Welcome To The Customer Service Fundamentals Course

Welcome to the Customer Service Fundamentals course.
There are a growing number of exciting and well-

paying jobs in today's tech industry, that do not require a traditional degree. Colleges and universities today
only produce about 10 percent of candidates needed to fill computer and IT occupations in the US.
The tech industry has thousands of roles at any given time, that are focused on skills rather than degrees.
These are roles in some of technology industry's fastest-growing fields, from customer service engagement to
cybersecurity, cloud computing, and cognitive business roles.
Through the Customer Service Fundamentals course, you will be provided with lessons and activities to
help you develop your customer engagement skills, and opportunities to connect these newly learned skills to
your career.
This course is useful to people from all working backgrounds, whether you are focusing on a new career in
information technology customer service, or looking to refresh your knowledge in your current customer service
position.
Join us on your journey to develop new skills that are in demand both for today and for the future.
Welcome to Module 1 of the Customer Service Fundamentals course. You are on your way to becoming
a superior customer service agent, and we are here to help you through that journey. Before you get started,
let's take some time to learn how to navigate the course.
This module is the first of four that you will complete during your customer service fundamentals training.
Each module contains four lessons, and you will find that within each of the four modules, there's a great deal of
consistency. Our new learning is introduced through lecture videos.
Most lecture videos are less than five minutes long, but it is still a good idea to take notes during these short
videos. After each video, you'll be offered opportunities to apply what you have learned. These activities are
not graded since this course is designed to prepare you for a successful send-off into the world of customer
support. It is strongly suggested that you participate in all of these ungraded practice opportunities.
There really is a difference between intellectual understanding and skill development. We generally have the
intellectual capacity to grasp new concepts and ideas, which can lead us to mistakenly think that we
also know how to use skills right away. The reality is that we can't properly use the skills we learn until we
practice, get feedback, and reflect on our learning. Ungraded practice opportunities will come to you in the form
of practice quizzes, discussion prompts, and peer reviews. About midway through each module,
as well as at the end of each module, there will be a graded quiz. There will also be intermittent graded peer
reviews throughout the course.
The ungraded opportunities offered throughout the module will set you up to do well on each of these graded
assessments. If this is your first ever Coursera course, it may help you to click on the reading material that
follows this video. The linked articles will teach you more about practice quizzes, discussion prompts, and peer
reviews. Now that you have an understanding of how to navigate the course, let's begin your customer service
journey.
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You are what they hear?
How do I begin to build rapport with callers?
Understanding customers is the key to giving them excellent customer service. In order to understand
customers, you must begin by building rapport. Focusing on rapport will allow you to gain your customers trust,
encouraging their unconscious minds to accept and begin processing your suggestions.
Developing a connection or rapport with another person is a crucial part of the communication process.
When communication with the customer is strained and customer support agents do not attempt to connect
with their customers, things can get ugly fast. Luckily, you will find that the process to begin developing rapport
with customers is pretty intuitive.
Here are some tips on how to build rapport with customers.

Start the conversation with a warm up. This can be as simple as asking, how is your day going so far or
what's the weather like where you are today? In most cases, the caller will politely answer you and
your warm up will have worked. All you really need to do is set the stage for a relaxing exchange between you
and the collar.
Use active listening skills.

Active listening is the process of reflecting on the caller's problem, and then repeating it back to ensure
understanding. Once you have clarified the problem, you must then follow up with questions to
help refine your search for the problem as well as the solution. As a bonus, applying active listening skills helps
the caller feel listened too. Elevating their level of trust while streamlining your path to the solution.
For example, you could say something like, it sounds like you're having trouble connecting to the Internet that
must be frustrating, how long have you been having this problem? The active listening combination of question
and statement, allows you to clarifies the customer's issue as well as empathize with them, ensuring you lay the
groundwork for a trusting working relationship with the customer.
Use verbal nods, a verbal nod lets the collar know that you are listening. You can do this by using soft mm-hm,
and noises as the customer speaks. These soft acknowledgement noises, ensure the caller that you are engaged
in the conversation. Go off script, regardless of whether or not you use a general script when working, try to use
your own words and put your personality into what you say. Customers tend to zone out when they hear what
sounds like a script being read to them, and are more likely to feel satisfied when they feel that they've received
personalized service.
And finally perhaps the most valuable tip, be adaptable in your approach. There really is no one size fits all
approach to building rapport. Each caller comes to the call with their own set of circumstances.
You will have to adapt to the needs of each and every caller.
Efficient agents are quick to evaluate a callers mood and tone, and approach them accordingly.
For example, if the collar is angry or frustrated, simply apologizing at the right moment can help soothe the
tension and break down the barriers, so you can create space to establish rapport.
You can also build rapport by setting realistic expectations and goals.
Keeping your promises is crucial to customer satisfaction. So giving them realistic expectations for solutions is
critical.
Customers who are given a false promise or expectation, are far less satisfied than those who are given a realistic
expectation up front, even if you're telling them something they don't want to hear. Imagine that a customer
service agent talks you through a problem you're having with your phone.
The agent is patient, kind, and explains the solutions in a clear and concise manner. At the end of the call, you're
worried the issue will occur again. So the agent promises to call you in a few hours to make sure that things are
still running smoothly. Hours pass and the agent never calls. Well, your perception of the agent and your
experience as a whole, change now that you've been given a promise that wasn't kept. Chances are, your
opinion of the experience will be much more negative than it would have been if the agent hadn't made the
promise at all.
As a bonus, setting realistic expectations for customers, set you up to potentially exceed their expectations
rather than setting yourself and the customer up for failure. Remember, don't make promises you can't
keep. When developing relationships with callers, it's also important to learn how to recognize and respect
cultural differences. It is very likely that your callers will come from all over the world, as you might expect.
While focusing on building rapport with callers, it is important to be aware of the ways that cultures may differ
from one another.
For example, some cultures criticize displays of emotions more than others, believing that emotions may distort
reasoning. They may even regard using emotions as unprofessional. It is possible that callers from these
cultures, may appear to lack emotion or seem bored and uninterested.
Conversely, callers from more emotional cultures, may freely share when they are angry or upset.
Keeping these distinctions in mind can be beneficial when navigating conversations with people from different
cultures, but it is also important to avoid generalizations or assumptions. Instead, focus on starting each new
conversation with an open attitude. Be perceptive of the cultural differences you will learn about throughout the
course of your career, and concentrate on adjusting your behavior when you see fit.
In other words, be adaptable.
At the end of the day, building rapport with callers comes down to treating everyone you speak to with
respect. This will help to fortify a connection between you and your customers.
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You are what they hear.
Why is smiling so important? Have you ever thought about the benefits of smiling? Did you know that trainings
on smiling are common, especially in the area of customer support? But why is a smile so important, especially if
you're talking to a customer on the phone and they can't even see you?
Let's explore the answers to these questions. But before we do, here are two key terms to remember.
Duchenne smile.
A Duchenne smile is a smile where the corners of the mouth are upturned and the muscles
around the eyes are also engaged. Duchenne smiles are commonly known as smizing or smiling with the
eyes. Duchenne smiles are generally viewed as being more genuine than non-Duchenne smiles.
Non-Duchenne smile.
A non-Duchenne smile is a smile where only the corners of the mouth are upturned and the muscles
around the eyes are not engaged. Now let's get back to it. Why is it so important to smile even if you're on the
phone? In 2008, Amy Drahota, Alan Costall, and Vasudevi Reddy of the University of Portsmouth conducted
a study where they recorded people saying the same phrases while not smiling, making a Duchenne smile,
and making a non-Duchenne smile. Then they played those recordings back to other listeners.
The results of this study indicated that people could not only hear the difference between a smile and no
smile, they could actually hear what type of smile the speaker was making. In addition to this, research
conducted by Patricia Barger and Alicia Grandey also suggests that people feel more at ease when the person
they're talking to is smiling, and that customers report higher satisfaction with customer support professionals
who smile.
Hopefully, you now know why smiling is so important, especially for customer support professionals.
Always remember to say it with a smile. Smiling during customer interactions doesn't just benefit the
customer, there's actually a lot in it for you too. Working with customers can be stressful and you may
sometimes feel overwhelmed.
Managing your stress level is important and smiling is a great way to do it. You've probably heard the old
idiom "grin and bear it" which is used to tell people to smile during stressful or painful situations.
It turns out that there's actually some science behind it. Tara Kraft and Sarah Pressman conducted a study
where they had people smile through stressful situations. The results showed that people who were smiling
were able to recover from stress easier and were less stressed overall, even if the smile was artificially
manipulated. It's true, smiling helps decrease your body's stress responses, keeps your heart rate steady,
and even helps you fight depression and anxiety.
Smiling can be a real game-changer for both you and your customers by helping you feel more confident.
In the activities that follow, you will see for yourself just how beneficial smiling can be.
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Why is tone so important? Before we continue with the answer to this question, here's a key term to keep in
mind: enthusiasm.
In the case of providing customer support, enthusiasm refers to displaying genuine interest and compassion
for the subject you are working on as well as for the customer themselves. Did you know that the way you say
something is just as important as what you say?
We've all had a misunderstanding with a friend or loved one where they misread something we said or vice
versa.
For example, your partner might ask you to fold the laundry, and even though you're more than happy to,
something about the way that they say it makes you frustrated. They sound mad and unappreciated even if they
aren't. The frustration you feel is caused not by what is said, but by how it is said -- the tone.
Using the wrong or negative tone may lead to dissatisfaction and even unnecessary escalations in customer
support interactions. Tone really is something you need to be mindful of. Merely using positive language is not
enough. According to research by Debbie Laplante and Nalini Ambady at Harvard University, people are more
likely to view you as polite and interactions as positive if your tone reinforces the polite words that you're using.
To truly connect with your callers, you need to incorporate a positive tone of voice. Using a positive and polite
tone will help make your callers feel at ease and promote a positive perception of you and your company, and
there's more!
Your tone can also impact what your caller learns from you. Research by Linda Hutchinson suggests that people
learn better from teachers who are enthusiastic about the subject. Think about the teachers you learned the
most from; chances are these teachers were also teachers who were excited about the subject they taught and
eager to help you learn.
So, why is this relevant to you?

If you think about it, oftentimes customer support involves teaching. You are teaching callers how to solve a
problem, get the information they need, or complete a task that is very important to them. Being enthusiastic
and using a compassionate and genuine tone helps increase the caller's ability to recall information.
So, remember, the best customer support comes from those who make sure they're using a tone that is genuine
and enthusiastic.
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Why are nonverbal cues important?
It's not just your words and tone that contribute to the effectiveness of your call. Your nonverbal cues are also
important. The research done by Debi LaPlante and Nalini Ambadi suggests that people notice subtle differences
in your voice, based on the nonverbal cues you're giving off, and the differences come through even if
they cannot see you and are simply listening to your voice.
This means that your nonverbal cues can be just as important as what you say and how you say it.
Even when a customer does not see you, your posture, gestures, tone, and the pace of your speaking voice all
affects the outcome of the call.
The research by Debi LaPlante and Nalini Ambadi suggests that the nonverbal cues you use when you speak
influence the listener's perception of your politeness, tone, and mood. It's part of why we still do things like
gesticulate, change our facial expressions, and adjust our posture when we're on the phone.
People respond best to upbeat and genuine tones, and your caller's more likely to respond positively and feel
taken care of when you show patience, kindness, and genuine enthusiasm through your words and nonverbal
cues.
Remember, if your callers can't see you, they will be able to hear your air high five as you both celebrate your
collaborative efforts to resolve their issues or concerns. Believe it or not, nonverbal cues are also presented in
the way you type. If you are an agent who supports customers through email or chat, it's just as important to be
mindful of the way you type, as it is the way you speak. Research by Michael [inaudible] suggests that it's much
more difficult to detect nonverbal cues and mood through written communication, as opposed to verbal.
So your word choice and punctuation are key to helping customers determine the meaning of what you're
saying. It's also important to pay attention to the way your customer's typing to try to determine their mood.
Just remember not to make assumptions about the customers' intelligence or learning level based on the way
they type; such as typos and grammatical issues.
It can be more difficult to control the way a customer interprets what you say through text, rather than through
voice-based communication. But keeping things simple and professional is a great way to get
your message across and help your customers feel satisfied and informed. Now that you've learned the
importance of nonverbal cues in writing, here are some tips for success. Just like in verbal communication,
do not forget to stay polite and professional.
Avoid using ALL CAPS, since this can be interpreted as yelling. Don't overuse punctuation.
For instance, it's okay to use an exclamation point for emphasis or to express excitement. But using three is
excessive and increases the likelihood of a misunderstanding. Proofread your messages before sending,
and imagine you're reading them in a bad mood. If you see something you think could escalate the situation,
revise it to make your intentions clear.
Remember, you're there to help, and all text-based communications you send should reflect this to the
customer.
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Clear and concise information.
What strategies should I use to understand the problem the customer is experiencing.
In order to effectively help a customer, you must first understand the problem they're experiencing.
You may find that it is tempting to start thinking about how to solve a problem before you fully understand
it. The active listening skills you use to build report really come in handy when trying to identify a problem.
For example,
you may say something like it sounds like your computer is running too slowly. This tactic can ensure that you
understand the problem the customer is experiencing by repeating the problem back to them and
getting confirmation before suggesting a solution.
You can also ask follow up questions to clarify and narrow down the solution. Follow up questions can include
asking a customer how long they have been experiencing the problem or if they have taken any troubleshooting
steps on their own before calling in for help.
After you determine the problem, then you can show the customer how you can help. Explain your proposed
solution to the caller. This helps callers to feel included in the process and to know that they have been
heard. Explain why the solution will work by telling the customer what you're doing, why and how it will solve
their problem.
You will help ensure that they are eager to proceed with the solution. However, be careful in your
explanation. Remember to be clear, concise and not too technical in order to avoid any additional
confusion. When you use active listening strategies to understand the problem first and then carefully and
concisely provide an explanation of how you can help. You will find that you will reduce your call times and
leave your callers feeling more satisfied with the service you have provided.
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Clear and concise information, how do I ask clear and concise questions. Once you believe you understand the
problem, it then becomes important to use questioning strategies to learn more about the problem.
This is something you will need to learn to do to become an effective customer service agent.
It may be challenging at first because we are often inclined to give customers the right answer immediately,
rather than take the extra time that may be needed to ask the right questions in the right way.
Your active listening skills will be valuable to you once again, by allowing you to reflect on the caller's problem
and follow up with questions. Asking follow up questions throughout the call ensures understanding between
you and the caller, keep your questions clear, concise and fact based. Open ended questions should be used to
gather information while evaluating the problem. Closed ended questions are used to focus on one specific area
at a time and confirm facts.
Explain the purpose of your questions to callers, letting a caller know why you're asking these questions will help
with understanding of the overall problem and decrease the likelihood that callers will become annoyed from
needing to answer so many questions. Make sure each question serves a purpose, asking unnecessary
questions can make the caller annoyed as well as increase your call time.
Stick to the questions that will help you solve the problem at hand. As you talk to your callers, it's also important
to be aware of your use of technical language. Using overly technical language can confuse callers. It's best to
substitute the technical term for a more basic term whenever possible, pay attention to the language the caller
uses and meet them where they are.
When it is clear that the caller does not know the correct name of something, include descriptions of the items
options you are referring to. For example, instead of saying, click on the file explorer icon on the task bar, you
can say click on the image of the file folder at the bottom of your screen. You may also decide to model the use of
the correct term. For example, in the case of a task bar, you could simply say click on the task bar, the bar at the
bottom of your screen, the caller will know what you're referring to and may also learn a new useful term.
However, be careful not to introduce too much, remember that your focus should be on supporting the caller,
not teaching them vocabulary, too much of this will interfere with your goal of keeping things simple.
One exception to the technical language rule is when the caller introduces technical language into the
conversation themselves and seems to demonstrate technical knowledge. In this case it's okay to adjust to their
language level, but it is still recommended that you use descriptive language to make sure that you and the
caller are still on the same page.
As you progress through the call and continue to introduce new steps language and work towards a solution, it's
very important to ask follow up questions to make sure the caller is performing the steps as instructed and they
do not become overwhelmed or lost by the instructions.
Asking purposeful, clear and concise questions will enable you to isolate the root cause of the problem and
steer the conversation in the right direction toward a solution.
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Clear and concise information.
Why is it important to keep things simple? Before we continue with the answer to this question,
here are two key terms to keep in mind.
KISS Principle. This stands for keep it simple and straightforward, also called, keep it simple stupid,
keep it simple silly, keep it short and simple.
The KISS Principle suggests that systems work best if they're kept as simple as possible. Occam's Razor.
This is a philosophical principle stating that when multiple solutions exist, the simplest solution is usually the
best. This principle should only be used when both solutions work equally well.
But one is more complex than the other. Of course, Occam's Razor does not refer to an actual razor.
The metaphor is designed to help you remember to get rid of unnecessary steps just as a razor shaves off excess
hair. When communicating with customers and offering solutions, it's important to keep it simple and
straightforward. By adhering to the KISS Principle, you will eliminate unnecessary information.
Focus on what is essential and lead caller step-by-step to a solution through clear explanations.
This means you will need to be mindful of how much context you are providing. It's also important to keep in
mind that customers are often frustrated with the issue they're experiencing by the time they decide to reach out
for support.
By giving them quick and simple steps and explanations toward a solution, you will help reduce their stress
and frustration ensuring satisfaction.
Occam's Razor is also important to keep in mind. Remember that systems work best when they are kept
simple by shaving off unnecessary steps. Picking the simplest solution helps to save your time as well as the
callers and increases the likelihood that the customer can solve the same problem in the future without any
further guidance.
Keeping things simple is a win-win.

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If you're interested in reading more about the subjects we covered in this lesson, here are some additional
resources for you to check out!
(Note: Reading more is optional, but it's always a good idea to learn as much as you can!)
The Kiss Principle
Occam’s Razor And The 8 Models Of Attribution
What is Occam's Razor?
Margaret Mary Riel and Linda Polin, Learning Communities: Common Ground and Critical Differences in
Designing Technical Support. 2004.
Habit 5: Ethos, Pathos, Logos. Stephen R. Covey, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. 1989. Print.
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Just the facts.
How do I get to the facts so I can lead customers through a fact based problem resolution.
When callers reach out for help, they are not always sure of what exactly they are asking for.
This causes them to give you information that may not be relevant or factual, leaving you with the important job
of getting to the facts.
For example, a caller may begin a call by stating that their phone is broken. You will not know if they actually
mean that they dropped it on the ground and it broke into pieces, that it won't turn on, or that the screen is
frozen. And each of these scenarios, the caller would be correct in saying that their phone is broken.
Good listening skills are a lot more than just being silent while the other person talks. On the contrary, good
listeners periodically ask questions that promote insight and strive toward understanding.
Your good listening skills will make or break the customer experience. You must actively listen while recapping
facts to be sure you get them right.
When a caller tells you my phone is broken, you will need to get to the facts quickly by asking probing
questions. These questions must be on point, and eliminate the need for customers to have to repeat
themselves.
This will keep handle time down, eliminate errors and keep customers happy. Few things annoy customers more
than having to repeat themselves. While asking probing questions to get to the facts, you may decide to
record the facts by writing them down, especially when you are solving a complex problem. Remember,
customers get annoyed when you ask them to repeat themselves too often.
It's important to note that the tone the caller uses as well as the way their problem makes them feel.
Are also facts you must take into account in order to solve the caller's problem. Taking note of how the caller is
impacted by their problems and their level of stress, will help you adjust your approach. And give you a good
indication of the likelihood that the situation could escalate.
Once you have gathered the facts, analyze them to determine not only the cause of the problem, but also the
best way to solve it.
Use these facts to guide the caller through the solution.

Be mindful of the fact that when callers contact you for support, they may already feel lost and in need of a great
guide, who offers clear and concise direction. As the caller's guide, they're relying on you to provide
them with the directions they need quickly and efficiently. In order to provide them with the best directions
possible, it's important to lead them with instructions that will break the problem down into easy to manage
steps, that can be tackled one by one.
For example, if a caller is having trouble sending an email on their new cell phone, you would tell them where to
find the option to create a message, how to add a recipient. How to add more than one recipient, how to add a
subject, how to enter the message and how to tap the send icon.
This may seem like a lot for a task that most of us do every day. As you previously learned, sometimes you can
shave off some steps, but only when they are not necessary and make the solutions less complex.
Believe it or not, guiding callers through instructions step by step actually saves time by ensuring that the caller
doesn't get confused. It provides them with opportunities to ask questions for clarification as needed, so they do
not need to call back.
It also makes them feel that they are receiving personalized support, since you are taking the time to really help
them. Customers will feel more satisfied when they sense you're being patient. They do not want to feel like you
are watching the clock or timing the call. Remember, leading customers through explanations step by step after
you have probed for the facts actually saves everyone time.
Taking the time to gather and analyze facts to guide callers through concise, step by step explanations, is never
a waste of time.
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Just the facts.
What is information overload,
and how can I help customers who are experiencing it?
In today's technological age,
with information being provided to us constantly
from both reliable and unreliable sources.
Information overload is a huge problem
that agents face on a daily basis.
As a customer support agent,
you will be able to listen for information overload.
You will hear it in your customers voices.
Customers having access to
too much or incorrect information
can cause information overload.
Information overload is a term that
is used to describe the feeling of being so
over-saturated with information on
any given topic that you are unable
to process any additional information.
Customers can inflict information overload on
themselves inadvertently by doing their own research.
Experiencing information overload is
frustrating and can cause callers
to become angry and feel overwhelmed.
Sometimes, by the time they get to you,
they are unable to properly
comprehend any new information.
It is important for you to be able
to recognize information overload.
Callers who are experiencing
information overload will generally be frustrated and
they may mention that they have been working on solving
the problem themselves for an extended period of time.
Callers experiencing information overload will
provide a lot of background information on the situation,
as well as any methods to solve
the problem that they have tried already.
The caller will also be
very eager for a quick solution to
their problem and may even demand
that the situation be resolved promptly,
since they have been working hard
to resolve the issue themselves.
The caller may appear distrustful or judgmental.
Again, this is because they have been
researching solutions on their own.
They may be worried that you will not be able to
fix their problem in the same way that they couldn't.
The caller will also be impatient and will
likely see the problem as a huge waste of their time.
Staying calm and patient is key for
callers experiencing information overload,
and you may have to refocus them and remind
them that you are both working
hard to solve their problem.
They're likely to be calm and more
patient once they receive these reminders.
Arming yourself with the ability to
recognize information overload is essential.
In the next lesson video,
you will learn more strategies to assist
callers overcome information overload,
as well as strategies to help you prevent it.
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Just the Facts.
How do I prevent and fix Information Overload?
As you can probably imagine, working with callers who come to you in a frazzled
state due to information overload will be a pretty common occurrence.
It's important to note that agents can inadvertently cause
information overload by giving a caller too much information at once,
giving unclear instructions, or by using overly technical language.
Luckily, information overload as possible to overcome and the strategies to use
to avoid causing it will sound familiar based on previous lessons in this module.
You can help out the caller by asking what they've already tried to do to solve
their problem, and then skipping those troubleshooting steps.
By skipping these steps, you will likely help to reduce caller stress and
on our efforts they have already taken to solve their own problem.
You should also avoid providing too much background
information to callers when solving an issue.
For example, it might be appropriate to tell a customer, who is installing
a new update, about a great new feature available to get them excited, but they do
not need to know everything that's new or the reasons why the update was released.
This is particularly critical when helping a caller solve a complicated
problem that could have caused damage to their device.
Providing them with too much information about the damage it may have done,
may incite panic and that sense of panic will be of no use to you or the customer.
Again, it is important to avoid using overly technical language.
Callers will already feel overwhelmed by their problem and
adding complicated technical language on top of this,
is likely to make them feel even more overwhelmed.
Along with not providing too much background information on the caller's
problem, be sure to stick to the facts and steps needed to solve the problem.
Do not ask the caller to perform more steps than necessary, and
avoid providing them with too much additional information.
Through your lessons in Module One,
you have already explored many of these strategies.
From now on, just consider them to be best practice.
They will help you when working with overwhelmed customers.
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 Chandra Pradha, Lynn Silipigni Connaway, Lawrence Olszewski, and Lillie R. Jenkins, “What is
enough? Satisficing information needs”. 2006.
 Bitran, Gabriel R; Hoech, Johannes, “The Humanization of Service: Respect at the Moment of Truth”.
1990.
 Martin J. Eppler and Jeanne Mengis, A Framework for Information Overload Research in
Organizations. 2003.
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Tricks of the trade.
How do I make no sound like yes?
No can be very difficult to say and even harder to hear.
Unfortunately, not every request from a caller can be satisfied.
There will be times when you cannot solve a problem or when
a customer will make a request that goes against company policy.
In these cases, being able to make no sound like yes
is an incredibly valuable skill that can help you avoid escalation.
There actually is an art to saying no.
Focus on these five tips and turn no into yes in no time.
One, stay calm and confident.
Even if the caller seems angry,
make sure that you stay calm and polite as you explain the situation.
Two, express regret and offer an explanation.
For example, if a customer wants support for
a product that you are no longer providing support for,
you might say, "I'm sorry,
we are no longer offering support for that product."
Three, be enthusiastic about what you can offer the caller and express empathy.
For example, you might say,
"I can upgrade you to the latest version of that software.
The latest version actually doesn't have the problem you're experiencing.
I know you'd like to fix which you already have,
but I promise, the latest version is much better."
Four, maintain a smile and stay confident, but firm.
The caller may try to argue with you and be frustrated,
but staying confident and keeping a smile on your face while
staying patient and maintaining your resolve will help.
Five, don't go against company policy.
If the caller tries to get you to go against company policy,
such as trying to convince you to provide support for an outdated product you
are no longer servicing or replace a product that is out of warranty,
stay calm and stick to company policy.
Remember these hints and become an expert at declining
the requests that you are not able to fulfill with compassion and resolve.
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Tricks of the trade.
How do I adapt to the caller's skill level?
As you have heard in the previous lessons,
there is no one size fits
all approach that will work perfectly for every caller.
This is part of what makes customer support
a field that is both challenging and rewarding.
Treating each caller as
an average customer and therefore,
assuming that all callers have foundational knowledge,
maybe attempting weight to handle customer support.
But the simple fact is that each caller
will require personalized support.
You will encounter callers who require more help and
appear to be at a more basic level of understanding.
These callers may not have
much of a grasp as to what caused
their problem and they only know that
something is broken and not working properly.
In these cases, the best strategy is to ask
more questions that guide
the caller along throughout the call,
such as, now that you've clicked "Okay" do
you see the box that asks you to confirm your selection?
It is also a good idea to
continually check for understanding.
Asking them if they understand
your instructions using common,
not technical language is
especially critical for these callers.
Many of your callers will be at
an average level of understanding.
This means that they will clearly know what's wrong and
at least have a grasp as to
what may have caused their problem.
You'll be able to tell that they
understand their problem because they will
volunteer an explanation for their problem
quickly and may even
discuss what may have caused the problem.
In these cases, you may not have to give them
as much background information as you would give
a caller with a lower level of understanding.
However, it's still important to
make sure that the caller is provided with
step-by-step concise instructions and
to use common language when possible.
You may occasionally encounter
callers with higher levels of understanding.
This type of call happens less
frequently because customers with high levels of
understanding tend to be those
who are able to direct themselves to
the correct solution using
the Internet and past experiences.
It can be easy to identify them because often they will
use technical terms and
present more background knowledge.
With these callers, you can adjust to their level of
understanding by mirroring
their technical language skills.
It's still important to check for
understanding and ask follow-up questions occasionally.
But you may find you do not have to do so as often.
The most important thing to remember is that you must
adapt to the level of the caller no matter what it is.
Providing excellent customer service
is a continuous learning process.
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Tricks of the Trade.
Reproduce el video desde ::5 y sigue la transcripción0:05

How do I take ownership of the caller's problem?

Taking ownership of a call is a fundamental step in providing excellent
service simply stating at the start of the call that you're happy to help resolve
the issue allows a caller to know that you're taking responsibility.

A study by the building group suggests that taking ownership of the customer's
problem is the most important factor in spreading positive word of mouth.

This makes taking ownership one of the most important tools
you'll use in your career but how was it done?
Empathize with your caller.
It's important to let the caller know that you care about the issue
they are experiencing have you ever told a friend about a problem
you were experiencing?
Only to have them say that stinks or that sounds bad, simple replies like
this can actually make you feel as though the friend wasn't listening
closely rather than using simple statements, respond to the caller's
problem by saying something like, no, I'm so sorry to hear that.
I know how frustrating it is when your phone won't work, but I'm here to
help not only will the caller feel heard, they'll also warm up to you and
understand how important it is to you that their problem is solved quickly.
Reproduce el video desde :1:33 y sigue la transcripción1:33

Don't take the easy way out.
It can be easy to brush off any problem that's not yours or
to give the caller a quick fix that may only solve their problem temporarily or
just get them started and trust that they will figure the rest out on their own..
Taking the easy way out will not only make the call or
feel that you really don't care, but it may provoke the need for them
to call again soon take all the necessary steps and let the caller no, you'll
do what you can to fix their problem and make sure it doesn't happen again.

Be a resource.
The caller is relying on you to provide them with accurate
support it's important to provide them with the information they need, but
also to admit when you do not know the answer.
When you are unable to help a caller, you will need to direct them to
someone who can know who the experts on the subject are and let the caller,
no, you're going to direct them to someone who can best help them.
Tell the caller what you will do to help get them to the next level of support and
follow through.
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Can being empathetic help keep situations from escalating Daniel Goleman, a psychologist, science
journalist. And author of the bestselling book emotional intelligence defines empathy as the ability to
understand others emotions.
In his research, he proposes that at a deeper level empathy is about defining understanding and reacting
to the concerns. And needs that underpin the emotional responses and reactions of others. So what does
it mean? And what is the value of empathy and customer service? Well, whether customers call over a
problem, a complaint or an inquir. Your job as a customer service agent is not only to fix the problem. But
to also make the customer feel heard, respected and understood.
When you put yourself in your customer's shoes, you allow yourself to act upon their needs. And you put
the customer into a state of discussion rather than complaint as Stephen Covey American educator,
author, businessman. And keynote speaker once said when you show deep empathy toward others. Their
defensive energy goes down and positive energy replaces it. That's when you can get more creative in
solving problems.
Exercising empathy in customer service will not only make a huge difference in the customers eyes. But it
will help you do your job better.
You'll have a good grasp on what is upsetting the customer. So you will be able to provide a solution that
fits their needs. Showing empathy opens the door to positive and genuine connections.
You'll gain valuable information by just listening carefully.
It will show that you care and in return you'll win your customers loyalty. As you can see empathy comes
in handy when dealing with customers, especially if they have a problem or complaint.
Time to put the focus back on you. How in tune are you with other people? Do you find it easy to connect
with others? Let's look at some essential characteristics. Empathetic people tend to exhibit. So you can
find out if you need help with your empathy skills.
Empathetic people have the ability to hear without thinking about their response. Their focus is on
understanding, not on a quick fix. They tune into emotional and nonverbal communication cues. They
generally put the needs of other people first, they'll go the extra mile for people.
They tend to act on others needs and feelings they respect and relate well to everyone regardless of their
background.
If empathy does not come naturally to you, it is something that can be improved upon by working on
your empathy skills. As we already mentioned, an essential part of empathy is listening to the other
person's message. The entire message. Try to listen not only with your ears but also with your eyes,
instincts and heart. Nonverbal cues are as important as verbal ones.
Put aside your point of view and try to see the other person's side. You need to place the focus on the
customer, not on you acknowledge the other person's perspective. You may learn something new and
valuable, developing and showing. Empathy is perhaps the most significant effort you can make toward
improving your people skills. When you understand others, they'll be more likely to want to understand
you.
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Can the contagious nature of positivity help you build meaningful connections?
Can the contagious nature of
positivity help you build meaningful connections?
Stay positive, is something you've heard before,
but is positivity something that comes to us naturally,
or are we as humans
instinctually focused on the negative?
Let's get to the bottom of it now.
First, what is positivity?
Martin Seligman, the founder of positive psychology,
defines positivity as the ability
to be optimistic and view the past,
present, and future in a positive perspective.
In a study he conducted on
positivity and its impact on performance,
he proposed that positive people are more likely to
be successful at achieving their goals than pessimists.
In another study conducted by John Cacioppo and
his colleagues in 1998 on positivity and negativity,
it was observed that most people
react more strongly to negative stimuli
and that our attitude is more
significantly influenced by negative experiences.
If negativity is hard-wired into humans,
are we all doomed to failure when it
comes to exercising positivity?
Not at all according to Seligman.
His research on positivity
further shows that people can actually
transform a tendency toward pessimistic thinking into
positive thinking through simple techniques
that create lasting changes in behavior.
This is good news since positivity is listed by
most employers as a must-have skill in customer service.
Dealing with customer complaints on
a day-to-day basis can be pretty stressful.
Stress can easily bring on negative feelings that may
affect your job performance
and your interaction with the customer.
Maintaining a positive mental attitude
in customer service is essential in
order to respond effectively to
challenges related to the job duties,
including establishing
meaningful connections with the customers.
As we say in customer service,
a positive attitude means happy customers.
But what does it take to look at the bright side of
things and transform yourself into a positive thinker.
Let's review four essential characteristics
of positive thinkers
that you should adapt to positively
influence the customers' attitude.
Positive thinkers rarely complaint in life.
They are grateful for the
positive as it outweighs the negative.
They are focused on positive thoughts and goals.
They have the courage to move past negative experiences.
Lastly, they find enjoyment
in the small positives in life.
Looking on the bright side of life is
not something that is easy to do when
we are genetically programmed to
view all glasses as half empty.
How can we infuse
more positivity into our thought patterns?
Simple, with practice.
For example, these seven steps
can make a profound impact on your approach to
life and ultimately create
a more positive outcome with dealing
with customers and building rapport.
Stop negative self-talk.
Most of the time,
these thoughts are not based on facts.
Learn from negative experiences and move on.
Don't dwell on the negative,
but instead on the outcome.
Approach everything with gratitude,
the good and the bad.
Trick your mind into being more positive through smiling.
Let go of your need for perfection.
Don't try to fight against things and allow them to be,
so they can be addressed effectively.
Working in customer service can be extremely draining,
but it can also be exceptionally gratifying.
Just remember to focus on the
positive and embrace that sense of
completion you'll get when you
actually manage to make the customer happy.
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Further Reading
If you're interested in reading more about the subjects we covered in this lesson, including some of the
studies referenced in your lectures, here are some additional resources for you to check out!
(Note: Reading more is optional, but it's always a good idea to learn as much as you can!) Gregory Ciotti,
The Personality that Succeeds in Customer Support.
Brenda Brown Williams, Customer Service with a Smile, Patience and Good Communications.
Bill Widmer, 10 Excellent Customer Service Skills for 5-Star Support.
Barbara Khozam, Patience: The Building Block to Exceptional Customer Service.

Pascal, The 8 Customer Service Skills And Traits You Should Look For.
16 Customer Service Skills That Drive Every Business.

Sarah A. Scnitker, "An examination of patience and well-being". 2012.
Huitt, W. "Empathetic Listening". 2009.

Peterson, C. & Seligman, M. (2004). Character strengths and virtues: A handbook and classification.
Oxford: Oxford University Press. Print.
Goleman, D. (2005) Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More Than IQ. New York, NY: Bantam
Books. Print.
Ito, T. A., Larsen, J. T., Smith, N. K., & Cacioppo, J. T. (1998). Negative information weighs more heavily on
the brain: The negativity bias in evaluative categorizations. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology,
75(4), 887-900. Print.
Seligman, Martin E.P. (2004). "Can Happiness be Taught?" Daedalus, Spring 2004. Print.
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How can I become a highly focused agent?

How can I become a highly focused agent?
Voluntarily keeping our attention
on one thing can take a lot of effort.
Research actually shows that most people have
wandering minds and struggled to stay focused.
According to Daniel Kahneman, a psychologist,
and author of Thinking Fast and Slow,
our brain is divided into two systems.
The automatic system and the reflective system.
The automatic system makes automatic decisions for us,
while the reflective system
involves the voluntary part of our brain.
The reflective system processes information fed by
the automatic system and
determines what we should focus on.
Why does it take so much work to
keep our reflective system in check?
Because we are constantly under
attack by both sensory distractions,
our surroundings, and emotional distractions.
Our thoughts explains Daniel Kahneman.
Before we discuss the benefits
of staying focused at work,
let's review some statistics related to
the impact of lack of focus in the workplace.
They are quite telling.
Different studies on the cost of not
paying attention at work show that
an average desk job employee loses
2.1 hours a day to distractions and interruptions.
That employees who do
the majority of their work on computers are
on average distracted once every 10.5 minutes.
This equates to a significant loss of productivity.
We all lose our focus at times, it's inevitable.
The key question is,
what do you do to get your focus back?
First, you need to understand
the value of staying focused,
and then you need to practice.
Research shows that much like a muscle
your reflective system can be trained to do a better job.
Obviously, one of the major benefits
of staying focused at
work is less wasted time and increased productivity.
Focus is the gateway to all thinking, perception, memory,
learning, reasoning,
problem-solving, and decision-making.
So if you can't focus effectively,
you can't think effectively
and you can't get the job done.
Staying focused on a task, a project,
or on a call with the customer is essential to
achieving your goals and
performing your job duties efficiently.
When you stay focused on a task,
you can get it done faster.
You make fewer mistakes and produce higher quality work.
Complex tasks won't scare you,
you complete them in no time.
As we just learned,
we are all exposed to
many distractions in life and in the workplace.
But how is it that some people can easily
tune them out or work through them and others can't?
What is the secret of highly focused people?
Is their reflective system
genetically more developed than others?
Or have they trained it to perform more effectively?

Let's look at the things
highly focused people do and don't do,
and then let's review ways you can regain your focus.
Focus people avoid small talk,
they have better and more productive things
to do with their time.
They don't multitask.
Studies show that working on
more than two complicated tasks at
a time increases the amount of mistakes made.
They don't put off any tasks,
they push through the challenges
to get them done on time.
They clear noises, they stop
distractions before they break their concentration,
and impact their productivity.
They don't say yes to everything.
They know you can't always please everyone,
and sometimes you have to say no to people
if you want your priorities to precede theirs.
They're highly organized.
Disorganization not only causes stress
but can lead to wasted time and unproductivity.
They are goal-driven, nothing can stop them
from achieving what they set themselves to accomplish.
They don't quit when things get tough.
Identifying what breaks
your concentration and eliminating
the triggers is the first step
toward improving your focus.
If you maximize your environment and train your brain,
focused moments will be
easier to come by when you want them.
Start by removing as many distractions as possible,
go to a quiet space,
or turn off notifications.
Have a plan on how to tackle a task or a project,
and create to-do list to prioritize tasks.
Don't second guess yourself,
it is a waste of your time and energy.
Compartmentalize tasks and projects,
set some focus time for each
using the Pomodoro Technique, for example.
The Pomodoro Technique was
invented in the early '90s by developer,
entrepreneur, and author Francesco Cirillo.
The methodology is simple.
When faced with any large task or a series of tasks,
break the work down into short timed intervals
called pomodoros that are spaced out with short breaks.
In the activities that follow this lesson,
you will have the opportunity to test
the Pomodoro Technique and see if it is right for you.
As the American writer and critic,
Howard Rheingold once said,
"Attention is a limited resource,
so pay attention to where you pay attention."
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Is persistence the path to successful resolutions?

Is persistence the path to successful resolutions? We've all heard the saying before, persistence pays off or
if at first you don't succeed try, try again. So why is it that most people underrate the value of persistence
in the workforce? A study conducted by Brian J Lucas and Lauren F Norgren from Northwestern University
in 2015 shows that people consistently underestimated how productive they would be while persisting.
And that undervaluing persistence may lead people to losing out on their most creative ideas by quitting
too soon. This confirms what Thomas Edison once said that many of life's failures are people who did not
realize how close they were to success when they gave up. This is an issue in any industry. Any project that
holds obtainable and successful achievement requires persistence. Without workplace persistence projects
cannot get completed. The fact is persistence along with behavioral variety and behavioral cognitive
flexibility was identified as an essential contributor to problem solving success. Few people accomplish
their goals the first time around, persistence enables you to try again and again after you fail. It's useful in
any profession that requires problem solving skills, including customer service. Persistence pays off when
you address the needs of your customer and meet those needs. It shows that you value the customer and
that you are working hard to solve their issue. It allows you to push through challenges and work toward a
resolution and it gives you the ability to stick with the customer's problem until it is resolved. So, what
keeps persistent people going long after most of us have given up? A set of personality traits and values
that can be easily acquired with persistence. Most persistent people have a goal or vision in mind that
motivates and drives them. They know what they want and are seldom swayed by the opinions of the
masses. They strongly believe that everything they do will count towards their outcome in the end. They
have the ability to adjust and adapt their action plan when faced with challenges. Most importantly, they
understand that any goal will take time, effort and the continuous learning of new skills. Persistence is not
an easy choice. It comes with facing your fears of hardship, discomfort and uncertainty. But if you want to
be successful in customer service, you'll need to get out of your comfort zone. If you are ready to use
persistence to reach success, there are a couple things you can start doing. Build discipline and habits so
you can stay the course despite difficulties, stay positive, avoid negative thoughts as they bring on fear
and doubt and will prevent you from being successful. List all of your goals no matter how difficult or
impossible they seem to achieve this will keep you focused on the outcome. Outline your action steps so
you know how you'll achieve your goals. Having a clear vision of the how will help you achieve your goals
faster. Just remember the longer you hang in there, the greater the chance that something will happen in
your favor.
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What does fear have to do with it?
From an evolutionary point of view,
fear is a natural emotion that used to
protect our ancestors from predators.
Today, fear still helps us in
dangerous situations by triggering
our fight or flight response.
When fear is proportionate to the level of danger,
it is a normal and adaptive response.
However, when fear is
disproportionate or last longer than expected,
it can incapacitate us.
Disproportionate fear not only prevents us
from adapting normally to everyday situations,
but it also impacts our brain by
completely changing the way we process information.
When we fear, our logical thinking is replaced by
overwhelming emotions favoring
short-term solutions and sudden reactions.
This impacts our thinking and
decision-making processes in negative ways.
There are many customer service scenarios that
can be easily misconstrued as threatening,
especially when dealing with angry customers.
Letting your fears get the best of you may
prevent you from focusing on what needs to be done.
What are your worst fears when dealing with customers,
an angry customer,
an unappreciated service or a failure to deliver?
Sometimes these situations are
unavoidable in customer service,
so you'd better be prepared.
The good news is that for
each negative situation you may have to face,
many more will turn out just fine.
All situations,
even the hardest ones are
opportunities to learn something new,
move forward and establish
a better rapport with your customers.
There may be times when you misinterpret
the situation and things
turn out much better than expected.
Eliminating unproductive emotions
while dealing with customers
will allow you to clearly hear
their message and focus on their needs.
How fearless are you when it comes to
dealing with stressful situations?
Well, if you don't spend much time
hesitating when making decisions,
even life-changing ones, you're probably pretty fearless.

Fearless people don't let failure stop them from
moving on and achieving their ultimate goals.
They have a strong sense of cell.
They believe in themselves and in everything they
do and they like to step outside of the box.
According to Albert Bandura's concept of self-efficacy,
people get either more or less capable
depending on the outcome of prior experiences.
People who performed well in the past will
tend to believe the same will hold in the future.
The more you face your fears and
approach them as challenges to be conquered,
the better you'll get at
overcoming them the next time around.
There are some things you can do to
prepare yourself when confronting fear.
Analyze and understand your fear.
Is it based on facts or assumptions?
Educate yourself.
In many cases,
fear is associated to the unknown.
Get the information or knowledge you need to
approach the situation in a rational manner.
Plan for the worst.
Prepare, practice, and role-play.
You can handle the unexpected by preparing for it.
Consistently expose yourself the things that scare you,
but do this one small goal at
a time so that you don't get overwhelmed.
The ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle said it well,
an individual develops courage by doing courageous acts.
Don't fear the customer experience,
it is an opportunity for personal growth,
successful resolution,
and establishing meaningful connections.
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Further Reading
Bill Widmer, 10 Excellent Customer Service Skills for 5-Star Support.

Stephen Edmund Gillam Lea, Pizza Ka Ye Chow, and Lisa Leaver. "How practice makes perfect: The role of
persistence, flexibility and learning in problem-solving efficiency". 2016.
Sling Team, The 20 Most Important Customer Service Skills You Need To Have.
Bandura, A. (1994). Self-efficacy. In V. S. Ramachaudran (Ed.), Encyclopedia of human behavior (Vol. 4, pp.
71-81). New York: Academic Press. (Reprinted in H. Friedman [Ed.], Encyclopedia of mental health. San
Diego: Academic Press, 1998). Print.
Smallwood, J., Mrazek, M. & Schooler, J. (2011). Medicine for the wandering mind: Mind wandering in
medical practice. Medical Education, 45 (11), 1072-1080.
Kahneman, Daniel. (2011) Thinking, fast and slow /New York : Farrar, Straus and Giroux. Print.
Lucas, B. J., & Nordgren, L. F. (2015). People underestimate the value of persistence for creative
performance. Journal of personality and social psychology, 109(2), 232-243. DOI: 10.1037/pspa0000030
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How can curiosity help me bridge knowledge gaps?
Before we talk about how important
curiosity is in customer service,
let's review a couple of theories about this
highly sought out employee personality trait.
In 1899, philosopher and psychologist William James,
defined curiosity as
the impulse towards better cognition,
meaning that it is the desire
to understand what you do not know.
This supports the information gap theory on curiosity,
which was first developed by
George Loewenstein of Carnegie Mellon in the early '90s.
According to Loewenstein, curiosity is rather simple.
It comes when we feel a gap between
what we know and what we want to know.
Another theory put forth about
curiosity is the notion of a CQ or
curiosity quotient that is measurable and
indicative of your personal level of curiosity.
The term CQ was introduced
by author and journalist Thomas L.
Friedman as part of
an illustrated formula to explain how individuals
can be powerfully motivated to learn
about a personally interesting subject,
whether or not they possess
a particularly high intelligence quotient; IQ.
According to Friedman, when curiosity is paired with
passion in the exploration of a subject of interest,
an individual may be able
to acquire an amount of knowledge
comparable to that of
a person who is exceptionally intelligent.
This makes employees with
high CQs quite desirable assets.
Why do curious people make for better employees?
People with high CQs have a natural drive for
seeking knowledge through conversation
and any other means.
They are inquisitive and natural learners.
They take the time to question and explore new things.
They dedicate time to work on a solution.
They are passionate problem-solvers.
Everyone is born with
a natural desire to question everything.
It's innate and natural to every child,
but somehow along the way,
we stopped asking why, how?
Are you one who believes that curiosity killed the cat?
Curious to find out just how curious you are?
If so, chances are your CQ is pretty high.
Let's review some habits that curious people
tend to exhibit so you can better gauge your CQ.
Curious people ask a lot of questions.
No surprise there.
They listen without judgment.
They like and seek surprises.
They are willing to be wrong.
They are not afraid to say, "I don't know."
Of course, they always make time for curiosity.
Curiosity is a stable trait and
some people are innately more curious than others.
However, anyone can boost
their level of curiosity with a little effort.
The first step is to recognize that things
that get in the way of your inherent curiosity.
Research shows that fear related to the unknown,
rejection and disappointment inhibit curiosity.
As do social pressures and the urge
to be compliant, certain, or right.
What is the best way to increase your CQ?
Start asking for more.
Don't assume you know it all.
Be open to learning new things.
Find excitement in learning and approach learning
as a fun experience rather than a requirement.
Observe and explore.
Observe the people and world around you.
You can learn so much from your surroundings.
Expand your horizon,
explore new ideas and learn from others.
Try new things, get out of
your comfort zone and enter uncharted territories.
Curiosity is the key to
learning, innovation and creation.
Never stop asking questions and seeking knowledge.
Really, curiosity did not kill the cat,
but its inability to adapt to changes certainly did.
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Why is the innate desire to help essential in customer service?

Humans have a strong and natural desire to help each other.

Studies show that human beings spend relatively more time than any other
creature in need of care and protection, and because of this,
the desire to help others is present in all of us.

However, the degree to which we exhibit this tendency and
to whom we reach out depends on our own biochemical makeup.

So other than the pure and inherent impulse to serve,
what else drives people to help?
In most cases, people are motivated to help because of the bonding experience
that results between the helper and the helpee as a result of the interaction.
With the ever rising level of expectation for
great service by customers, this personality trait does come in handy.

Nothing gives you a better chance to help a customer than the genuine desire
to do so.

People with a helpful attitude are instinctively driven to assist people in
challenging situations, and
customer service is never short of challenging situations.

Studies on helpfulness show that it is a great catalyst to problem solving.
Customer service agents that are genuinely motivated to help others are more
likely to actively listen to a customer's complaint and act accordingly.

They are more equipped to quickly identify sources of conflict and
put a remedy into action immediately.
Showing customers your willingness to efficiently sort
through the mess is also valuable to them and your employer.
Being a natural helper takes hardly any experience,
only an attentive ear and your intrinsic willingness to help.

Are you a good listener?
Do you have the ability to put yourself in other people's shoes?
Then you just might be a great natural helper.

Natural helpers have a social intelligence that tells them how to behave or
respond to others in need.

They also demonstrate verbal skills similar to those formally learned by
professional helpers.
Since customers are more likely to respond in a positive
way when you're approach is accommodating, action driven, and friendly,
it is essential that you cultivate your willingness to learn.

Start every conversation with a smile.
Remember what you learned earlier, smiling on a call or
during an online conversation sends out positive signals to your customers.

Always let the customer finished speaking before entering the conversation.
When you ask questions, place the focus on the customer's stated concern or problem.
Avoid passing a customer's problem to someone else.
Customers will be more likely to become frustrated if it takes multiple phone
calls to reach the only person who can solve their problems.

Finally, look for additional ways to help your customers,
even if they don't ask for it.
Suggest additional services offered a troubleshoot additional problems and
always follow up to ensure that the customer is satisfied with the outcome.

Remember that your willingness to help is the only motivation you may ever
need to problem solve most situations.
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Why is it important to ask for help at work?
At some point, even the best of us need help.
So why are we so reluctant to ask for assistance?
Research shows that most of us
don't ask for help simply because we
underestimate how likely others
are to actually say yes when asked.
Surprisingly enough, studies conducted
at Cornell University reveal that it is as
difficult for potential helpers to reject those who
asked for help as it is for the help-seekers to ask.
Overcoming the unfounded fear of rejection,
as well as knowing when to ask for
help and understanding why you need it
are very important aspects of being
the best customer support agent you can be.
Waiting to ask for help due
to the fear that people will say no,
or will judge you for it,
simply does not benefit you or the customer.
When you acknowledge that you need help,
you put aside your personal feelings
and make the client the priority.
When you work together with someone,
you can produce better outcomes
and more innovative solutions in
shorter periods of time than if you
were to try to do everything on your own.
Accepting the support of others not only
eases your burden and strengthens you further,
but it keeps you strong and helps you
rise up to whatever challenge you are facing.
What makes some people better
at asking for help than others?
People who ask for help without
hesitation are usually not trapped by their ego.
They are confident enough to
admit that they don't know everything.

They are not worried about what others think.
Their goal is not personal recognition or acceptance,
but getting the job done.
They know and recognize their limitations.
They don't hesitate to ask
others to lend their advice and talents.
They know that the focus should be placed
on turning out the best work possible,
and not on them.

Asking for help is not an easy task.
But in today's workplace,
you cannot be successful if you
don't ask for the help you need.
Stop thinking that you have to be the one to do it all.
Although self-reliance is an admirable trait,
it is also self-limiting.
Realize that asking for help is
an opportunity to make connections,
collaborate, and learn new things.
Trust that people will say yes.
Besides, you'll never get an answer if you don't ask.
Finally, show reciprocity.
Offering help after receiving assistance will make
you feel better about asking the next time around.
As Steve Jobs once said,
to achieve your greatest goals,
sometimes all you have to do is ask.
So remember to ask.
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Why is teamwork essential for a seamless and unified level of service?
In 1920, social psychologist Floyd all ports observations led him to
conclude that people work better in teams, even if they are not collaborating,
competing, or actively communicating with each other.

This phenomenon known as social facilitation exposed?
How the mere presence of other people engaged together can boost motivation.

Social facilitation, whether generated by a will to impress peers or
apprehension to disappointing them is often what drives individuals to
perform better, other than driving individuals to be more efficient.
Working as a team and customer service has many other benefits from
maintaining the focus on the customer's needs to producing faster results.
Reproduce el video desde :1: y sigue la transcripción1:00

Too often customers are served by one individual, so
when that individual is busy or unavailable, the customer has to wait.
As we all know, customers usually don't like to wait.

When customer issues are addressed by a team,
interruptions of service are avoided.
There is always someone to take care of the customer.
This allows for a smoother customer experience.

Teamwork creates synergy ideas are shared.
Members work together towards solving issues and problems are solved quickly.

When a team works well as a unit,
they are able to accomplish more than its individual members can do alone.

However, in order to establish strong synergy,
the team must pick genuine team players with the right skills.

These are the employees that help each other out, communicate well and
want to see their team succeed.

So what does an effective team player look like?

Great Team Players understand the team's goals and their role in supporting, and
achieving these goals.

They keep their commitments and communicate their own expectations.

They are honest with their teammates and themselves.
They speak their minds.

They value their teammates contribution and provide encouragement when needed.

They address conflicts right away, so they can be dealt with and
the team can move on.

Learning how to work well with others is such a crucial part of any job.
So it's worth developing and
refining the skills that will help you make a valuable contribution to any team.

Here are a few things you can do to quickly become a revered member of any
team.

If you say you're going to do something, do it and do it on time.
Reliability is essential when you're working as a team,
always focus on team goals and not personal interests.
Personal achievements won't matter if the team fails in the end.

Be mindful of others work style.
Everyone works differently and you need to be okay with that.

Don't let issues and challenges stop you, for the benefit of the team and
your customers learn to move forward.

Be open minded and receptive to new ideas, and feedback.

Be humble and share credit.
Authentic relationships are essential to a successful team.
So remember, excelling at customer service, takes teamwork.
Thinking, planning, decision making and
actions are better when done cooperatively.
The synergy of individuals is a powerful thing.
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Further Reading
If you're interested in reading more about the subjects we covered in this lesson, including some of the studies
referenced in your lectures, here are some additional resources for you to check out!
 Lamy, Lubomir & Fischer-Lokou, Jacques & Guéguen, Nicolas. (2008). Semantically Induced
Memories of Love and Helping Behavior. Psychological reports. 102. 418-24. 10.2466/PR0.102.2.418-
424.
 Stahl, Jessica. (2004). Characteristics of Natural Helpers.
 Flynn, Francis & K. B. Lake (Bohns, Vanessa. (2008). "If you need help, just ask: Underestimating
compliance with direct requests for help.. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology". 95. 128-
143.
 Floyd Henry Allport. "The Influence of the Group Upon Association and Thought." Journal of
Experimental Psychology, 3, 1920: 159-182.
 Liz Ryan, Ten Characteristics Of A Real Team Player.
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How do I conduct good searches?

How do I conduct good searches?
These days, conducting searches online is a part of everyday life.
Everything we could possibly need is directly at our fingertips from movie
times, to videos showing us how to fix our own plumbing.

But most of us don't really think about how we're searching and
whether we're doing so efficiently.
As a customer support agent, conducting searches for
information will be a huge part of your job.
As a result, understanding how you search and
learning how to search more efficiently is essential.

The way we search has changed dramatically in the last 20 years and
it changes more every day as the amount of information available online increases.

There are many older models for information seeking and
retrieval that we're used to, to analyze the way humans gathered information.
But the ways people gather information now can be divided primarily into
two different models, information foraging and the dynamic or berry picking model.
Information foraging is an information seeking behavior theory
proposed by Pirolli and Card in 1999.
They propose that people seek information in the same way that animals seek food.
Information foraging is a cost and benefit assessment.
Animals choose food based on how much energy they'll have to expend
getting it versus how much energy they'll get from consuming it.
Predator animals tend to seek out weaker and younger prey over healthy prey.
They'll have to spend more energy hunting them.
You may be searching in a similar way.
You're not likely to pick resources that are too complicated for
you to mentally digest.
You'll probably avoid resources that use too much technical language as
your first resource.
For example, if you're researching a symptom for a sickness, you can tell
you're coming down with, you're not likely to choose a medical journal.
You're more likely to read a site page that summarizes the information for you.

Information foraging is also the reason people are spending less and
less time on websites.
Longer sites and slideshow style articles do not get read as often
because it takes too much effort for the reader to interact with the site.
While this is a problem for the people who make the sites, it's good news for readers
because more and more sites will adapt to the way people digest information.

The second model people tend to use is the dynamic or berry picking model.
This model was first developed by MJ Bates in 1989 and has changed several
times by different researchers to comply to the way people search now.
Berry picking suggests that as a person searches, their information needs change.
You've probably used this model too.
Let's use the example of coming down with an illness again.
Chances are you'll have several different reasons to search as your
research goes on.
You might enter all your symptoms into the search bar at first.
Sneezes, runny nose, sore throat.
You'll probably get a lot of results, but not a lot of them will apply.
Then after referring to the first resource,
you may start thinking you have a cold.
You want to be sure so you search cold symptoms.
When that seems likely, you might look up when to see a doctor for
a cold or home remedies you can try.
This is the berry picking technique at work.
As you might guess, both techniques have benefits and drawbacks.
By using information foraging,
you can ignore results that might help you out better.
Our personal biases prevalent with information foraging.
You might be ignoring better information from a source you're not as familiar with,
and the perceived cost of searching for
more information may even prevent you from conducting searches at all.

The berry picking model suffers from similar issues.
The berry picking part of the name refers to a flaw that exists in the technique.
If you pick a few berries that are ripe or rotten off a tree, you might conclude
that all the berries on the tree are the same way without even checking.

So then what is the best way to conduct searches?
In ideal conditions, the best way to search is to choose several different
resources from different sources to collect an overall impression on a topic,
like the way you would research for a paper.
There's a reason your teachers in school wanted you to check out many different
resources on a topic.
It makes for a stronger argument for your paper.
On a call however,
you're not likely to have enough time to conduct this type of research.
So it's important to know where to look in the first place.
We'll learn more about choosing good resources later.
But for now here are some tips for improving your information seeking skills.
Choose keywords carefully.
The keywords you used to search are the most important aspect of your search.
Make sure that they're spelled correctly and chosen carefully.
For example, if a caller tells you that their parcel arrived on their
doorstep with broken goods and you want to search for
the company's policy, on handling damage deliveries.
You should probably use the word package in your search rather than parcel and
damaged, rather than broken.
Since these keywords apply to more searches.
Try to think of the most common words people use for
different terms that are not company specific,
since most search engines are structured based on common keywords and phrases.
Use Boolean searches when possible.
Boolean searches are conducted using the operators AND, NOT and OR.
And searches will return results with two different keywords.
For example, a Boolean search for car and
insurance would return only results for car insurance,
eliminating results for things like car ads and different types of insurance.
Boolean searches with the not operator can be used to eliminate irrelevant results.
For example, a Boolean search for package not missing,
which show you only search results that didn't relate to missing packages.
The or operator is used to broaden search results to include two different topics.
For example, the Boolean or search for New York laws or
Pennsylvania laws would return results for laws in both New York and Pennsylvania.
You can also use the and dash symbols in some search engines
as a substitute for the and and not operators.

Not all search engines include support for Boolean searches, but
most major search engines include support.
It's important to check and make sure that the search engine or
knowledge base includes support for the type of searches you want to conduct.

Use quotation marks.
If you're searching for a specific phrase and keep getting irrelevant results,
it's a good idea to include quotation marks around the phrase you want to find.
Adding in quotation marks will limit your search results to only resources
that contain the exact phrase.
For example, placing quotation marks around the phrase, appointment
cancellation policy would return results only about your company's appointment
cancellation policy, eliminating any results about other policies.

Be aware of how the search engine you use functions.
Most search engines use some degree of natural language processing,
meaning they are structured to return results based on the ways that people talk
and determine what's important.
That's why you can search for a phrase like I want to see a scary movie near
me and get results for horror movies nearby.
The search engine realizes that the words that matter are scary movie and
near me, and that when you entered scary movie, you really meant horror movie.

While most popular search engines have this ability,
some specialist search engines and
knowledge bases may get confused by the additional words in such a query and
may not understand that when you said scary, you meant horror.
And the search engine would instead tell you that the movie
Scary Movie was not screening near you.
With more specialized search engines it's important that you use the exact word or
phrase you think is most likely to return a relevant result and
eliminate words like aunt and the to avoid confusion.

Remember always be mindful while searching for information.
Every search matters.
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How do I tell good and bad resources apart?
How do I tell good and bad resources apart?
There are countless resources online.
That means it's becoming harder and
harder to find quality resources.
As you know, just because something is online,
it doesn't mean it's true,
plus most people have
some degree of informational literacy,
which means that many people have trouble telling
quality information apart from
information they cannot trust.
This is also part of why people
sometimes fall for things like scams
and conspiracy theories that you may feel
obviously do not have a shred of truth to them.
It's incredibly important to be able
to tell good and bad resources apart.
If you must go outside
your company's knowledge base for assistance,
you don't want to spread misinformation to your caller.
Luckily, there are some pretty easy ways
to tell good and bad information apart.
Consider the source.
You can trust your company's knowledge base as
a great source for the information
you need to solve customers' problems,
and can likely trust your company's help section or
articles they've posted on the subject to help callers.
This is because in this case,
the company's resources are primary sources.
A primary source is
an original first-hand account on
the subject and is considered authoritative.
If you go outside the company for resources,
it will be harder to find something
definitive for you to use.
This is because these resources are secondary resources.
A secondary resource could be an article,
blog post, forum post, or another website.
It's important to think about
the motive behind this resource and
avoid anything that may be
outdated or unreliable due to bias.
Keep in mind also that some search results you see
may be ads for
other companies disguised as help articles.
Be aware of your competitor's websites and
any sponsored content you may see from other companies.
Avoid superlatives.
Avoid sites that claim to be the
best or the number 1 resource on a topic.
These claims are usually not fact-based,
and may be a marketing ploy for the site.
Go beyond the first few results.
Keep in mind that some companies pay
search engines to place their pages at the top of
search results and that what you see first is usually
based on the amount of clicks
that site has gotten in the past,
not based on the quality of the content.
In some cases, not even to
the site's relevance to your search query.
Read the text you can see in
the preview to check for words you entered in
the search bar and choose
the result you think best fits your query.
Beware of confirmation bias.
A confirmation bias is our own tendency to avoid
resources that do not confirm our point of
view or reinforce our established beliefs.
You may already have
your own opinion about what's causing
the caller's problem and simply be
searching for a resource to back up your claim.
But if you're wrong,
you might be ignoring
important resources about
different solutions and problems.
Make sure you focus on what will help the caller best.
Do not let unfounded suspicions
get in the way of your solution.
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How can I use my technical skills to improve my information

seeking behaviors?
How can I use my technical skills to improve my information seeking behaviors?

Your background knowledge and technical skills can be used to help you narrow
your search query down and seek information properly.

While it is important to avoid confirmation bias and not disregard other
solutions, that does not mean that you should disregard past experiences and
technical terms entirely.

For example, there will be very common problems that people will call in with and
that you may encounter almost every day.
You can use these past experiences to identify the problem the caller
is experiencing and walk them through the solution quickly and easily.
You can also use your knowledge of industry terms and technical language to
conduct your searches, particularly within your company's knowledge base.
Your knowledge base will be able to recognize technical terms, and
using more technical terms will also help you to eliminate any irrelevant
search results and focus on the results that apply to your caller's scenario.
Your technical skills and past scenarios you've encountered will
also help you understand how to solve the caller's problem best.
You'll remember the solutions that have worked to solve callers problems in
the past, as well as the type of instructions that will work best.
You'll notice the types of language you can use,
as well as what will confuse the caller.
Reproduce el video desde :1:39 y sigue la transcripción Always remember you are the expert and
your knowledge will help the caller immensely.
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Further Reading
 David Trepess, 38. Information Foraging Theory "The Glossary of Human Computer Interaction".
 Alan Norton, 10 tips for smarter, more efficient Internet searching.
 Distinguishing good research from bad: Ways to find more accurate and reliable facts .
 Marti A. Hearst, CH. 3: MODELS OF THE INFORMATION SEEKING PROCESS From the book Search User
Interfaces, published by Cambridge University Press. 2009.
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What are resource libraries, and why are they important?
What are resource libraries and why are they important?
It's important to remember that you won't always
know the answer to the caller's problem right away,
and of course, there will be
the occasional time when
the caller has a problem that you can't solve.
Being able to locate the answers to
problems and identify them,
will be key to your success as a customer support agent,
and resource libraries can help you out.
Your personal resource library can be anything,
a document on your computer, a notebook,
a collection of pieces of paper, etc.
It's all about choosing
the format that works best for you.
Resource libraries can also be called cheat sheets.
There are resources and reminders that make it
easier to find the answers you need faster.
When you find a resource that works best for
you or find the solution to a unique problem,
it's a good idea to make note of this in
your resource library to make it easier to find.
Here are some tips to get started
creating your own resource library.
Pick a format that works best for you.
It's recommended that you try to make at least
part of your resource library digital,
such as storing helpful links in
a document or bookmarking resources in your browser.
But if you're more partial to
physical copies of resources,
select a physical format that will be practical for you.
Understand that your resource library
should be a living document.
Regardless of format,
your resource library will
always be growing and changing.
Take stock of the resources you
have every once in a while and make sure
that they are current and consider whether
your library has any knowledge gaps.
Act as your own curator and weeder.
When curators are preparing exhibits,
they try to create exhibits that will be
high-quality and will draw attention to their museum.
As your own curator,
make sure that you're picking
the highest quality resources you can,
as well as referencing
important situations you've encountered before,
so that your knowledge library continues to grow,
change, and remain a high-quality resource for you.
It's also important to be a weeder.
As libraries grow,
librarians must go through the process of weeding.
Weeding is when librarians go through
the books and other resources they have,
and see how often they're getting used and
check for damaged or lower quality resources.
As your own librarian,
you should check your resource library
regularly to make sure that there are no broken links,
outdated resources, resources you never use,
or any irrelevant resources that could
be placed with a higher-quality resource.
Make sure that you're summarizing
any resource links you include in your knowledge library.
Write yourself a little blurb about any links included in
your resource library so that you remember
where to go to find information in the future.
Not including blurbs can make it more
difficult to locate the resource you
need and make it less likely that
you will refer to the resource when you need it.
Remember, your resource library is your very own,
so make sure it's designed to serve you.
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How can I improve my memory?
1. Assign meaningfulness to things. ...
2. Learn general and specific later. ...
3. Recite out loud in your own words until you don't need to refer to your notes.
4. Teach someone else. ...
5. Use memory devices.
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How do I organize my resource library?
How do I organize my resource library, so now that you know how to
gather information to compile your resource library.
And are armed with tools you can use to improve your memory,
how should you organize your information?
The best way to organize this information is by chunking,
chunking is a technique used in instructional design.
Library science and many other industries, chunking is like categorizing
information or even the digital strategy of sorting related posts into tags.
One example of chunking is the way library sort information,
a library might use a dewey decimal system.
Where material is separated by subject and
then is organized by author name to keep things from getting lost.
You probably also use chunking without even realizing it,
you might keep your shirts and pants and different drawers.
And maybe separate them by color, or type, or
sort your refrigerator to make things easier to find.
Chunking takes time and energy, but
it is ultimately worth it to make sure that you can find your information fast.
Here are some tips to get you started chunking your resource library,
think about what works best for you.
There's no one right way to chunk information, chunking as you can probably
guess from the examples is done based on associated features.
Some examples could be organizing information alphabetically based
on associated keywords.
Or organizing resources based on the problem the resources help you solve,
pick one method of organization.
Once you figure out the method you want to use, choose it and stick with it,
mixing up your strategy will make the information harder to find.
For example, you might choose to chunk your information alphabetically at first.
As your resource library grows, you might realize you'd rather organize
your knowledge library based on different problem types.
Rather than using the problem type method moving forward and
leaving older resources organized alphabetically.
It is recommended that you re chunk your entire resource library to avoid
confusion.
When your resource library gets larger, create a key or
table of contents to make things even easier to find.
With calls time is key, you do not want to risk flipping or
scrolling through pages, looking for the resource you need.
Digitally you will have the find feature to look for keywords, but
it is also recommended that you add in a table of contents or key.
For example, each related page could have a symbol or
highlighted color of text to further chunk information.
If you prefer to use this method over a table of contents,
especially if you're using something physical.
Like a notebook as your resource library, you will find this tip helpful for
finding what you need fast.
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Further Reading
21 Best, Easy Memorization Techniques for Students.
Teaching Strategy: Chunking.

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What does being a scientist have to do with being a good

call center agent?
What does being a scientist have to
do with being a good call center agent?
Problem-solving is the very premise
on which customer service rests.
Oftentimes, customers approach customer service
with what they perceive as a problem.
That's why in order to be a successful call center agent,
you must be a skilled problem-solver.
You will need to be skilled at
resolving all types of problems.
Those that are routine by nature,
as well as those that are more complex.
Complex problems are the problems that
require the strongest problem-solving skills.
Problem-solving may seem pretty straightforward,
but in order to be skilled at it,
you need to be an adaptive,
responsive, and methodical, critical thinker.
You may be asking yourself,
how can I be adaptable,
responsive, and methodical all at the same time?
Maybe the best way to think about
this is to compare yourself to a scientist.
When scientists conduct research,
they start with a problem, formulate a hypothesis,
and methodically test their hypothesis in
very structured and repeatable ways
so that the fact-based conclusions can be drawn.
Scientists use the scientific method
to ensure that they are using
a methodical approach so they know
that the answers they come up with are proven.
Let's explore the steps of the scientific method.
While we explore these steps,
think about how you can apply
this process to the work you will do on a call center.
The scientific method starts with asking
questions to help identify the problem.
This should sound quite familiar.
You learned about it in module 1.
After the problem has been identified,
the next step is research.
Scientists are savvy.
They do not start from scratch.
Instead, they use resource libraries to
help them find the best ways to do things,
to ensure that they do not repeat mistakes from the past.
They use this research to help them form hypothesis.
A hypothesis is nothing more than an educated guess.
After scientists form their hypothesis,
they test and test again to make sure
that their first results were not just accidents.
When testing is complete,
scientists analyze data and think about whether
or not the testing supported a particular hypothesis.
Often scientists find that hypothesis are incorrect.
When these happens, scientists need to be adaptable,
responsive, and start again with a different hypothesis.
When testing confirms a hypothesis,
a scientist thinks about how to communicate the results
so others can benefit
from the good work that has been done.
They form a conclusion.
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How do I get to the root cause of a problem?
How do I get to the root cause of a problem?
In Module 1, you explored how to thoughtfully identify
a callers problem by asking
probing questions to isolate the problem.
You learned about active listening and how the use of
these listening skills will help
you identify customer problems.
Before we learn more,
let's stop and reflect on what we have already learned.
Now you will learn how to methodically
determine the root cause of a problem.
For every caller problem or concern,
there is a root cause.
In order to provide
the best possible customer service for each caller,
agents must be able to determine why the problem
exists and understand the root cause of the problem.
What you do not want is to
jump straight in and treat the symptoms.
You need to stop to consider whether there's
actually a deeper problem that needs your attention.
If you only fix the symptoms,
which are what you see on the surface,
the problem will almost certainly
return and need fixing over and over again.
Root cause analysis, RCA,
is a frequently used technique that helps people answer
the question of why
the problem occurred in the first place.
Root cause analysis seeks to identify
the origin of a problem using a specific set of steps.
Define the primary cause of
the problem so that you can determine what happened,
why it happened, and figure out what to do
to reduce the likelihood that it will happen again.
This is where thinking like a scientist comes in handy.
As you are listening to a caller,
you will actually have to start
asking yourself questions like,
why is the problem happening?
Has this happened before?
Sometimes these answers come from
probing the caller and sometimes they don't.
When they don't, you will need to use
the resources you have to research the answers.
Luckily, you've just learned about this in lesson 2.
Before jumping in to resolve the problem,
which many of us are inclined to do,
you must conduct research.
Maybe this research is conducted mentally or by
using your company's knowledge base or research library.
In either case, the point is that you should
not start from scratch if you do not need to.
Making an uneducated guess about why your customer
is experiencing a problem is never a good idea.
Not only will you lose credibility with your customer,
you will also lose time.
So just like a scientist,
you will need to use
researching skills to help you form a hypothesis
about why the problem may be
happening so that you can get to the root cause.
Remember, part of what
satisfies customers is getting not only quick,
but also efficient answers to their problems.
In the next activity,
you will demonstrate your ability to isolate the problem,
get to the root of the problem and use
good searching and researching skills
to form a hypothesis.
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How can I confirm that my proposed resolution works
and my customer is satisfied?
How can I confirm that
my proposed resolution works
and my customer is satisfied?
Once you have made an educated guess,
hypothesis as to why a problem may be happening,
you will have to do a few more things
before you can celebrate your win.
You will need to test your hypothesis.
Believe it or not, this is
a step that is oftentimes forgotten.
Regardless of how we provide service,
one of the most overlooked aspects of
customer service is the confirmation
of the problem resolution.
It's common for customer support agents
to provide solutions,
but not to confirm a resolution.
In fact, it is one of
the most common complaints from customers.
You must be sure that the solution you provide solves
the cause of the problem and is not just the quick fix.
Make good use of your analytical thinking.
Find and then test the solution.
Make sure that the solution suit
your customer and is the best fix to the problem.

For example, let's say that a customer had an issue with
an application and you've
suggested restarting the device.
It is possible that restarting
the device will resolve the immediate problem,
but not the actual problem.
It's likely that this customer
will come back to you and it's more
probable that they'll be upset that
the solution you gave them did not work.
You will need to work with the customer to test
your solution to be sure the problem is really fixed.
This means going deeper by
testing and analyzing your results,
plus thinking about what worked,
what may not have worked, and why?
Carefully guide your customer
through the steps and make sure
they understand why it is
important to conduct these tests.
Finally, when you get to the correct solution,
just like a scientist,
you will have to figure out how you will
most effectively communicate your results.
Your explanation may start out
like this, with you stating,
okay, now I understand
more and I think this is why it is happening.
Involve your customer by
asking them if they believe their problem,
concern, or need has been resolved.
Give them the opportunity to
take the problem further if needed.
Keep in mind that many ways,
your job as a customer support agent
is more complex than that of a scientist,
because most of the time,
you will have the caller on the line while you are
researching and testing problem solutions.
You will have to adhere to a tried and true process or
method while being adaptive
and responsive to the situation,
as well as the customers needs.
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Further Reading
 The Scientific Method isn't Just for Scientists.

 Craig M. Pease and James J. Bull, Chapter 3: How Non-scientists use the Scientific Method.
 Alex Jakubik, How to Use the Scientific Method in Everyday Life.
 Mark Jason, IMPORTANCE OF SCIENTIFIC METHOD ON OUR EVERYDAY LIFE.
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What do I need to know to understand my customers'
needs?
What do I need to know to answer my customers' needs?
The success of every company is dependent on its ability to
create products and services that address their customers' needs.
you are largely responsible for your company's success.
Whether the call center you work in is small or large with two agents or over 200,
it all starts with the right training.
Part of this training will involve you gaining in-depth knowledge about
your company's products and services so you can
understand and anticipate your customers' needs.
In the world of customer service,
the importance of product knowledge cannot be understated.
Product knowledge will make you sound confident
and competent and can help you stay efficient.
Knowing all there is to know about the products and
services your company offers will make it
easier to provide your callers with customized solutions based on their needs.
Staying up-to-date on current products and services will allow you to
answer customer inquiries faster and without hesitation.
Understanding your products and services also keeps you informed about
proper terminology and makes it easy to help
your customers as quickly and coherently as possible.
Customers are relying on you to understand your products and
services and will appreciate any help you have to offer.
Without product knowledge,
understanding your customers' needs will become more difficult,
and you may even miss out on offering an available service to your customers.
Though you will most likely have a lot of training on
available products and services from your employer,
there are also some things you can do on your own to
be sure your product knowledge is superior.
Talk with colleagues during lunch or breaks.
Ask them what's new.
How are your offerings compared to the competition?
Or if you're in tech support,
ask them about some of the challenges they have faced with recent calls.
Read your material during slow times.
Look at what's posted on your website and manuals,
catalogs and in any other marketing materials.
You're likely to learn about features you've never heard of before.
When appropriate, talk to customers.
Ask customers why they like your products
and learn benefits you can pass on to other customers.
Or if in tech support and if time allows,
ask them what they felt was the most helpful about the solution you provided.
Once you know all there is to know about what you offer,
you can really start to identify with how a particular need,
concern, or problem impacts your customers.
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How do I communicate that I understand the impact of a customer issue?
How do I communicate that I understand the impact of a customer issue.

Having strong foundational product knowledge is the gateway to understanding
the impact a customer's problem has on them.

When you know all there is to know about the products and services you offer,
you will be able to understand just how much your customer may be relying on
your product or service.

Having this knowledge is a great start to understanding the needs of your customers.
But there is more earlier in this course you learned about empathy.
In order to fully understand the impact of your callers problem, you will need to
tap into both your product knowledge and your ability to express.
Empathy.

Empathetic understanding is the ability to understand the perspective
of another person, kind of like walking in their shoes.
Reproduce el video desde :1: y sigue la transcripción1:00

Empathetic understanding is different from objectivity.

Empathetic understanding is being able to temporarily identify with someone else so
that your experience mirrors the experience of another person.
As you might guess it is not a permanent merger and
requires the ability to return to yourself armed with the additional understanding
your calls will be enhanced by your ability to understand the feelings.
The circumstances, and most importantly, the significance and
importance of the event that they are calling you about.

Here are some things to focus on while communicating that you understand
the college problem as well as its impact, situational awareness.
Make sure you show your customer that you get it by explaining why
you understand their problem.
For example, I understand that not getting this delivery on time makes it
difficult for you to throw your party this week.

Personal awareness, make sure your callers know that you get them,
show them that you understand how their problem or situation makes them feel.
For example, you are probably freaking out right now.
I know the party is only days away solution awareness,
show your caller a positive path when possible.
Give them options and alternatives that empower them,
offer possibilities for making things better.
This will help them think more clearly feel better and act smarter.
Go the extra mile, for example, offer expedited shipping options or
offer to get a similar item ordered one that you know will
arrive on time when you have strong product knowledge and
focus on situational, personal and solution awareness.
You can be assured that you will be able to understand and
appreciate the impact your customer situation has on them and even your call.
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How do I effectively work with angry callers?

How do I effectively work with angry callera?
You have been exposed to quite a bit so far in this course and
you've probably found that most of what you are learning about boils down to plain
old common sense.
It's true common sense and intuition will get you far in the field of customer
service, even when you are dealing with angry callers.
We've touched on dealing with angry callers throughout the course.
Because oftentimes, especially in today's self service world, by the time the caller
gets to you, they already perceive what they are calling in about to be a problem.

Generally just listening to their concerns,
letting them vent using the awareness tips you just learned about and
providing a reasonable solution will diffuse the caller's anger.
But sometimes these strategies don't work.

There are certain qualities that make people persistently hard to handle and
easy to anger.
The goal in such cases is to prepare in advance for this type of encounter and
know it will take special efforts to hold on to your own sense of self and
to stay calm.
Although it can be very disturbing to be in the presence of people like this
remaining composed and
calm helps you figure out exactly what you're dealing with and what to do.

Anger is a powerful emotion controlling angry people is challenging,
but there are some effective strategies you can use to try to break
the anger cycle, believe or not.
There is a science to anger, angry people talk and act without thinking.
The more angry people become,
the less likely they are to logically process information.

An important takeaway for you should be that angry people are often not
open to solutions because their ability to think is actually impaired.
Angry people will not completely comprehend any explanations, solutions or
problem solving options you provide until their body returns to normal again,
they need time to calm down before they can think clearly again.

For that reason, the most important strategy for breaking the anger
cycle is to never try to propose solutions until you provide time for
venting anger must be vented, venting reduces frustration.

Once angry people are given time to event, they become more open to
solutions because they are actually able to think rationally again.

Keep in mind that angry callers may continue to vent throughout a call, but
the initial venting period is often the earliest.
That is unless you add fuel to their fire,
you will find that usually a natural pause occurs after each venting episode.

During these periods of pause, you can start inserting statements that
convey both situational awareness as well as personal awareness.
Statements such as, yes, I agree our salesperson should have
been listening to you and not answering other sales calls.
Take note you are still not ready to convey solution awareness.
After several statements that express both situational and personal awareness,
you can usually hear some nonverbal gestures such as exhaling and
size that indicate that the collar may be running out of anger energy.
At this point, it is time to introduce presumptive statements that director
caller towards conflict resolution.
This will require practice on your part statements that offer an apology
along with a course of action used to help rectify a bad experience are needed.
These are statements that your collar will have difficulty not agreeing to because
these address their source of anger.
For example, I am so sorry you had this bad experience.
I will remind our sales team that they are not to accept other calls while working
with our customers.
I would be thrilled if you can help us ensure that this does not happen again.
Please let us know if you ever have problems in the future.
We really do rely on customer feedback so that we can get better.

You will know if this worked because your collar will agree to let you know if
the problem happens again.

If your customer does not agree, this tells you they are not ready to let
the anger go, you may need to start the cycle again.
Let them vent convey more signs of situational and personal awareness.
Try again with another presumptive statement that offers a resolution
to the conflict.

Remember, do not try to propose solutions until you are sure that
your customer is ready to move past the anger that is disabling them.
And of course, know when to disengage in any exchange with an overly angry person.
There may come a point when you need to disengage from the situation.

There are reasons why this might be the smart thing to do because the situation
may be such that it is unlikely that there will be any positive resolution.

Your caller maybe so angry that a healthy,
reasonable conversation simply can't be had at the time.
Most organizations have a plan for this, and these plans and
procedures vary from organization to organization.

Your employer will be sure to let you know what to do because at some point you
will be challenged by a caller who,
no matter what strategies you try, will not be able to dismiss their anger.
Don't lose hope,
these strategies we've reviewed will help you in the majority of cases.
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Further Reading
 Mark Goulston and John Ullmen, How to Really Understand Someone Else’s Point of View.
 Barry Greenwald, Ph.D., The Art of Communication.
 Ryan Martin, Ph.D., 5 Ways to Deal with Angry People.
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An SLA is a legally-binding agreement designed to
outline exactly what an organization will and won't do
for its customers. Un SLA es un acuerdo legalmente
vinculante diseñado para describir exactamente lo que
una organización hará y no hará por sus clientes.
Algunos ejemplos de KPIs de ventas son:
La satisfacción del cliente.
El compromiso y la motivación del equipo comercial.
Niveles de facturación.
.
Número de visitas cerradas
Un KPI, conocido también como indicador clave o

medidor de desempeño o indicador clave de
rendimiento, es una medida del nivel del rendimiento de
un proceso. El valor del indicador está directamente
relacionado con un objetivo fijado previamente y
normalmente se expresa en valores porcentuales.
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What are SLAs?
And how do they benefit the service industry?

SLAs or service level agreements are a form of a contract set between
a service provider and the customer.
An SLA is a legally binding agreement designed to outline exactly
what an organization will and won't do for its customers.

Organizations tend to use language and SLA that is crystal clear and
leaves no room for misinterpretation to ensure that both parties
have the same expectations when it comes to the services provided.
These agreements are beneficial to both the organization and its customers.
SLAs provide a strong foundation on which to build the relationship
between organizations and their customers.
There are numerous benefits associated with SLAs to include
better communication between providers and customers,
encouraging a sense of partnership between both parties.
With SLAs there is no room for confusion.
From the onset, both parties work together to establish and define their needs.
Should a dispute arise along the way the SLA is in place to help settle it.
An SLA governs the rules of engagement between service providers and their
customers. So, as you might expect, customer service
agents must clearly understand the dues and
don't defined within SLAs.

You may already be thinking okay,
how will SLAs impact my role as a customer support agent.
Meeting the objectives defined within an SLA will drive the behaviors of
both your organization's management team and you.
You can count on the fact that you will be thoroughly trained on
SLA protocols and expectations.
You and your team will know exactly which aspects of the SLA aligned to your work.
It is not uncommon for organizations to also implement internal SLAs
that break down the requirements of SLAs into more manageable chunks.
These chunks can be pointed to the employees responsible for
delivering the expected outcomes.
Internal SLAs typically point to KPIs or key performance indicators.
A key performance indicator is a measurable value that demonstrates how
effectively a company is achieving key business objectives.
Organizations use KPIs at multiple levels to evaluate their
success in reaching targets.
In a call center, for example, several benchmarks,
KPIs are used to evaluate performance in specific areas.

Such benchmarks may include monitoring.
The percentage of calls blocked.
The percentage of calls answered within a predefined time frame.
The average amount of time it takes for calls to be answered.

The number of time agents work with a customer to resolve
issues commonly referred to as the average handling time or AHT.
The number of calls issues that resolve without transfer.
Analytics will be captured and tracked to determine organizational norms.
You and your team will be evaluated against these organizational norms.
You should be extremely mindful of where you stand compared to your
company's norms.
When you exceed your organization's norms in a positive way,
your organizations will want to know what you might be doing differently and
use these behaviors to stimulate positive changes across the organization.
Of course, deviations that fall beneath the company's expected
standards will require you to re evaluate and rectify.
Finding yourself below the company's standards should cause
you to reflect on how you can get better.
When standards are well communicated and you understand them.
It is really up to you to monitor your own performance and strive to hit the targets
needed to keep your organization within the limits defined by your SLAs.

Of course, this is something your manager will also track very carefully.
If your performance is not where it should be, you and
your management team will need to react.
You will need to determine exactly why your performance is not up to standards,
so you can implement corrective measures.
Once you understand the issues and the goals set some priorities.
It may not be possible to fix everything at once.
Start with the highest performance priorities and
focus on achieving a small set of goals at a time.
Display your priority measures everywhere.
Carry and pin your targets wherever you go, so you are reminded every day of your
goals. Focus every day on your
priority performance ratios.
Review your priority goals and visualize them being achieved.
Dedicate at least one task per day to close in on priority targets and
make a habit of talking directly with your colleagues to solicit
constructive feedback.
SLAs are so much more than just a contractual
agreement between a business and a customer.
They allow you to manage your customers expectations and
meet them at the same time.
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How do I effectively manage my time?
How do I effectively manage my time?.

Time management refers to the way one organizes and plans,
how long they will spend on specific activities.

Time management can have a huge impact on performance and
productivity in any workplace, especially in customer support.
When agents efficiently manage their time, it not only makes for
efficient employees but also assists in meeting requirements set forth by SLA.
Two very Valuable time bound key performance indicators KPIs.
Are Agent occupancy rates and average handling time.

Agent occupancy rate is the percentage of time that agents spend
handling incoming calls versus their available or idle time.
While average handling time measures the amount of time agents spend
handling each call.

These KPIs are essential in evaluating efficiency and
pinpointing issues that may impact meeting SLA's.

For example, if an occupancy rate is too low,
this could be due to overstaffing low volume of calls or poor management.

Conversely, if an occupancy rate is too high,
this means that agents may have no time between calls,
causing them to make mistakes, be less focused on customer satisfaction.
And feel stressed out, as you might expect.
Neither scenario is good, striking the right balance is essential for
many call center managers.
It can be tempting to encourage call center agents to hurry customers off
the phone as quickly as possible to decrease average handle time.
However, it is well known that requests for agents to resolve customer
issues as quickly as possible, negatively impacts other KPIs,
such as first call resolution, increases in the number call escalations.
And floods the call queue with repeat callers, hoping for a better resolution.

It is because of this, that industry focus may have shifted from the speed of
interactions to the quality of the customer experience, but still No one can
deny that good time management remains a primary indicator of efficiency.

Numerous customer surveys indicate that customers don't like to wait.

How customers perceive the performance of a business is often related to how
quickly its employees can address and meet their needs.
You've heard it before.
Time is money in effective time management doesn't just waste time,
It wastes money too poor time management skills can lead people to focus on
what is most urgent instead of working proactively on what matters most for
their organization.
And their customers, deadlines can be missed and
mistakes are prone to be made while rushing to desperately
catch up to balance speed and quality of work.
Agents need a combination of self discipline and
focus backed by good time management practices.
The ideal scenario is to create an environment that encourages agents to be
mindful of how they manage their time and encourage them to focus on it.

Agents should consistently reflect on their time management skills and
be provided with training and tips on an ongoing basis.

Here are some tips that can help you stay focused on managing your time wisely.

Plan each day.
Planning your day can help you accomplish more,
write a to do list with the most important tasks at the top.
Keep a schedule of your daily activities to minimize conflicts and
last minute rushes, prioritize your tasks time consuming.
But relatively unimportant tasks can consume a lot of your day.
Prioritizing tasks will ensure that you spend your time and
energy on those that are truly important, say no to non essential tasks.
Consider your goals and schedule before agreeing to take on additional work.

Take the time you need to do a quality job doing work right.
The first time may take more time up front, but errors usually result
in time spent making corrections, which takes more time overall.
Evaluate how you're spending your time, keep a diary of everything you do for
three days to determine how you're spending your time.
Look for time that can be used more wisely.

Take a break when needed.
Too much stress can derail your attempts at getting organized.
When you need a break, take one learn to control the path of the conversation.
Ask good questions.
Keep in mind that the person who's asking the questions is most often the person and
control.
But remember, you must also focus on listening, strike the right balance.

Effective time management is the primary means to a less stressful life and
a more productive work environment.
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Further Reading
Janáková, Milena (2012). Quality of service & process control: What is their efficiency in available IT
products?. 2012 Fourth International Conference on Computational Aspects of Social Networks (CASoN).
10.1109/CASoN.2012.6412427
Sonia Pearson, The Service Process: Definition and Types.
Bill Hefferman, The challenges of managing SLA's ( Service Level Agreements). 2010.
Brandon Garcin, 5 Ways to Improve Your MSP Service Level Agreements (SLAs). 2018.
James McCaffrey, Do Your KPIs Align With Your Organizational Goals?
Mandy Andress, Internal SLAs benefit the entire company. 2001.
Time Management in Customer Service – Tips for Service Professionals. 2016.

Jeffery Wartgow, Waiting is the hardest part--Improving customer service through better time management.
2013.
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What are service standards?
What are service standards?

Service standards are the rules put into place by
an organization to help define what customers can expect.
They serve to remind
organizations of what they need to achieve and to
remind management and agents of
the challenges and obligations that they face.
When an organization's SLA assures that calls will be
answered and issues resolved within a certain time frame,
internal guard rails must be installed to support
the specific practices needed
to accomplish what they set out to do.
Service standards can be
outlined by three essential provisions;
speed, accuracy, and consistency.
Organizations track various types of
service speeds such as first response time,
average response time, problem resolution time,
and first contact resolution ratio.
Monitoring and managing these metrics and making
sure the entire organization is cooperating is crucial.
Resolving problems quickly is ideal,
but rushing a call or giving
the wrong answer, not so much.
Partially resolving an issue
or delivering half of what was
promised is not something
most customers will be okay with.
Customers expect accuracy.
Answers should be 100 percent correct.
Organizations will look at
different metrics to confirm that accuracy is
not being compromised such as the customer success ratio,
the success stories, and the number of complaints.
Measures to ensure or improve
accuracy includes better access to
support information via
a CRM or knowledge management systems.
Employees training and team-building
exercises are conducted on an ongoing basis.
Providing fast and accurate service
to customers is great.
But if an organization can't keep it consistent,
then the quality of
the overall customer service will suffer.
To maintain quality, build
strong relationships and
provide excellent customer service.
Carefully written and calibrated standards are a must.
Nowadays, customers want it all and won't have
any problem contracting other organizations to get it.
Providing accurate answers is not only important
for maintaining and increasing customer satisfaction,
but it allows organizations to
build stronger bonds with their customers.
Making sure that all team members can
communicate effectively and provide
an efficient and precise experience
for customers is extremely
important when trying to inspire
trust and fidelity in customers.
Customers will come back and spread
the good word about organizations they trust.
Keep in mind that while speed, accuracy,
and reliability are all important service standards,
none of them will work as well
alone as they will together.
In addition to standards that are
implemented to assure speed, accuracy,
and consistency, organizations use metrics to
evaluate if their shop is
running like a well oiled machine.
They do this to maximize efficiency and eliminate
unnecessary costs associated with doing business.
The metrics are used to determine how
efficiently agents are when supporting customers.
Let's review some of these metrics so you can
better understand what will be expected of you.
The average number of replies per request reveals
how many replies it took to resolve a customer's ticket.
The recommended average is
less than two replies
to maintain customer's satisfaction.
Anything above this suggests
that the customer was not routed to
the appropriately skilled agent at first contact or
that the customer was not given
the correct answer the first time.
The resolution rate represents the percentage of support
requests an agent resolved
in a specific reporting period.
This is a great indicator of agent's effectiveness.
Do not fall into the habit of
closing tickets prematurely to meet your goals.
This will cause tickets to be reopened and
will negatively impact your resolution rate.
The first response time is the average time until
a customer receive the first answer to their inquiry.
Expectations from the customer will
vary depending on the channel used
and how closely the organization met
the guidelines set in its SLA.
Studies show that customers prefer a quick response
even if the issue is not resolved
immediately on this first response.
Customers prefer this over a delayed answer.
The average reply time reveals how long it
takes an agent to reply to each message.
This metric defines how quickly
agents follow up with customers.
It is worth saying again,
customers do not like to wait.
The quicker you address requests,
the happier customers will be.
The average time to resolution
metric measures the efficiency
of the customer service team.
It reports how long it took the team to resolve issues.
A short resolution time represents productivity.
The careful consideration of
all efficiency related data is very important.
But of course, customer satisfaction
or CSAT scores are among the
most important because customer perceptions
make or break all types of businesses.
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What information should be documented?
What information should be documented?
In a survey conducted on people's preferences and
attitudes towards customer service across various channels,
91% of people polled believe that they should be able to pick up where
they last left off when contacting customer service about the same issue.
89% also stated that they disliked having to repeat themselves,
as a customer support agent when a customer has a problem a question or
needs assistance, you need to be able to respond immediately,
it is crucial to your customers satisfaction.
To meet the customer's expectation agents must have immediate
access to the documents, data and information they need to address
customer service requests quickly and thoroughly.
Documentation in customer service is about maintaining information
that is essential for the continuation of support.
Documentation allows an organization to keep track of every interaction
a customer may have with the organization, so all parts of the organization
can refer to that information at any time and better support the customer.

This data is essential and must be documented.

Communication is key in customer service as the details of each customer's
interaction are essential for solving issues as efficiently as possible.
Complete and accurate documentation is essential to ensure everyone
is on the same page should a call be transferred or escalated.
Documentation in customer service is about keeping track of every instance and
every interaction a customer may have had with the organization.
Maintaining proper documentation of all interactions makes it easy for
an agent to review what has been asked of the customer before, so
they don't have to ask the same questions over and over.

Offering intelligent solutions and
answers based on these past interactions will increase customer satisfaction.
Documentation in customer service also allows for continuity,
meaning the customer could contact any service representative and
each one would have access to the same information,
thereby ensuring that the customer receives an answer swiftly.

There are many potential opportunities for misunderstandings and
conflicts in customer service, documenting past customer interactions
will allow agents to quickly review the status of open requests and
address the customer's needs accordingly.

Documentation in customer service is about bringing the focus on the customer's
needs and providing a continuous customer experience.

Keeping customers happy is not an easy task,
supporting them can quickly get complicated and
overwhelming if agents don't have access to the appropriate documentation,
or worse, if the documentation is poorly written or organized.
Customer support agents especially in call centers must handle
several tasks at a time, they must find the procedure they need to
support the customer while still talking to the customer.
They may have to switch procedures mid call or
find an entirely new procedure that better answers the customer's question.

Therefore, well written and easy to find documentation is essential
in delivering accurate solutions to customers in a timely manner.
Documentation is a very important skill that you will need to
become proficient at to ensure your success as a customer support agent.

Keeping documentation accurate can help you assist your customers better, for
example, if a call is transferred to an agent who is more qualified to respond,
the customer won't be asked to repeat himself as if he's making the call for
the first time.

When a customer support agent completes an interaction with a customer,
they are required to fill out forms, enter notes and document details about the call.

This process is called after call work also known as post call processing or
agent wrap up time.
Some of this work is usually carried between calls or
even during the call to reduce wrap up time.

Here's a list of items that agents are often required to document.
Reason for the call, call category,
relevant products or services, outcome of the call,
specific customer concerns, next steps or follow ups,
providing adequate context for other agents and
representatives for future communications will
require the documentation to be clear,
concise and complete the, three C's.
Note taking while listening and speaking to someone on the phone
is not an easy task, it may mean writing in phrases,
this is okay if the important keywords are identified and noted.
As an agent, you will be trained to use action words to clearly and
concisely state what the customer wants and expects you to do.
Manual data entry is not only time consuming but
often inaccurate due to human error and time constraints.
As an agent your responsibility does not stop at documenting your own interactions
accurately, you will need to tag and report any documentation errors or
incomplete documentation processes you may come across.
This will prevent a domino effect of poor customer service throughout
the customer experience process.
Focus on acquiring the skills you need to properly document customer interactions.
Providing excellent customer service is dependent on these skills
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
What are call flow standards?
What are call flow standards?
Whether a customer contacts
you with a request or a complaint,
the way you respond can have
a critical impact on
their perception of your organization.
Customer experience is often hard to define,
yet it's ultimately
the single most important metric for any organization.
After all, if this is ignored,
your customers will take their business elsewhere.
Establishing service call workflows are essential in
being able to provide positive customer experiences.
A call flow begins when the customer dials in,
and ends when the customer hangs up.
Along the way, the caller goes
through multiple intermediate steps,
like listening to a recorded announcement,
working through the interactive voice response prompts,
speaking with an agent,
and in some cases,
transferring to a second agent.
The ideal customer service call workflow
does not look the same for every organization.
Limited resources may necessitate longer hold times,
and more complex services may mean that
customers need to transfer between agents.
The best way to ensure
your customers' needs are addressed quickly and
efficiently is to follow
the call flow standards put in
place by your organization.
Guidelines for call flow standards include
the list of steps to be taken by the agent,
and how these steps should be applied.
Training provides new and existing agents
with the skills they need to follow standards.
To ensure agents adhere to the call flow standards,
coaching and constant monitoring
occur on an ongoing basis.
Agents are regularly audited on what is said,
how they say it, and if call flow standards were applied.
Call scoring is a way to measure
agent performance against a uniform standard.
When used correctly, it should eliminate
any personal biases from
call evaluation and improve quality management.
This is a process that can involve managers,
agents, and even customers.
Typical score call metrics include
checking that the customer was
greeted in a friendly manner,
verifying that the agent asked
the customer their name and used it during the call,
and validating that the agent retained
a positive attitude throughout the call.
Let's examine a call flow that is rather universal.
Please note, as you examine this call flow,
you will see evidence of
everything you have learned throughout
this course all wrapped up in one typical call flow.
So pay careful attention to
this typical call flow standard.
Step 1, information verification.
During this phase,
introductions are made and agents collect
all necessary information to
address the customer's request or issue.
Step 2, probing phase.
In this phase, agents work
toward problem identification using
communication techniques such as
applying a mix of open and close-ended questions,
along with active listening skills.
Step 3, research phase.
Agents explore all potential solutions.
Step 4, solution phase.
Communicate a confirmed solution and guide
the caller step-by-step through the call resolution.
Finally, step 5, closing remarks phase.
Provide required closing remarks,
confirm that the issue has been
addressed and no further questions,
problems exist and document the call
accurately so it can be
leveraged to address similar issues,
or requests in the future.
These call flow standards apply to the perfect world.
But what about the calls that are less than perfect?
Not to worry, standards are
established for these calls as well.
Escalation is the process by which an agent transfers
a customer complaint or
issue to a more senior representative,
sometimes a supervisor, or manager.
When is the right time to escalate a call,
or more precisely,
what types of calls should be escalated?
Escalated calls typically include angry customers,
customers using profanity, and
difficult questions that are
well beyond your skill level.
There is more variants throughout
the industry in these call flow standards,
but rest assured that you will be trained on
exactly when and how to apply these standards.
You will also be evaluated on
your application of these standards.
Apply these standards with fidelity.
It is possible that
these standards will be monitored even more carefully.
You will find that no two organizations are the same.
But what is the same across all industries is that
all organizations have standards
that you will need to follow.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
6 Qualities of Every Great Call Center Agent
Patience. Call center agents face tough circumstances every
day. ...
Excellent verbal communication skills. ...
Organization. ...
Flexibility. ...
Attention to detail. ...
A friendly nature. ...
Answer and respond to customer calls. ...
Follow up with relevant customers.
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Why is it important to follow up with customers?
Why is it important to follow up with customers?
There is no better way to wow
customers than by doing
what you said you would do for them,
especially if you promise a follow-up call.
Unfortunately, customers generally do
not expect customer service agents to follow up,
even if you say you will.
Following up with customers can provide you with
valuable information on how to
improve the customer experience overall.
It allows you to get feedback on what
the organization is doing right or wrong,
and what services can be improved or added.
What are the best ways to follow up with customers?
It depends on customer preferences,
how quickly you want to reach
the customer and your target audience.
Always check the database to
see if the customer prefers to be
contacted by email or text instead of a phone call.
This is essential information you will need to
gather the first time you interact with the customer.
Follow-up procedures that include getting feedback,
start by asking the right questions.
For example, did we meet your expectations?

How would you rate our interaction?
What would have made your experience with us better?
Were we able to satisfy your needs?
What products or services do you wish we carried?
How could we have exceeded your expectations?
Is there anything else you would like
us to know about your experience?
Asking the right questions will help you
and your organization get the information
you need to improve
customer experience as well as open opportunities
to explore other options and
possibly expand the organization offerings.
Here are some tips for you to
consider as you begin to think about how
you will make follow-up support
a consistent part of your call resolution cycle.
Ask your customers for their feedback right
away when their experiences fresh in their mind,
not weeks or months later.
Block out some time on your calendar so you
can focus on reaching out to your customers.
If a customer has contacted you,
be sure to return the call or email within 24 hours.
This will show how genuinely concerned you are with
their issue or request and your willingness to help.
When you are following up and there is conflict,
remember what you've learned.
Listen to the entire message,
show empathy and diffuse anger.

Ask open-ended questions so you can get
the most information from
your customers about their experience.
Open-ended questions encourage customers
to speak freely, but remember,
manage time very carefully so you'll have
plenty of time to get back to the rest of your customers.
Always say thank you.
No matter what type of follow-up you do with
customers or no matter the outcome,
end every interaction with a thank you.
Following up is a win-win situation
for both you and the customers.
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Further Reading
 Mike Donaldson, The Importance of Service Standards to a Customer Engagement Strategy. 2015.
 Patricia Lotich, Example Customer Service Standards. 2016.
 Adam Rogers, How Documented Procedures Can Make Your Customer Support More Effective. 2016.
 Patricia Lotich, 8 Reasons to Write Business Policies and Procedures. 2016.
 Wendy Tadokoro, Why You Need to Document Business Processes. 2014.
 Oneil Williams, What Does Customer Escalation Mean?. 2018.
 Tara Ramroop, The art of the ticket escalation process. 2017.
 Why Is It So Important To Follow Up With Your Customers?. 2017.
 Johann Leitner, 15 Questions You Need to Ask on Your Next Customer Feedback Survey. 2017.
 Josh Rampton, Why You Should Follow Up on Customer Service Every Time. 2017
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::.
What Are Ticketing Systems and What Are their Benefits?

What are ticketing systems and what are their benefits?
A helpdesk ticketing system is
software that automates tasks
related to customers support and
resolving requests and issues.
A ticketing system is usually connected to
a Customer Relationship Management or CRM database.
A CRM database stores all the information
and organization has collected about its customers.
There are numerous benefits associated with
using ticketing systems in customer service.
First, it allows for faster ticketing resolution.
When a ticket is opened,
it is automatically entered in the system,
routed to the appropriate agent and populated with
the appropriate information so
agents can focus on troubleshooting,
resolving, and closing tickets.
When agents can concentrate on
resolving and closing tickets,
the focus is placed on the customer's needs.
Tickets are closed quickly and
customers don't have to wait for our response.
By spending less time entering
data and documenting calls,
agents have more time to interact with
their customers and provide personalized solutions.
With the CRM in place,
agents can improve support experiences
by getting access to
valuable information that can help them better
understand the customer's needs
and meet their expectations.
In return, customers feel valued.
Most helpdesk ticketing systems
provide metrics that allow
organizations to evaluate
their customer service performance.
Information such as the number of
tickets closed and the average time to
resolve issues and other dilemmas
discussed in previous lessons,
are essential for identifying
and resolving performance issues.
They also bring an element of accountability.
Agents can quickly identify
their shortcomings and work toward improving their KPIs.
Some helpdesk ticketing systems also
come with the ability to leverage SLAs.
As we discussed before,
SLAs or Service Level Agreements,
not only define what customers
can expect from a service provider,
but they also provide support teams with
standards on how to process requests.
Setting clear expectations on both sides
alleviates concerns and potential conflicts.
Now that we have examined the value
of implementing ticketing systems,
let's take a closer look at tickets
themselves and how to efficiently process them.
Support tickets represent a service request
from a customer received in a ticketing system.
Tickets describe the interaction between
customers and customer service agents.
you will be asked to reply to and resolve
tickets while sticking to your organizations SLAs.
Handling tickets is not an easy task,
it can quickly become overwhelming.
Tickets pile up and customers get
frustrated because their requests
are not being addressed.
It will take persistence, focus,
and some serious organization skills.
Let's review some quick tips on how to
tackle your ticket pile efficiently.
Try keeping your response time under 30 minutes.
Even if you don't have time to
address the customer's issue right away,
send them a quick reply to let them know you're
aware of their request and will address it soon.
Don't pass along tickets unless you don't have a choice.
Customers get frustrated when they must go through
several agents before someone can help them.
Show your willingness to help and work as a team
with other departments to close difficult tickets.
Keep an eye on ticket statuses.
Assigning the correct status to a ticket is
crucial for a successful resolution.
Oftentimes, customers don't get answers
because their tickets are marked with the wrong status.
Make your responses simple and straightforward.
Clearly outline what needs to be done.
Clear and simple replies will
allow for faster resolutions.
Handle old tickets first.
These customers have waited long enough for an answer.
Also check regularly for
new tickets so you do not miss anything.
Don't forget to notify customers when you have
resolved their issue or addressed the request.
A ticket remains unsolved in
the customer's eyes until they get
a confirmation that it is closed.
Regardless of the type of
customer service and organization provides,
all requests need to be documented
so they can be tracked, addressed, and resolved.
Support requests becomes support tickets
once they are logged into the ticketing system.
Tickets capture not only
the customer's initial request for support,
but all the interactions agents have with
the customer until the request is completed.
A good ticket response should capture in detail,
all that was said and done and
should be easy to read and follow.
Remember, any given response may be used by
other agents for reference and possibly other customers.
You will be responsible for writing effective responses.
This will require both training and practice.
Let's look at some general tips to get you started.
First, always make sure you use
proper grammar, punctuation, and spelling.
Proofread everything.
First impressions count and a bad first impression can
potentially damage the credibility of your organization.
Write precisely.
Your messages should be clear and
concise for a quick and easy resolution.
Avoid getting too technical,
and when it makes sense to do so,
take customers through the solution
to their problem step-by-step.
Use numbered lists instead of
paragraphs to guide customers through
processes that need to be
completed in a specific sequence.
Use the imperative form when writing instructions,
especially when using a step-by-step format.
The imperative form is considered
the best way to give directions.
The imperative form involves using direct statements,
as well as the infinitive form of a verb.
For example, check the status of
your delivery or press the Home button.
Proper implementations of ticketing systems
are a game changer in customer support.
Be sure that you and your team embrace best practices.
It will save you time and save your company money,
and most of all,
your customers will reap the benefits.
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What are some shortcut techniques agents can use to

provide faster service?
What are some shortcut techniques
agents can use to provide faster service?
Providing the best customer service experience generally
depends on how quickly an agent can turn around a ticket.
When help requests build-up,
support agents can quickly get overwhelmed and
customers may have to wait longer for a resolution.
This can lead to frustrated and unhappy customers.
Managing a ticket queue is not an easy task for anyone,
and new agents are often left wondering where to start.
While it is recommended to never
rush a call or a request,
there are multiple things you can do as an agent to
reduce your volume of calls
and improve your handling time.
First, agents should prioritize
their tickets using either a first-come,
first-served basis or a triage approach.
For smaller teams, it's
usually best to use the first method,
which means tackling the oldest tickets first.
On the other hand, picking and
choosing is a great way to give customers with
tougher problems the attention they deserve
and those would simpler problems a faster reply.
Although it might be tempting to use
the triage approach to make certain customers happy,
it is only recommended for specific or urgent situations,
and when the organization is
required to meet strict SLAs.
The top to bottom approach is
usually the easiest method to
follow and will result in a faster response time.
Agents can use canned responses or macros when available.
Macros are pre-written messages that can be
sent out when a matching ticket comes in from a customer.
These macros are useful when managing recurring tickets.
They allow agents to focus on the issue
rather than on how to phrase their responses.
With a couple of keystrokes,
agents can quickly customize
their response and reply to the customer in no time.
Bookmarking is another easy way to
quickly process repeating tickets.
Bookmarking is a method by which
agents can mark solutions or answers
as favorites and send them
instantly when similar tickets come in.
While these shortcut methods
can greatly help agents reduce
the amount of calls they need to
process and improve their KPIs,
they should only be used for
their intended purpose and not as
a quick fix or a way to inflate personal performance.
Triage should never be used to avoid
difficult tickets or pass them on to other agents.
The goal of triage should only be to assign tickets to
the people who have
the appropriate skills to resolve them.
The selective choosing of tickets
is also called cherry-picking.
Cherry-picking can have negative consequences
on agents and customers.
Cherry-picking holds new agents back.
The only way an agent can grow and improve is to
step up and take on more complex issues.
This can't happen if the agent
only looks for the easiest tickets.
For customers with complex requests,
this can mean they may have to wait
longer for someone to address their tickets.
Tickets may even fall between the cracks
and remain unresolved for a long time.
Cherry-picking does not foster good teamwork.
No one likes to be part of a team where
some people are doing less than others.
While canned responses or
macros can be a helpful tool for agents,
agents must be certain that
this canned information really
does address exactly what is needed.
Canned responses don't always apply to all situations and
their inappropriate use can break
the information and conversation flow with the customer.
The number 1 rule with canned responses is that they
should be personalized to fit the needs of each customer.
A canned response should never be used when;
an agent is unclear about what the customer is asking.
A canned response that provides
the wrong instructions will make
matters worse and lead to
more frustrating problems for the customer.
The agent is pressed for time.
Customers do not like to be
rushed and sending a canned response as
a quick answer will make the customer
feel like the agent doesn't have time for them.
Like canned responses,
bookmarks can also be inappropriately
used by agents to batch close tickets and inflate KPIs.
Incorrectly bookmarking ticket responses will not only
lead agents to send the wrong resolution to the customer,
but it will also have an effect on the quality
of the organization's knowledge database.
As we have explored as an agent,
your performance will be routinely evaluated.
When you take shortcuts that do not benefit
the customer or reduce your team's collaborative efforts,
it will be noticed.
Use shortcuts when they benefit
your customers as well as your team.
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::….
How can ServiceNow or ITSM tools help agents manage their ticket queue?
How can ServiceNow or ITSM tools help agents manage their ticket queue? ServiceNow is a Cloud-based
IT service management ITSM tool. ITSM is a strategic approach for designing, creating, delivering,
supporting, and managing the life cycle of IT services. The goal of the IT service management framework,
is to ensure that the right processes, people, and technology are in place to meet customer's needs and
business goals. Like all ITSM solutions, the purpose of ServiceNow is to help businesses improve
workflows, manage performance metrics, and deliver outstanding IT and customer service support by
bringing together all IT operations seamlessly on a single platform that operates directly from the
Internet. Now that you are familiar with the purpose of ITSM software, let's see how ServiceNow and
similar platforms can better support the management of tickets and the people processing them. As we
mentioned before, working on support requests or tickets is not a one-step process. It involves several
phases including, diagnosing and researching the issue, recording results, and sometimes escalating the
incident. ServiceNow makes that process easy by providing agents with all the tools they need to do their
job, and by automating the most tedious and manual parts of the process. To better understand how
ServiceNow can help agents and organizations manage support tickets more efficiently, let's take a look at
the lifecycle of a ServiceNow ticket. Every incident management flow starts with the reporting phase. This
is the phase that involves contacting support by any channels available and logging the issue in the
system. In ServiceNow, it can be done by anyone: agents, customers themselves, a user for another user,
or even automatically when certain conditions are met. This not only ensures that all requests coming
through are systematically logged and tracked, but it cuts down on the amount of time an agent would
have to spend manually logging information. Less time spent on manually documenting issues means
shorter wait time for customers. Once a ticket is logged into ServiceNow, it goes through three managing
phases before it can be marked as resolved. During the first phase or the assess phase, admin or senior
agents evaluate the impact and the urgency of the request. Based on this assessment, ServiceNow
automatically sets the priority of the incident, so it is appropriately prioritized and assigned to an agent
with the proper skills. This automated process has several benefits beyond reducing the amount of time
wasted in routing tickets. It prevents cherry-picking and ensures that the right person is selected for the
job, often resulting in speedy responses and resolutions. When an agent or a team is assigned to work on
a ticket in ServiceNow, they are automatically notified by the system in the second phase or assign phase.
These auto-generated notifications are essential for keeping agents focused on their ticket queue and
ensuring that tickets do not fall through the cracks. In the third phase or the handle phase, the selected
agent or team performs the necessary activities to resolve the issue. In ServiceNow, agents and customers
alike have access to a robust knowledge base, where resolutions for recurring issues can be documented
and used. This not only helps agents reduce their call-handle time, but it also provides customers with a
self-service channel they can use to solve their own issues. Once a ServiceNow ticket has been addressed,
it cannot be closed until the user who reported the issue accepts the proposed resolution. This system
requirement has several benefits for both the agents and the customers. It provides agents with a way to
follow up with customers and verifying that they are happy with the service received. It also serves as a
system of checks and balances that provokes compliance to SLAs. Access to ITMS tools such as
ServiceNow, empowers agents to spend less time on routine and tedious manual processes and more
time on problem-solving. While ServiceNow is rather user-friendly, it is still a multifaceted software
platform that requires training and practice. You will get plenty of training on the use of applications such
as ServiceNow. For now, let's start with tips that will get you started. Keep ServiceNow open in the
browser at all times so you can quickly review and update tickets as well as communicate with clients.
Communicate with customers directly from ServiceNow to track all communication in the system. Keep
track of all interactions using the internal notes for all documentation to include progress notes. This will
come in handy if you are out and a colleague needs to pick up where you left off. Leverage the ITSM
knowledge base. To quickly turn around recurring issues, use available articles to support your knowledge
or send in articles directly to the customer as a ticket attachment. Bookmark ticket resolutions you often
use so you can quickly access them as needed. Remember to exercise restraint when bookmarking and to
always assess the validity of the article before you use it or send it as a resolution. To learn more about
ServiceNow, ask questions and get more quick tips on how to use it from expert ServiceNow users. Visit
the ServiceNow Community Forums page @https://community.servicenow.com.
:……..:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Further Reading
Gabriel Swain, How a help desk ticketing system benefits customer service. 2018.

 Writing A Good Helpdesk Ticket.
 Karl Palachuk, Why service notes are the most important documents you have. 2016.
 Jacob Firuta, 4 Ways to Handle a Support Ticket Faster. 2015.
 Michael Caminiti, 3 Ways Not to Use Canned Responses in Live Chat. 2016.
 Jess Byrne, Smart Ideas for Managing the Customer Support Queue.
 Pavel Rodin, ServiceNow: ticketing and beyond. 2017.
 What is ITSM (IT Service Management) In Plain English.
 :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::……………………………………………………………
Why are typing skills important in Customer Service?
Why are typing skills important in customer service?
Providing excellent customer service
rests on the ability to communicate
effectively not only by
phone but also by email and chat text.
You now know that you'll also
need to document your interactions
with customers while on
the phone or after the call has ended.
Whether it is while working with
a customer or when completing your after-call work,
ACW, the speed, and the accuracy of
your typing will determine
how many tickets you can process and close.
Good typing skills will not
only allow you to be more productive,
but it will improve your focus.
Believe it or not, every time you look down at
your keyboard to find a key, you lose focus.
Learning how to type while keeping your eyes on
the screen and without missing
any letters for your customers,
will benefit your work tremendously.
That's not all.
We all know that customers like
fast answers and fast resolutions.
The faster you type and send your response,
the happier your customer will be,
and the lower your response time will be.
How fast can you type?
Before learning how to type faster,
you'll need to identify your WPM,
CPM, and level of accuracy.
The WPM or words per minute metric
represent the number of correctly typed words per minute.
Depending on your position,
you may be required to type anywhere
from 45 to 90 words per minute.
The CPM or characters per minute metric
represent the number of
characters you can type per minute.
Since the length and complexity of
some words may affect a person's typing speed,
it is important to assess
someone's CPMs to fully evaluate their typing skills.
It is one thing to type very quickly,
but if what you type is plagued with typos,
then your WPF and CPM have no value.
Accuracy is crucial when evaluating typing skills.
Like all skills, the best way to improve your WPM,
CPM, and typing accuracy is to practice.
Do you use the touch typing method,
or do you type using the hunt and peck method?
If you type using hunt and peck using
two fingers with your eyes glued to the keyboard,
then it's time to consider the touch typing method.
With touch-type, also referred to as touch typing.
Without looking at the keyboard,
your hands rest on a specific set of keys,
and each finger moves in
a systematic way to reach the letters nearest to it.
This frees up your cognitive attention and
information processing power so you can
focus on the work at hand and not the mechanics.
Your attention is not split
between visually searching for keys,
looking at the screen,
and or any additional materials
you are reading or copying.
It is important for you to assess your typing abilities.
Struggling with typing is not
something you want to deal with in
customer service when there is so much more to focus on.
Here are some tips that can
improve your speed and accuracy.
Body positioning is important.
Make sure you sit upright with your back to the chair.
This will increase your focus on
the screen and not on the keyboard.
Place your hands and elbows at the correct angles.
How you position your fingers on
the keyboard is also important.
It allows for faster typing.
Keep your eyes away from the keyboard.
Looking at the keyboard while typing will
reduce your speed and cause more errors.
Practice typing this sentence multiple times.
The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.
This sentence contains all the letters of the alphabet.
Typing it will help you to remember
where the letters are on the keypad.
If you recognize the need to improve your skills,
set some goals and practice daily for 30 minutes.
Keep this up until you have reached your goals.
No need to join a typing class.
There are many online tools that you can
use to improve your typing skills.
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What can I do to enhance my verbal communication skills?
What can I do to enhance my verbal communication skills?

The ability to give clear instructions and
explanations is a very important skill for customer support agents,
especially in a call center setting, where customers are not able to see you.
Clear communication over the phone does not compare to a face to face interaction.
Because of this, customer service agents must have or
develop excellent verbal and soft skills.

This includes mastering diction skills and
specific aspects of the English language and verbal presentation.

Developing strong dictation and diction skills should be priorities.

Talking with a customer on the phone is not always an easy task,
especially if you are trying to explain something highly technical or
supporting a non native English speaker.
Giving clear instructions and explanations involves both language and people skills.
Your diction, as well as your tone are essential in conveying your message.

Let's review some of these skills and
learn what you can do to better communicate over the phone.

Use a direct but positive tone.
The imperative is the verb form recommended for giving clear instructions.
For example, you may want to say, take a left at the stop sign instead of,
when you get to the stop sign you'll need to turn left.

However, since imperatives can sometimes sound a bit bossy,
you can soften the tone of your delivery by using softeners.
For example, you could say, I would like you to turn left at the stop sign.
Typical softeners include, I want you to,
I'd like you to, I need you to.
Control the rate of your speech, most people speak at a pace of
130-150 words and you should too when talking on the phone.
Anything faster might be difficult for
the customer to understand while anything slower may not be well received.

Control the pitch of your voice as well.
A high pitch,
especially when using imperatives may be perceived as too authoritative.
Speak as naturally as possible and remember to smile when you speak.

Enunciate and use simple words and phrases, don't use complex or
highly technical words that may confuse your customers.
Avoid slang and filler words such as man, dude,
yeah or they are distracters and unprofessional.

There is nothing more important than being understood by your customers.
So make sure to practice and remember that sometimes less is more,
choose your words wisely.

Have you ever experienced the frustration of trying to talk with
a customer support representative that hardly acted like you were even there?

These monologues are call scripts used in the customer service industry.

Research from software advice revealed that 84% of surveyed customers
believe that their support experience improved more than slightly
when a representative didn't sound like they were reading from a script.

It's clear that customers prefer unscripted calls.
So does this mean you should stay away from scripts all together?
Well, not exactly.
When used properly, scripts can enhance the customer experience.

Call scripts have their benefits,
especially when you're new to the role of a customer service agent.
They can help you engage the customer and
provide standard responses to common interactions and requests.

Now, what you should never do when using scripts is forget that you're talking to
a person.
If you're going to use scripts, make sure to customize them so
they sound more like you.
Make your responses personal and feel less robotic, improvise.
In other words, when possible, go off script.
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What terms are specific to processes and methodologies

used in customer service?
What terms are specific to processes and
methodologies used in customer service?
Like many other businesses that rely on
technologies and complex processes to run efficiently,
customer service has its own lingo.
For a service provider,
it is important that all employees understand and use
the same terminology in
the workplace to keep processes running smoothly,
streamline operations, and avoid
misunderstandings in the communication process.
It is also critical for a customer support agent to gain
comprehensive understanding of the terminology
used in the workplace to successfully do their job.
As an agent, you'll need to
understand your manager, team lead,
and other agents when working together to
deliver the best customer service experience.
There is quite a bit to learn
when you start as a new agent.
Keeping up with the unfamiliar jargon
and acronyms can be overwhelming.
So that you can hit the ground running,
in the next activity,
you will be asked to examine and reflect on a glossary of
terms that are rather universal to the service industry.
Exposing yourself to these terms now will prove to
be beneficial when you secure your first position.
Please remember, while it is
essential for you to familiarize
yourself with this terminology
to better understand the workplace,
it's best to avoid using most of
these terms when talking to customers.
When it comes to working with customers,
always use terms that are common to the customer.
As you review the glossary,
you should recognize many of the terms,
they were introduced in previous lessons.
Recalling these terms right now might seem pretty easy,
but as time passes,
that probably will not be the case.
Print the glossary, so you can retain a copy of it.
Remember, our brains are actually programmed to
forget until we let our brain
know how important it is to remember,
so it is best to review this glossary often enough,
so that you create memory of the terms.
Understanding these terms and using
them when appropriate will serve you well,
especially in upcoming interviews.
Add to the glossary as needed.
Your own personal glossary
should grow and change as your career
develops and can be
a great addition to your personal knowledge library.
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KCS is a methodology for capturing, authoring, refining, and publishing information to make knowledge a
key asset of an organization. However, KCS is a way people solve problems and knowledge creation
becomes a by-product of this problem-solving process. Central to the methodology is the process of
continuous improvement. KCS is a many-to-many model. It's demand-driven and self-correcting. Each
team member that interacts with the knowledge has the ability to make it better!
What is the K CS methodology?

Throughout this course, much of what
you have been exposed to is related
to what you need to know and be able to
do to be a valuable customer support agent.
In this last lesson,
you will explore a leading service methodology
called KCS, Knowledge-Centered Support.
Many people believe that
this methodology delivers service innovation.
In fact, numerous global knowledge management leaders
uniformly ascribed to KCS.
This methodology has become an integral part of
the day-to-day operations of their support centers.
KCS is a methodology for capturing, authoring, refining,
and publishing information to make
Knowledge a key asset of an organization.
However, KCS is a way people solve problems and
knowledge creation becomes a by-product
of this problem-solving process.
The process of continuous movement
is central to the methodology.
You are probably familiar with
knowledge creation models that
offer a continuum of
a few people creating knowledge for many.
In the KCS methodology,
it is quite the opposite.
KCS is a many to many model.
It's demand-driven and self-correcting.
Each team member that interacts with
the knowledge has the ability to make it better.
While KCS is at the core of solving issues.
It does not take over the role
of customer service agents.
It supports them and providing
faster and consistent answers and resolutions.
How does KCS work?
KCS is based on a continuous loop where
content is captured, structured, and reused.
When a customer's request comes in,
an article is created.
Agents are responsible for writing and structuring
articles in a way that makes them
easy to retrieve and reuse.
As agents reuse articles,
they are responsible for reviewing them,
making sure they are up to date,
and even linking them to
more articles with similar topics.
This keeps the knowledge relevant and valid.
Articles can also be used by customers because they are
appropriately written as well as managed over time.
KCS takes teamwork to another level.
It is a great way to collaborate and it allows
new agents to leverage the knowledge of senior agents.
In the following activity,
you will be asked to conduct research
on the KCS methodology.
Remember, numerous global organizations have
implemented this methodology to
steer their day-to-day operations.
You can think of this next activity as
an excellent opportunity to prepare for
an upcoming interview in customer support.
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Further Reading
If you're interested in reading more about the subjects we covered in this lesson, including some of
the studies referenced in your lectures, here are some additional resources for you to check out!
Jacob Firuta, 15 Customer Service Skills Agents Need. 2016.
Jacob Firuta, Typing Speed Test for Customer Service Agents. 2016.
8 Benefits of Touch Typing Skills. 2014.
Josh Scott, Benefits of Learning How to Type Fast and Accurately.
Laura McConney, Customer Service Phone Tips.
Effective Speaking.
Craig Borowski, What Customers Think About Call Center Scripts: 2014 vs. 2018. 2018.
Ellen Veenpere, Customer Service Glossary:Words and Phrases to Know. 2017.
Nikita Arora, 30 Must Know Call Center Terminologies. 2015.

Sarah Khogyani, 5 steps to knowledge-centered support (KCS®).
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Welcome To The Customer Service Fundamentals Course

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Welcome to the Customer Service Fundamentals course.

There are a growing number of exciting and well-

Here are some tips on how to build rapport with customers.

Use active listening skills.

So, why is this relevant to you?

Keeping things simple is a win-win.

The Kiss Principle

Occam’s Razor And The 8 Models Of Attribution

What is Occam's Razor?

Use these facts to guide the caller through the solution.

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Barbara Khozam, Patience: The Building Block to Exceptional Customer Service.

16 Customer Service Skills That Drive Every Business.

Huitt, W. "Empathetic Listening". 2009.

How can I become a highly focused agent?

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Is persistence the path to successful resolutions?

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Bill Widmer, 10 Excellent Customer Service Skills for 5-Star Support.

Why is the innate desire to help essential in customer service?

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