In the customer service world, having an email chain of conversation can be helpful. It is a great way for the customer to have written instructions if that was the reason they wrote. Even for customer service complaints, email can be a helpful medium. That being said, you need to have customer email best practice tips in place to keep every one of your customer service reps on the same page.
It makes sense that at times your customer service reps may go off script so their emails don’t make them sound like robots. However, this can be an issue if the customer service rep is dealing with a disgruntled customer.
Whether you are dealing with supply chain disruptions and may businesses still are because of coronavirus or if a customer received a product they consider subpar, the emails your team sends can either calm a customer down or ruffle his or her feathers even higher.
Customer Email Best Practice Tips
Whether your customer is justified in their feeling, it is up to you to work with him or her to see what you can do to help address the situation. After all, an angry customer is more likely to take to social media and run your company down than is a happy customer.
Here are some best practices you should put in place.
Don’t be defensive in your email practices. Be proactive. Try to anticipate customer complaints with shipping delays and other issues. Don’t be patronizing and say, “all business is suffering slowdowns because of coronavirus.” They don’t care. They want to be taken care of and came to you to ensure you do that just.
Answer a customer complaint in fewer than twenty four hours. The longer a customer has to wait for a response, the angrier they will be. They don’t want to be ignored. Even if you don’t have any answer, let them know you received their message and that you’re working on it.
Remember that a “joking” tone doesn’t show through in the written word especially if you don’t know how high of a level of understanding the customer has of your language nuances. Stick to a friendly, warm tone and skip the jokes.
If you work in a small company, encourage the team to talk to the customer on the phone. It’s easier to send an email, but a phone call is so much more personal and the customer could appreciate that.
Keep i mind that just because you know something, doesn’t mean your customer does. Think of this in the tech realm. It may seem simple to you to hit “control, alt, delete” but those terms may not mean anything to the person you’re speaking with. Put yourself in the customer’s shoes and address them from there.
How often do you review customer service emails and best practice tips with your staff and vendors? It may be time to review those now.
Rex Richard of Peak Dynamics has been quoted as saying, “The difference between a successful person and others is not a lack of strength, knowledge, or skill, but rather a lack of will…” Willpower in work and life matters and there are ways to “get more” willpower. We’ve been told that our willpower is a limited resource and we only have so much of it to work with every day.
We know that willpower or lack of willpower comes when your self-control is ebbing and when you’re emotionally and mentally exhausted.
Can you improve or regain willpower and self-control? Yes!
Willpower In Work And Life
Rex Richard has compiled his top three ways to improve your willpower in work and in life
Know your triggers. What makes you lose self-control? Stress? Boredom? Because your self-control is limited and you deplete it daily, you need to save some or bank some for later in the day when you may need it most. If you know you have a challenging day or event ahead — or at the end of the day — you need to “save” your self-control until then. For example, if you’re hungry or angry or bored, don’t grocery shop — this is especially true if food is your trigger.
Keep yourself out of tempting or stressful situations if you simply don’t have the reserves to control yourself or harness your willpower.
Strengthen your willpower through exercising it. Willpower and self-control are muscles and the more you work it, the stronger it will be. What can you do to improve your willpower and self-control and find reserves of it when you need it? These may seem odd, but they work.
Watch a movie that makes you cry and don’t let yourself shed a tear
Watch a movie that always makes you laugh, but don’t laugh
Solve a hard puzzle — crossword, Soduko or others
Control your emotions when you’re in a situation that tries your willpower. Shop when you’re hungry and resist the urge to stock up on junk food
Drink juice. Whip up a green drink (kale, spinach, fruit juice). The glucose in the fruit juice will help restore your brain and get you back in balance and in control. Feeding your brain can strengthen your willpower and self-control.
When it comes to business tools, we still say and believe that blogging is one of the most effective marketing tools an entrepreneur can have in his or her arsenal. Whether you’re doing your own blogging or hiring a professional writer, your blogging should be bringing in ROI — if not, why are you doing it? If you’re wondering how to make your business blog work for you we have advice.
If you have a business website, the biggest benefit of regular blogging is that every time a new blog post goes live and Google takes notice. Google loves good, new, valuable content and your blogs can be just that and they could help your business rank and get found online.
How To Make Your Business Blog Work For You
Try these tips for your blogging efforts.
Cluster your topics. If you have a LONG article or blog post, consider breaking it up into a series. Google, and readers, love a series. When you do a series you can specialize on the topic and it truly shows your expertise. When you write a series make certain you’re linking back and forth between all parts of the series and make it easier for your readers to find. Also, when doing a series, make sure you’re not making the reader wait weeks and weeks for the next part — they will lose interest.
Be authentic and yes, personable. Regardless of the niche in which your business is, you can still have a personality, right? Do you have to be so staid that you don’t have hobbies? A sense of humor? A story to share? Readers and potential clients will connect with you more readily if they see that you are a “real person” not just a business name with an unknown entity behind it.
Don’t forget the CTA (call to action). What do you want your reader to do after he or she has read your article? Do you want them to call you? Sign up for your newsletter? Buy something? Follow you on social media? If you don’t ask for or prompt a reader, chances are they will read your article and walk away. Don’t let them go until they have been prompted to action.
Keep in mind where your audience is. Are they at the 101 level or are they more advanced? Why do you think they Googled and found your site and are reading your articles? Do your readers understand complex topics you’re sharing? Sure, they may need that complex information BUT you may want to lead them along before you jump right to the highest level. Meet them where they are and nurture them along.
Whether you want to be found by a hiring manager, want to find a new client or simply want to put forth your knowledge and skills you need to have your online biographies completed filled out. We have 3 tips to writing a professional bio that will help you make a great impression before you even say a word or shake a hand!
A professional online bio and a great headshot are what potential connections will see first and will, honestly, judge you on. If you purport to be a professional, but you can’t find a professional headshot… there is a disconnect.
3 Tips To Writing A Professional Bio
What should go into your bio to make you stand out?
As mentioned, a professional photo. Don’t take a selfie. Don’t have a photo of you in your tuxedo from your wedding. Don’t cut your face out of a group photo. Call a professional photographer and get one taken.
Your name and title (don’t make up a title that is so obscure and clever that someone couldn’t figure out what you do). What do you do in your current role?
Add your branding statement. A branding statement is like your mission or vision statement. It helps someone who is reading your bio to know what you stand for and how you stand out from the competition.
Should you write your bio in first person or third person? The jury is still out on that. First-person point of view would be: I am an accountant who has worked for XYZ Company and I was responsible for… A third person bio would be: John has worked as an accountant with XYZ Company and he was responsible for…
Your bio should be updated and refreshed regularly. If you haven’t crafted your bio or don’t know what your branding statement is, reach out to Rex Richard of Peak Dynamics and talk with him.
