The Three T’s of Button Pushing
By: Sorin Dumitrascu
Tags: Management, Leadership, Problem Solving, Customer Experience, Customer Service

The Three T’s of Button Pushing

Improving Your Problem Resolution Skills

The Three T’s of Button Pushing

Are there people who push all the buttons that seem to bring out the worst in you? Well, there are customer service people that accidentally push those buttons in phone conversations with customers.

Think of the behaviors by service providers that push those anger buttons as “the three T’s”:

trigger phrases,

trigger tones,

trigger treatment,

Trigger tones refers to your tone of voice during a service phone call:

if you are sarcastic or condescending, don’t assume for a minute he won’t sense it, and

if you are quiet and soft, it can seem like a lack of concern or interest on your part.

The 3rd “T” is trigger treatment. Some of the patterns customers most often complain about are, “I feel like…”

a soccer ball: bouncing off people and parts at every turn,

a big bother: begging for a straight answer,

a missing page in the policy manual: it’s by the book or not at all, or

a half-told story: service interruptus.

Another hot button to think about: When a customer is disappointed, upset, or feeling confrontational, your comedy act might fall flat. In fact, in might make things worse.

Tips for Helping Four Kinds of Callers

Employees who provide customer service over the phone face a unique challenge — they must use their problem- solving skills to help unseen customers with products that the employee can’t see. To do this more effectively, these employees must learn to recognize the type of customer they are dealing with.

In general, there are four different types of customers: cocky, cowering, inexperienced, and talkative.

Cocky customers

Cocky customers are overconfident and always in a hurry. They tend to by-pass reading the instructions and will often argue with you as you offer advice or solutions to their problems.

They key to helping cocky customers is to do everything possible to keep the customer working with you rather than fighting your efforts to help. Never tell a cocky customer that they have made a mistake. Ask open-ended questions about the problem, and use “we,” rather than “you” or “I.”

Cocky customers will usually try to solve problems on their own before they resort to calling a customer service line. They may tell you what they think the problem is. Listen and gather information. Above all, know your products and policies, and speak confidently to establish credibility, respect, and cooperation.

Cowering customers

Cowering customers lack self-confidence and may call because they are afraid to damage a product. They may have anxieties about their ability to learn, especially over the phone. Cowering customers tend to say, “I don’t understand,” before they make an effort to understand.

When you talk to cowering customers, you must gently build their confidence to the point where they are able to learn and apply what you teach them. If they are calling about a complex issue, be ready to spend the time it takes to help them. Take small steps.

Start with a basic description of what they will be able to do by the end of the call. Speak confidently about what you can do, as well as what they will be able to do. Make sure you understand the specific product the customer has purchased before you begin. Talking about parts or features that their product doesn’t have will only confuse them. Stay with cowering customers until they feel confident in what they have accomplished with your help.

Inexperienced customers

Inexperienced customers are those who have no background or knowledge about a product. They are unfamiliar with the jargon and know nothing about previous models, or alternative types.

When helping inexperienced customers, give them enough detail to understand the problem, without overwhelming them. Stop frequently to make sure the customer is following you as you explain. Explain yourself clearly and avoid technical jargon.

Suggest what the customer should see or hear as they follow your instructions. There’s always a risk when training inexperienced customers that your advice could make the problem worse. Ensure that the customer understands your instructions at each step before moving on to the next. Don’t assume the inexperienced customer will be able to follow everything you say.

Talkative customers

Sometimes you get “talk-aholics” on the line. These are people who are very expressive and who love to talk. They may not know when to be quiet and, consequently, may not listen to your instructions very well.

As a customer service rep, you don’t have an unlimited amount of time to spend with each customer. Talkative customers must be dealt with firmly, but sensitively. You have to take control of the conversation without “turning them off.” In a firm yet polite tone, bring the customer back to the reason for the call.

Say something like, “Getting back to your brochure, you mentioned a problem on the second panel…” Once each issue is resolved, you can say something like, “Are there other errors? Where? What should it have said?” By asking specific questions, you can keep the caller on track and the process moving forward.

Learning to work effectively with different kinds of callers is an essential skill. With a little practice, you can get the cocky customer to work with you, encourage the cowering customer, educate the inexperienced customer, and take gentle control of the talkative customer.

Improving Your Problem Resolution Skills

If you want to regain the confidence of customers who have had a bad experience with your company, you must possess outstanding problem resolution skills. Fortunately, the techniques needed to acquire these skills are easy to implement — all you need to do is master the appropriate mindset and commit to putting the techniques into practice.

Maintain a rapid response database

One of the first steps is to keep a record of your problem resolution successes and failures. In particular, it is helpful to know how often you resolved an issue after only the first contact, and to note what you did to resolve the issue so quickly. A rapid resolution database is the perfect tool for this purpose. You can use a simple spreadsheet application to:

document all the customer complaints you handle,

categorize them into types of complaints,

identify successful resolution strategies for each type of complaint,

document first-contact resolutions, and

calculate the percentage of first-contact successes.

Your rapid response database will help you to determine which strategies are the most effective for a particular category of complaint. You can then begin to use these successful strategies to improve your problem resolution skills.

Show your commitment

In general, customers will respond better if you express a sincere interest in finding a solution. Once customers sense your commitment, they relax and trust you to do your best. To help customers recognize your commitment:

apologize for the error,

listen and gather all the facts, and

take decisive action.

Express your appreciation

Another technique which sets customers at ease is to express appreciation. Let the customer know they are invaluable and that their satisfaction is important to you. Thank them for their patience while you work on finding a solution. Another thought is to express your appreciation that the customer cared enough to bring the problem to your attention and to give you the chance to earn their future business.

Solving problems quickly and efficiently is an important key to customer satisfaction and loyalty. Setting up a rapid resolution database, demonstrating your commitment to problem resolution, and expressing your appreciation for the customer will help you regain customer confidence and establish lasting customer relations.