Customer Service Neutralizes the Efforts of the Sales Force
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Free PDF Download Salespeople Must Stop Snorkeling and Start Scuba Diving - By Dave Kurlan |
I am more convinced every day that the most overlooked and under-rated sales function in most companies is their customer service department.
This extends beyond toll-free phone numbers and includes the people you meet when you walk into a company's retail locations too.
When was the last time you ended a conversation with customer service feeling thrilled that you were a customer of companies like Dell, Verizon, USAirways, Charter or Microsoft? Would that change if I typed Apple instead of Dell?
It's really simply. There are several customer service issues that, in essence, SELL or convince you to leave a company. They are:
- Transferitis
- "you'll need to call this number instead"
- "let me transfer you to someone who can help" (again)
- Incompetence
- "OK, so let's try something else and see if that works"
- "That shouldn't be happening"
- "Let me ask someone else and see if they've heard of this"
- Rude
- Slow
- Unresponsive
- Repetitive
- "I'll need to get some basic information" (again)
- "Can I have your name and account number?" (again)
- Argumentative
- "Sir, you have to provide this information - it's a rule"
- "You must enter your information in this kiosk"
- You'll have to answer these questions or I can't proceed"
- Scripting
On a recent visit to a Verizon company store to conduct a simple free exchange for a new, unopened, incompatible device, it took over an hour, required multiple calls to customer service, and ended with them wanting $85 for the free, preapproved (by Verizon Customer Service) exchange. When I refused to pay the fee (it was just $50 to simply buy the correct device outright) I left them with the device I was attempting to return and canceled my account. They sent me a bill for $185 for early termination!
If you have your own horror stories feel free to leave them here but don't miss the point of this post. Customer service must treat customers the way you want to be treated. It should not be a group of people whose primary function is to regurgitate your company's policies and rules. Retention is the key to growth. When you can retain and even grow your existing customers, new customers represent real growth. When you are losing existing customers, new customers only replace what you have lost and sales remain flat.
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Free PDF Download Salespeople Must Stop Snorkeling and Start Scuba Diving - By Dave Kurlan |
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About the Author: Dave Kurlan RSS for Dave's articles - Visit Dave's website Dave Kurlan is a best-selling author, top-rated speaker and thought leader on sales development. He is the founder and CEO of Objective Management Group, Inc., the industry leader in sales assessments and sales force evaluations, and the CEO of David Kurlan & Associates, Inc., a consulting firm specializing in sales force development. Dave has been a top rated speaker at Inc. Magazine's Conference on Growing the Company, the Sales & Marketing Management Conference and the Gazelles Sales & Marketing Summit. He has been featured on radio and TV, including World Business Review with General Norman Schwarzkopf, in Inc. Magazine, Selling Power Magazine, Sales & Marketing Management Magazine and Incentive Magazine. He is the author of Mindless Selling and Baseline Selling – How to Become a Sales Superstar by Using What You Already Know about the Game of Baseball. He created and wrote STAR, a proprietary recruiting process for hiring great salespeople, and he writes Understanding the Sales Force, a popular business Blog and is a contributing author to The Death of 20th Century Selling (Dan Seidman), Stepping Stones (Deepak Chopra and Brian Tracey) and 101 Great Ways to Improve Your Life, Volume 2 (David Riklan). Click here to visit Dave's website. Predict Sales Turnover Visual Pipeline Salesperson Selection |
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