Selling Sales to Customer Service AgentsLearn Management Articles on management-info.biz. Selling Sales to Customer Service Agents article will help answer your questions on Management Articles.We at management-info.biz specialize in Management Articles. Management Articles at management-info.biz provides the most up to date news and articles. If you have questions please do not hesitate to contact us.
Somewhere along the way sales got a bad rap. I'm sure all of us can relate to having dealt with a salesperson that made us uncomfortable, pressured us into making a decision, or even mislead us about the product or service. We have all survived a contract we didn't want or have things in our house that we were lured into buying only to be disappointed in their performance or usability. However, some of us may be able to recall a good sales experience in which a conscientious salesperson made us feel positive about our purchase. In these instances, customer service made all the difference. During a good sales experience, I feel as though the salesperson really listened to me, understood my needs and provided a solution that would satisfy those needs. Great customer service skills really drive an outstanding sales experience and that is an invaluable trait to pass on to your Call Center customer service representatives. The Customer Service Challenge As the needs of the Call Center industry change and our customer service representatives are required to take on more tasks and responsibilities, they also find themselves in the position to sell more products or services Initiating this behavior can be a challenge for those who feel threatened buy the sales process. Sometimes, representatives are uncomfortable with positioning sales to customers who have called in for other issues. They fall victim to the sales stigma - that the customer will assume they are offering something that is not needed or that will not be useful. But it is the manager's responsibility to help representatives understand that great customer service includes an additional sales offer. Customer Service Sales Providing great customer service is about listening to the customer's problem, investigating the source of their problem, offering solutions and sometimes even providing solutions the customer did not realize were available. Let me share an example of a great customer service sale I encountered a few weeks ago with my cellular phone provider. I received my cell phone bill several months ago only to be shocked by the charges. I have exceeded my plan to the tune of over $200. Realizing that I was probably going to continue to overspend I called my cell phone providers customer service line to discuss a plan change and other options. Once the agent had listened to my complaint and pulled up my account she was able to make several recommendations about my cell phone plan. She noticed that I exceeded my minutes by hours and suggested that I move to a plan that left me with more minutes than I had used at my highest usage rate. She also noticed that a bulk of my calls were placed between 7and 9pm and recommended that for a nominal charge per month, I could start my free evening minutes at 7pm, which would further save on overage fees. The customer service representative sold me additional services because she listened to my problem and offered a solution based on my needs and usage patterns. She also was able to offer information about other products and services that the company provided because she had built rapport by addressing my basic needs first. My customer service sales experience with this provider not only resulted in satisfying my needs, but also engendered my customer loyalty. The customer service agent was able to make the sale because she did what great customer service agents do. She listened and provided a solution. Customer Service Skills vs. Sales Skills Effective customer service representatives and sale people may not realize it, but they share several skills. Customer Service Skills -- Sales Skills Listening Listening Patience Patience Attention to detail Attention to detail Problem solving Problem solving Effective communication Effective communication Empathy Empathy Handling difficult customers Overcoming objections Although their skills are similar, they are used in different formats and under varying circumstances. Helping customer service representatives understand what skills they already possess and how to use them to navigate effective sales is an essential step in reassuring them that sales doesn't have to be uncomfortable, dishonest or aggressive. Building new attitudes Call Center managers can help representatives enhance skills and improve comfort levels to ensure success in customer service sales. As managers, we can adopt the following techniques when coaching our representatives. * Help them see that the customer service skills they already possess are transferable to the sales process. * Provide them with 'cheat sheets' and lists that link products and services to common problems. * Give them opportunities to role play and practice the new behaviors you want them to develop. * Monitor them one on one and model effective offers for them. * Provide consistent feedback on how they are doing. Wow! Customer Service Sale
Helping your representatives become effective at offering additional products and services can create Wow! Customer Service. When representatives really listen to the customer, they can solve their problems, offer solutions that your customers may not be aware of and create a rapport that will facilitate long-term customer loyalty. You will build the confidence of your customer service agents in their customer interactions and create a flexible workforce that will be able to face the challenges of the changing work environment. Now that is Wow Customer Service! |
More Articles:1. Give Yourself a Boss' Day Gift, Part 2: Are You the Position or the Person? By Linda LaPointe Are you the position or the person?Bosses can lose their own identity sometimes. It’s easy. It happens a lot. The results are devastating to both the workers and to the supervisor.When we are the boss, there are many dangers in becoming you the ‘position’ instead of you the ‘person’. There are many reasons why supervisors morph into being the serious, alienated, distracted, unapproachable boss. One is that we want so badly to do a good job, and we think one way to do that is to take the job ve… 2. The Truth About Performance Reviews By David Meyer Now that it is January, many of you are putting together, or have just finished putting together your annual Performance Appraisals for your staff. Feedback on performance is certainly one of the most critical aspects of personnel development and one that deserves to be taken very seriously. But after 25 years of managing people I am going to finally confess how I feel about the whole process. I HATE Performance Appraisals. I hate giving them. I hate receiving them. Whew! I feel better… 3. Using Lead Generation Services By Leon Chaddock Lead generation is a great thing. If you are a independent contractor or you are a sales maker in your business, you need a good source of leads that you can count on. But, let’s face the facts here. You only know so many people and once you tap into all of them, you are going to need some help in finding opportunities for getting additional leads. Even the best of sales people need some help with lead generation sometimes.But, how do you find the right lead generation services out there? … 4. Project Heroes By Luc Richard Project heroes. We’ve all heard of them. Some of us have even seen them. A project is in jeopardy. This guy (or gal) comes out of nowhere, analyzes the situation, tells you exactly what the problem is, and then goes on to fix it before you can even update your project plan!Some project managers place a high level of trust in project heroes. As a result, their superman (or superwoman) is assigned to the most fascinating projects and their technical decisions and sizings are never challenge… |
||||
