Case Study:

Customer Service V3 Communications has

Customer Service issues
PRESENTATION

A Which of the following irritate you the most when dealing

with customer service departments?

On the phone Face-to-face Repairs and refunds

Being put on hold Unhelpful customer Delays on repairs
service personnel
Speaking to a Delays in getting money
disinterested person Stressed or indifferent back
Choosing a series of staff
No replacement equipment
options during your call Salespeople with poor while repairs are carried out
Finding the Customer product knowledge Poor-quality repairs
Service number is Too few staff at peak times Disputes over credit notes,
continuously engaged proof of purchase', etc.
No company policy on
Being cut off customer service or
complaints
PRESENTATION

A Which of the following irritate you the most when dealing

with customer service departments?

On the phone Face-to-face Repairs and refunds

Being put on hold
Speaking to a SOME
disinterested person
Choosing a series of
options during your call
Finding the Customer
Service number is
continuously engaged
Being cut off
Unhelpful customer Delays on repairs
INTERESTING
service personnel FACTS
Delays in getting money
Stressed or indifferent back
staff
No replacement equipment
Salespeople with poor while repairs are carried out
product knowledge Poor-quality repairs
Too few staff at peak times Disputes over credit notes,
proof of purchase', etc.
No company policy on
customer service or
complaints
PRESENTATION

B Discuss these questions.

1 How important to a company's success is customer care?
2 Is it enough nowadays simply to not fail to “meet expectations”?
How can companies “exceed expectations” and give customers that
“wow moment” of customer delight?
3 Is it possible to have too much customer care?
In what situations can too much customer service become a problem?
Have you ever experienced this?
THE BENEFITS OF CUSOMER LOYALTY: The 3 Rs
CONVERSATION: How do you ensure customer loyalty?
DISCUSSION: The Service-Profit Chain
DISCUSSION: The Value of a Customer
PRESENTATION

B Discuss these questions.

1 How important to a company's success is customer care?
2 Is it enough nowadays simply to not fail to “meet expectations”?
How can companies “exceed expectations” and give customers that
“wow moment” of customer delight?
3 Is it possible to have too much customer care?
In what situations can too much customer service become a problem?
Have you ever experienced this?
DISCUSSION: The Value of a Customer
VOCABULARY
C Complete the beginnings of the sentences (1-7) with words from the box. Then
complete each sentence with an ending (a-g).
compensation complaints guarantee payment
rapport refunds standards

1 When you handle ....... ..... , it is important…

2 You can establish a ........... with a customer if… a) only way to meet customer expectations.
3 A money-back ............ if not completely satisfied
b) will lose customers.
is often…
4 When a company is at fault, a one-off
goodwill .... ........ is a useful way… c) you know about their buying habits.

5 Financial ............ for poor customer service is d) to be diplomatic.

not the…
6 Giving ............ promptly and without fuss to e) to retain customer loyalty.
dissatisfied customers is one indicator…
f) of high-quality customer service.
4 Companies which do not meet their
. . . . . . . . . . . . of service … g) a minimum expectation these days.
 VOCABULARY
D Match the idiomatic expressions (1-7) to their meanings (a-g).
1 pass the buck a) forget to do something
2 get to the bottom of the problem b) paid far too much for something
3 the last straw c) avoid responsibility
4 slip my mind d) find the real cause of something
5 ripped off e) the last in a series of irritating events
6 talk at cross purposes f) try harder in order to achieve something
7 go the extra mile g) misunderstand what someone else is
referring to
Use the expressions above in the correct form to complete these sentences appropriately.
1 The helpline person was very good and spent time with me. She started at the beginning in order
to ............ and find a solution.
2 He's the person responsible. He shouldn't try to ............ and blame others for his mistakes.
3 Several customers have complained about our service contract. They say they're paying far too much and
feel they have been ............ .

4 I meant to send him a brochure, but we were very busy. I got distracted and it .. .......... .

5 They wanted to place a larger order. I thought they wanted a bigger discount. We were ............ .
6 They ignored my complaints, but what made me really angry was when they refused to refund my money.
Really, it was ............ .
7 She was extremely helpful and was prepared to ............ to solve the problem, so I'll definitely use
the company again.
DEALING WITH COMPLAINTS
A When was the last time you made a formal complaint about something?
Was it in person, in writing or on the phone? Were you satisfied with the
way it was handled?

B Put the following stages of handling a customer complaint into the most
likely order:

- suggest possible solutions - get the details

- end on a positive note - agree on a course of action

- greet and reassure the caller - listen and empathize

DEALING WITH COMPLAINTS
- greet and reassure the caller -get the details -listen and empathize

- end on a positive note -agree on a course of action -suggest possible solutions

Which phrase is not appropriate
Stage 4
for dealing with a client?
Stage 1 a How can I help you?
b What can I do for you?
c What's the matter, then?
Stage 2 a Can you tell me exactly what the
problem is?
b What exactly is your problem?
c What seems to be the problem?
Stage 3 a Tell me about it! I know just how you
feel.
b I can understand exactly how you
feel.
c I can understand how upset you
must be.
a Well, I suppose I could always send you a new
one, but I can't give you a refund. Sorry.
b I can't give you a refund, I'm afraid, but I can
certainly send you a new one. How's that?
c Unfortunately, we're not authorized to give
refunds, but what I can do is send you a brand-
new one. How would that be?
Stage 5 a Is that all OK for you?
b Are you satisfied now?
c Are you happy with that?
a I'm so pleased we've managed to sort this out.
Stage 6
Was there anything else?
b Glad to be of assistance. Is there anything
else
I can help you with?
c Good, well, that's that, then. Is there
anything

CASE STUDY
Background
You are members of the Customer Service
Department of V3 Communications, a
telecommunications company based in
England. You sometimes receive
correspondence, telephone calls and
voicemail messages from customers who are
unhappy with the products or service of your
company. You have to deal diplomatically and
effectively with these dissatisfied customers
and to come up with solutions to their
problems.
V3 COMMUNICATIONS
1 Work in pairs. One of you is the Customer Service
Manager and the other is the Assistant Customer
Service Manager. Read the written correspondence.
Because you are so busy, decide which complaints
you will handle now as a priority,and which you will
leave until later.
2 Discuss how you are going to deal with the
complaints that you have prioritised.
3 Discuss how you could improve the service you
offer to your customers.
PERFORMANCE: Meeting
STARTING
-OK, let's get down to business.
-Right, can we start, please?
SETTING OBJECTIVES
-The purpose of this meeting is ...
-The aims of this meeting are ...
-We’re here today to …
ASKING FOR OPINIONS
-How do you feel about that?
-What do you think?
-What's your view on this?
GIVING OPINIONS MAKING SUGGESTIONS
-I think /I don't think that's a
-I think we should hire more
good idea.
CSRs.
-In my opinion, we need to
-How about providing more
improve customer loyalty.
compensation for those
affected?
AGREEING
-That's true. -Why don't we outsource our
customer service to India?
-I (totally) agree.
-Absolutely/Exactly. -Maybe / Perhaps we could
offer more appropriate
-I think so, too.
compensation.
DISAGREEING
-I see / know what you mean
but I think there's a problem.
-I'm not so sure.
-Maybe,… but that's not enough.