Introduction:
Becoming customer-centric is one of the most important aims of any organization. Customer centricity refers to the orientation of a company to the needs and behaviors of its customers, rather than internal drivers such as the quest for short-term profit. Customers have high expectations and demand quality customer service from companies they choose to do business with. Providing customer service excellence gives an organization a competitive advantage in the marketplace and is the key factor that keeps customers coming back. Successful organizations understand the importance of developing a customer-centric mindset and deliberately restructure their customer service model to increase customer satisfaction and brand loyalty.
Today, customers have an increasing range of choice: choice of supplier, choice of channel, choice of products and services. Their loyalty is determined by the quality of the experience they receive. Delegates will learn effective customer-centric strategies and best practices to provide world-class customer service excellence.
Targeted Groups:
- Head of Customer Service
- Customer Service Managers
- Customer Service Supervisors
- Customer Service Professionals
Course Objectives:
At the end of this course the participants will be able to:
- Establish the importance of setting and reviewing customer service standards
- Develop an understanding of internal and external customer expectations
- Communicate more effectively by utilizing active listening and questioning skills
- Demonstrate how to deal with difficult or demanding customers in a professional manner
- Set SMART objectives and goals to become more productive
- Utilize stress management techniques to increase job satisfaction
- Develop a strategy to build a more proactive, customer-centric organization
- Analyze and implement the 'best practices' of world-class customer-centric organizations
- Utilize interpersonal skills as vital tools in the provision of customer service
- Measure and assess how well customer service standards and objectives are being achieved
- Enhanced communication, persuasion, and conflict resolution skills
Targeted Competencies:
- Communication skills
- Leadership skills
- Technology tools
- Self-confidence
- Time management
- The motivation you require to build strong customer relationships and develop a customer-centric organization
Course Content:
Unit 1: The Building Blocks of a Customer-Centric Organisation:
- Course overview and learning objectives
- Define Customer Service Excellence
- What do you want your customer to experience?
- Practical exercise: Identify specific ways to use 'customer service' to enhance customer loyalty and build employee morale
- Five key steps for implementing a Customer-Centric Service Model
- Serving your internal customers
- First impressions are important - What do your customers see and hear?
- Understanding your customer’s nonverbal communication
Unit 2: Developing a Top-Down Customer-Centric Culture:
- What do customers want from your organization and why?
- Does the 'customer experience' align with your organization’s business goals and vision/mission statement?
- What do your competitors do better or differently than you do?
- Practical exercise: What are the most admired leadership traits?
- Shaping customer expectations - perception versus reality
- Case study: Examples of companies that provide world-class customer service
- Little things make a big difference - 'going the extra mile'
- The four customer personality types
Unit 3: Responding to The Voice of The Customer:
- Best and worst-rated companies for customer service
- Listen, act, and deliver on customer needs
- Re-evaluate and realign the customer experience in line with demand
- Creating favorable customer service ‘touchpoints’ within your company
- Practical exercise: List the ways that your organization creates positive ‘touchpoints’ to enhance the ‘customer experience’
- Leading and motivating others to deliver superior service levels
- The Customer Loyalty Chain
- Developing the processes that nurture customer brand loyalty
Unit 4: Measuring and Monitoring Customer Satisfaction:
- Why is measuring customer satisfaction important?
- Why is it critical to encourage customer complaints and feedback?
- Establishing quality customer service satisfaction measuring and monitoring standards
- Using customer-centric diagnostic tools to evaluate trends, perceptions, and opportunities for performance improvement
- Best practices for recording and monitoring customer service issues
- Putting in place processes to resolve customer dissatisfaction
- Practical exercise: Customer service quality control checklist
- Strategies for working with difficult and demanding customers
Unit 5: Leading the Way to Customer Service Excellence:
- The importance of attitude, teamwork, and professional development
- Developing a customer-centric training program
- Setting performance goals
- Contests and employee recognition programs
- Coaching and mentoring strategies
- Methods to empower and motivate customer service employees
- Action Plan
