry for any inconvenience this misunderstanding has caused you." Never forget in problem situations the issue is not the issue. The way the issue is handled becomes the issue. ]]> http://www.betterlifeadvice.com/business-economy/customer-service/6-tips-for-keeping-your-cool-when-customers-get-hot.html http://www.betterlifeadvice.com/business-economy/customer-service/6-tips-for-keeping-your-cool-when-customers-get-hot.html Mon, 22 Feb 2010 15:41:56 -0800 http://www.betterlifeadvice.com/business-economy/customer-service/7-business-growth-w-o-w-tactics-for-increased-market-share.html http://www.betterlifeadvice.com/business-economy/customer-service/7-business-growth-w-o-w-tactics-for-increased-market-share.html Mon, 22 Feb 2010 15:33:56 -0800 1. Rule 1-12-50© - The first portion of every month (hence the number 1), consistently every month (hence the number 12), identify a population index upwards of fifty (hence the number 50) key customers or emerging customers and provide them a value added communication. 2. eSignature Line – Consider adding into your standard email auto signature line any updates on products or services you provide to all recipients of your communication exchanges. This also serves as a powerful standardization for ensuring customers receive advance notices for deadlines, product or service announcements, changes and discontinuations, etc. 3. eAuto Responder - Consider adding into your standard email auto responder (if you don’t engage it routinely, especially engage it when you will be away from email receiving) any updates on products or services you provide to all recipients of your communication exchanges. This is also a great way to promote and advertise to those people that initiate sending email traffic to you first, as now you can instantly bounce back a message to them. 4. Hotel Letters – Realize that in most all hotels there seems to be at least pieces of stationary and envelopes in the desk drawer. Consider a hand written note to three “Vital Fews” about something that is top of mind to you and of value to them. 5. “Advocate” Maintenance – Ensure that you never let an advocate get more than 30 days out from hearing from or seeing you. Plan regular communications and/or “thank you” events to draw from them ways to continue to enhance the service you provide to them. 6. Newsletter – Design a high impact, value rich content based print newsletter for your core customers (the Vital Few) and send routinely to them as a way to enrich their value proposition in their market. Then, soft communicate a product/service from you to them at the end of each newsletter. This vehicle can be distributed to customers as statement-stuffers, attachments with invoices and contracts, attached to proposals and general correspondence from customer service contact professionals and the sales team alike. This can serve as a source for the Rule 1-12-50© campaign. 7. Fax Alerts – Consider a Friday afternoon fax blast to your customers with any products/services that can impact their bottom line, send announcements and press releases, etc. If these contact names are in your data base as clients and or contacts that you have a pre existing relationship with and/or have established a relationship with whereby they want communication offers from you, than a Fax alert or blast is a smart, fast, economical and acceptable contact means. Conversely, if you don’t have this rapport or permission then a fax blast may be seen as spam and be illegal in some non business growth oriented communities! Deploy these field-tested and proven strategies now and watch your business flourish. ]]> http://www.betterlifeadvice.com/business-economy/customer-service/9-steps-for-coaching-call-center-agents.html http://www.betterlifeadvice.com/business-economy/customer-service/9-steps-for-coaching-call-center-agents.html Mon, 22 Feb 2010 15:25:56 -0800 1. Randomly record 2 –3 telephone calls. Random recording is important. Do not record 3 calls back to back or on the same day, as your employee may be having a bad day and this may be reflected in all of one afternoon’s calls, but is not necessarily reflective of their typical performance. 2. Review the calls and note strengths and opportunities. Before meeting with your employee, listen to the calls and note what they did well and identify 1 –2 opportunities for performance improvement. 3. Play one tape and let your employee listen. During the playing of the tape, you do not need to respond. 4. Have your employee respond to the tape. After the tape is played, ask your employee to respond. Most employees will be overly self-critical. Your employee will likely note many opportunities for improvement and struggle to articulate what they’ve done well. 5. Coach the call. Use the “sandwich” approach. Tell your employee what s/he did well, followed by constructive feedback, and then end with positive feedback. When offering constructive feedback, share only one opportunity for improvement. The employee has likely observed and stated several improvement opportunities so there is no need to bring these up again Try to mention one thin g the employee did not bring up and offer this as your constructive feedback. 6. Gain commitment for performance improvement. Ask the employee, “What specific steps will you take over the next 5 days to improve in this area?” Write down what the employee states and repeat it to her. Summarize the session by reiterating strengths and offering a vote of confidence that she can improve in the identified area. 7. Repeat steps 2 – 6 with a second and perhaps third tape if necessary. The point of numerous recording is that an employee may respond defensively stating that was just a “bad” call. If that is the response, you may choose to review a second or third tape. 8. Follow-up before the next agent coaching session. Check with your employee in between coaching sessions to keep the commitment top of mind. You can touch base with your employee via email or a personal conversation. 9. Discuss improvement in next coaching session. Before listening to calls in the next coaching session, ask your employee how she’s progressing toward the goal of the last session. Look for improvement on calls reviewed in this session. This 9-step call center agent coaching model is simple, clear and it both praises employees and offers support for improvement opportunities. When you follow this 9-step process, you will set clear performance expectations, coach effectively and consistently and at the same time you will be motivating your employees. ]]> http://www.betterlifeadvice.com/business-economy/customer-service/additional-phone-lines-allows-for-greater-customer-service-success.html http://www.betterlifeadvice.com/business-economy/customer-service/additional-phone-lines-allows-for-greater-customer-service-success.html Mon, 22 Feb 2010 15:17:56 -0800