Are You Ready? With all the social interaction out there; it can still end up with a phone call.
By Nancy Friedman, Keynote Speaker, Customer Service, Communication expert, President Telephone Doctor Customer Service.
There’s a communication tool missing on our picture. Can you guess? YUP – The Telephone. The original and oldest voice of all Social Media.
When Telephone Doctor was founded, it was the ‘black’ thing on your desk. It was taken for granted, a lot. Abused and used mostly, and sadly, improperly. Few swore by it; most swore at it.
The other day in an interview I was asked: “Nancy, with all that’s going on out there in the customer service arena, what’s changed? What’s new?”
The answer – very little. Oh, some new ‘trends,’ some new ‘channels’ of communication, but the reality of it is there are hundreds of books and articles on customer service and it all boils down to the same things. Go the extra mile, say something nice, smile, and do unto others as you would have them do unto you. No matter what the trend or what the channel.
It’s not rocket science, not brain surgery; simply plain old common sense.
But as we know, common sense isn’t that common today, is it?
So when the phone rings, pick it up with that smile (whether you feel like smiling or not), thank them for calling, tell ‘em what company they’re reaching and say your name. Slowly and clearly.
A big fat secret: The telephone is still one of the best of the social interactions there is. Short, sweet and to the point.
May your phone ring long and loud and many times with good news!
