HANDLING ABUSIVE CUSTOMERS | Delivering Excellent Customer Service

Almost inevitably there will be occasions when customers become so frustrated that they want to express their anger to someone. Generally, this is not when something goes wrong the first time: most people understand that things will sometimes not be perfect. Instead, most frustration and anger occurs when a mistake has already been notified and the promise that it will be rectified has not been kept. One failure is rationalized by the customer, but two are o en enough to exceed his or her patience. Thus, when a mistake happens it is very important that someone takes direct responsibility and it is quickly corrected.

Dealing with angry and frustrated customers comes with the adviser’s job and it is important, for self-preservation reasons, that the adviser does not take these criticisms personally

Where customers are abusive and use inappropriate and threatening language, they should be informed that this is unsatisfactory and that the call will be terminated if this language continues. O en callers will apologize when their behaviour is pointed out to them and will explain that they just want a solution to their situation. Phrases to be used where there are these types of calls include: ‘Mr Smith, that language is unnecessary and doesn’t help me resolve your complaint’, ‘We have a policy to close calls when there is abusive language. Please explain your situation slowly while I write it down.’ This strategy slows the caller down and makes them focus on their complaint rather than how they feel.

Moments of Truth

The book Moments of Truth was written by Jan Carlzon, CEO of Scandinavian Airlines System, about how he used customer service to improve profitability. Each time a person comes into contact in some way with the organization it is a moment of truth when the customer is either happy or disappointed with the situation: a person waiting too long for service in a retail outlet, too many selection choices in an automated call distribution system, etc.

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EXERCISE: MOMENTS OF TRUTH

In the centre circle write the name of the specific service that is offered. Next, using the outer circles, identify all the potential moments of truth the customer might experience during the delivery of this transaction. These can be done in order, going clockwise around the circle. When these have been identified, develop strategies and responses to ensure that the customer has a good experience. If there are multiple operations, repeat this exercise for each one.

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Essentially, a moment of truth relates to whether or not customers receive the service they expected. Seven out of eight contacts in the overall transaction between the customer and the organization may be satisfactory, but if the eighth represents a bad experience for the customer then that is what will be remembered and he or she may not return. The whole system is only as strong as the weakest link in the chain and it is this weakest link that the customer is likely to remember.

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CUSTOMER SERVICE AT THE PRUDENTIAL

Colin Mackay, CCA

Background

Prudential’s mission is, ‘In an uncertain world, we want to make it possible for everyone to enjoy a secure future,’ and it intends that its customers should experience its core values, which are: Trustworthy, Helpful and Easy (to deal with).

The contact centre strategy is a part of the Pru UK wider strategy and as such is signed off at board level. The core elements are contained in a business plan, which at a high level focuses on:

• increasing investment in people;
• consistent service delivery;
• building long-term relationships;
• embedding a culture of continuous improvement;
• being easy to deal with for customers.

The plan is monitored and delivered through local management and is fluid, providing it is seen to be supporting the primary objectives of the organization and the centre. The essential focus fits with the business vision of being Trustworthy, Helpful and Easy (to deal with) and the objective is customer satisfaction within all segments of the marketplace. The business plan calls for customer retention, process improvement and development of individuals within the context of the vision. Training at each level of development supports the achievement of these objectives. Measurement is focused on accuracy and quality with other targets supporting one-to-one, handling time and other key areas. The approach is intended to impress and, particularly in the intermediary market, to sell through the development of relationships. Delivery of the strategy has become significantly easier with improvements in the supporting technology during recent years.

Prudential’s main customer groupings are intermediaries, corporate businesses and members of the public who are policyholders. The vast majority of new business is distributed through intermediaries, so customers dealing directly with Prudential are often also the clients of its intermediaries and so the service proposition needs to be tailored to each customer segment. The primary roles of the agents are the provision of information and post-sale advice.

For customer service, the key drivers focus upon making it easier for customers to interface with the organization. Prior to the establishment of the Stirling operation, telephone contact was through department-based call centres accessed by dialling a different telephone number for each speciality. Now there is a one-number strategy focused on customer type, and callers have their enquiry answered by a human voice without having to navigate through an Interactive Voice Response (IVR). Prudential’s service proposition covers all nature of enquiries from purchasing a product to maturing products, including some sensitive customer touch-points such as bereavement. Customers can communicate with the company in several ways ie, by telephone, e-mail, fax, letter or face-to-face.

Product promotion is done through the establishment of longer-term relationships based on the provision of superior customer service. Customer service consultants within the centre operate at two levels through a series of stepped gradations based on skills acquisition in the areas of:

• contribution to customer experience;
• key responsibilities;
• knowledge;
• skills.

The centre is not scripted since scripting is seen as interfering with the customer interaction. Agents do, however, have a structure within which they are expected to work. Because agents are frequently discussing monetary figures and also because of compliance requirements, accuracy is a key attribute combined with the need to make specific points meeting compliance requirements. The centre uses VOIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol), and there are elements of customer relationship management in the front-end system, together with the operation of a workflow management imaging system.

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Choosing attitude and handling boredom

In some contact centres the calls are o en very similar in nature and they may become very tedious to the customer service representative. As the monotony increases it can become increasingly difficult to be motivated and give a lively, enthusiastic and professional level of service. This, obviously, has an effect on the customer who does not want to speak to a dull and ‘couldn’t care less’ adviser.

The book, Fish, based on the Pike Place Fish Market in Sea le, describes the high levels of energy and enjoyment that can be created between employees and customers. Mary Jane, a manager in a nearby office, had her third floor area described by her manager as a ‘toxic energy dump’ and was severely disheartened by this. On her lunch break she went to the Fish Market and found that the employees there enjoyed their work even though many of the actions were repetitive. One of the Fish Market employees explained that, ‘There is always a choice about the way you do your work, even if there is not a choice about the work itself’ (Lundin et al, 2006: 37).

Three other principles described in Fish were:

1. Play – have fun doing your job.
2. Make the customer’s day.
3. Be present – give the customer your whole attention.

By putting these principles into action advisers’ work becomes more interesting, fun and rewarding. Indeed, ‘The greatest satisfaction appears to be derived from customers (“helping people”) and from the camaraderie and social support that develops in the work environment’

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‘KEEPING CUSTOMERS AT THE HEART’

Carolyn Blunt, Real Results Training

United Utilities supply water to the North West of England and have a contact centre in Cumbria dedicated to managing billing enquiries, payments and account information.

As a refocus and refresh on customer service, Manchester-based company Real Results Training was invited to design a training intervention for 200 contact centre staff in Cumbria. The brief to Real Results was to make the programme ‘fun, interactive and themed around United Utilities’ existing Customers at the Heart slogan, but preferably from a new angle’. The measure of success would be a 20 per cent improvement in agent ‘call quality scores’, measured by coaches using a structured assessment form.

After two days of on-site analysis to fully understand the role and the training needs, Real Results designed an accelerated learning programme called ‘Pulse8’ which took the ‘Heart’ theme into a new medical domain. Eight skills and behaviours crucial to customer service were identified and these became the main structure of the programme:

1. Listening
2. Confident communication
3. Ownership
4. Proactivity
5. Initiative
6. Rapport
7. Accuracy
8. Respect

It was vital to the success of the session that the principles of accelerated learning were followed to ensure everyone learnt as much as possible in their one day of training and that the focus and attention of the relatively young workforce was maintained throughout. PowerPoint was banished; instead learning was created and reviewed using printed jigsaws, recorded audio, creating posters, unscrambling anagrams and competitive team quizzes. The listening exercise involved the participants working in pairs, one person with a stick on which to spin a coloured plastic plate, the other person reading a set of non-work related facts from a list. After three minutes of listening (and plate spinning) the spinner would be given two minutes to recall as many facts as he or she could, and would receive one point for each fact recalled fully and accurately. A note would be made of the score before the pair would change places and begin again with a different fact card.

Afterwards the participants were asked what they felt about the exercise. Answers such as, ‘It was hard to do two things at once’, ‘It was distracting hearing lots of similar conversations going on around me’, ‘It felt like a memory test more than a listening test’ were common and exactly what was needed to draw out the key learning points.

The plate and stick represented the computer system and the fact sheet is the information from the customer. Participants were asked, ‘Which are you getting points for?’ The learning was that listening to the customer is more important than navigating the system. Ideally an experienced adviser becomes able to do two things at once, but until then, participants were encouraged to focus on the customer first, system second. Hearing lots of similar conversations is just like being out on the floor – we need to keep focused – techniques for minimizing distractions were then shared by the trainer. You only need to memorize when you are not able to write things down – something you can do when on the telephone. The customer may not always give information in the order that the system wants it, so rather than trying to remember everything or even worse – asking a customer to repeat themselves – use a jotter to make notes.

The other seven behaviours were explored and throughout the session ‘pulse checks’ were made where participants were encouraged to reflect on their learning and how they would apply it and record it on an action plan. This action plan was reviewed by their manager following the training as part of an informal debrief and then fed into their personal development plan.

Following the completion of the programme the target of a 20 per cent increase in call quality was exceeded, with agents consistently scoring 100 per cent. Follow-up coaching over the coming months ensured this was sustained and new learning became embedded. Feedback from team managers included:

Two of our team members have attended Pulse8 this week and have said they feel a real benefit, they said they feel a lot more confident handling calls. I have done two side-by-side call qualities on each of them this afternoon and have seen a massive improvement; they both scored 100 per cent twice and seem to have a new outlook and really positive attitude.

I have just completed three side-by-side call qualities on Alistair and he scored three consecutive 100 per cent! This is an amazing achievement for him – also two out of the three calls were not standard queries and I would class them in the more difficult call category and he handled them well.

The programme sponsor, Michelle Cheeseman, concluded: ‘Based on my initial observations, evaluations and feedback, the design of the Pulse8 course and delivery by Carolyn Blunt from Real Results have both met and exceeded my requirements.’

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Surprise the customer

There are a number of levels of service that can be provided to a customer and these will have an impact on whether they continue to offer their business to the organization; see Figure 1.

• Unacceptable: This falls so far below what customers want that they are highly unlikely to ever use the service again.
  
  
  
   
  Figure 1: Handling angry people
• Basic: This is the minimum standard customers will accept. They may tolerate this for a variety of reasons, eg convenience or price, but if a competitor presents a more appealing offering they are likely to be attracted to it.
• Expected: Most customers begin an interaction with an anticipated level of service quality. This may be as a result of previous interactions with the organization or it may be a benchmark of wider levels of service, eg customer care received from other call centres.
• Desired: Customers also have higher levels of expectation and if these can be achieved then the customer is likely to be a happy one.
• Excellent: The service is of the highest level and makes the customer an unpaid ambassador for the organization.
• Unanticipated: Customers will have an expectation of the possible service levels that might be offered to them. If the organization can provide something positive that is unanticipated, this should surprise and delight the customer, eg free entry into a prize draw; advising them of a cheaper account.

Managing expectations

Each customer enters a transaction with an expectation of a certain level of service and, depending on his or her experience, the following results happen:

• Above expectation – happy.
• As expected – neither happy nor disappointed.
• Below – disappointed.

What is interesting about expectations is that they do not remain at a fixed level. Not only do different people have different levels of expectations ie, what satisfies some people will be an intolerable level of service for another, but also a person’s expectations will alternate up and down.

This can be due to their mood eg, they might be having a bad day. It may also be due to the fact that they have become accustomed to a high level of service that was at a ‘desired’ level but they now find this expected. In other words, their standards have risen and they now expect more.

Sense of humour

A sense of humour is a powerful ally in the tactics an adviser can use with the customer and it will quickly develop rapport and lighten the interaction. It is difficult to script this because it depends very much on the nature of the transaction and the mood of the customer. Therefore, the adviser is the best judge of whether to employ humour using his or her experience and skill, and if he or she is successful it will lighten the mood and enable other services to be offered. It should, however, be used with caution since a humorous attempt that misfires may upset the caller.

Audit customer services

Good practice dictates that there is a regular examination of all aspects of service provision. This should begin with a list being made of all current and possible dimensions of service.

The next stage is to ask customers what they expect and how important each element is. In this way the most important elements for the customer can be prioritized and strategies can be put in place. Using the Pareto Principle (the 80:20 rule), can help in this process: 80 per cent of problems o en arise from 20 per cent of causes.

Having internal standards is a good starting point, particularly when the areas of concern have been identified by customers. However, these standards should also be benchmarked against competitors through the use of mystery shoppers, etc.

Existing customers can provide helpful information about service levels but it should not stop there. This is a limited population: what about the customers who are dissatisfied but do not tell the organization and just take their custom elsewhere? These should also be investigated as they may provide some valuable insights into why they le .

Finally, ensure that service is always excellent and be aware that standards continue to improve. Last year’s excellent service is this year’s routine delivery and will need to be upgraded to retain the customer.