ARE YOU LISTENING TO YOUR CUSTOMERS?

"Listening to and answering the question youre asked is the ultimate moment of customer service," says former actor and communications expert with Corporate Coaching International, Tom Henschel. "It is the instant when you snap into focus and rise above the usual business-babble. To hit a home run every time a customer pitches a question at you, follow these 5 basic rules."

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT:
Kim Finger, Ph.D.
Corporate Coaching International
540 El Dorado Street, Suite 102
Pasadena, California 91101
Phone:   626.405.7310
Fax:   626.405.7312
Email:   Kim@corporatecoachingintl.com
Web Site: www.corporatecoachingintl.com

ARE YOU LISTENING TO YOUR CUSTOMERS?

A group of sales people gathered together to practice the presentation they routinely give to senior executives of companies like Patagonia and Nike. As one person stood and delivered his slides, another pretended to be an impatient chief officer and interjected, "Wait a second. All I want to know is this: is your system gonna be truly compatible with what we've got now or are we gonna have to completely revamp everything we've invested in so far?" The presenter appeared completely unruffled and went into a very calm, non-defensive explanation of the parts of the system which would integrate smoothly and the parts which would need retooling. The answer lasted about six minutes. There was only one problem -- the answer absolutely missed the mark.

"Listening to and answering the question youre asked is the ultimate moment of customer service," says former actor and communications expert with Corporate Coaching International, Tom Henschel. "It is the instant when you snap into focus and rise above the usual business-babble. To hit a home run every time a customer pitches a question at you, follow these 5 basic rules."

1. Answer what's asked. We all want to spin the question so we can talk about what WE want to talk about, but answering questions is about meeting THEIR needs. Besides, you don't know why they asked the question so just answer exactly what's asked.

2. Identify which of the four questions is being asked. There are only four kinds of questions in English. They are:
                Yes/No:             "Can we be sure these numbers are accurate?"
                Short Answer:     "How soon can we take delivery?"
                Forced choice:    "Is it compatible or will we have to retool?"
                Essay:                 "Why is the project structured this way?"

3. With the top three kinds of questions (close-ended), match the length of your answer to the length of the question. "This will most likely cause you to feel incomplete and as if you did not give a "full" answer," says Henschel. "But your customers will almost always be more satisfied and again, it's about THEIR needs, not yours." Being short and to the point makes you sound expert. Brevity brings clarity. Short sounds confident.

4. Check for understanding. Ask your customer, "Did that answer your question?" If they respond "yes," THEN you can add whatever else you want to tell them.

5. In essay answers, sort and label them. Allow yourself to take a minute to organize your thoughts before launching in. Use a number to tell people how many categories they're about to hear. It not only creates comfort for those listening, it also helps to organize your thoughts and makes you sound high powered. Some specific suggestions for how to do this include:

a. Before beginning an essay answer, do a quick mental scan. If the question is in your area of expertise, you'll know if you have a lot of content or not. Rather than just start a long ramble, preface your answer with a number. Say, "I think about this in three ways," or "I think we can divide that into two equal parts," or even, "There's one big idea at work here." The research is overwhelming about the use of a number in conversation -- it boosts your credibility enormously.

b. Once you have picked a number that you feel you can fill, be sure to begin each number with a short label. "Think of it as naming a folder on your desktop," Henschel advises. "The label itself isn't really the critical issue, but the folder has to have a name." So you might say, "I think about this in three ways. Number one is Integration."

c. After labeling the folder, speak a couple sentences about what's in that folder. But keep it short. Give a tree-top overview. Resist delving into the roots. And while you're talking, get ready for your next label on the next folder.

d. If you don't know an essay answer or don't have enough depth to answer the question fully, don't try to wing it. You'll only wind up diminishing your credibility. Instead, say something like, "You've asked a question that's best answered by the financial folks. Let me find out the answer and get back to you later in the day." Youll be respected for your honesty -- and admired for your follow-through when you do get back to the customer.

For more information or to schedule an interview with Dr. Lois Frankel, contact Dr. Kim Finger at 626-405-7310 or Kim@corporatecoachingintl.com

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