Is the role of customer service changing for the better? I certainly don’t think so. How many times have you called an organization to get stuck in phone hell? By the time I’ve pressed 5 buttons, said my name, my account number, my firstborn – I still am not anywhere closer to where I want to be. I just want to TALK TO SOMEONE!
But that’s not the way of the world nowadays. Not only have we introduced systems to handle these types of tasks (of course, to improve the bottom line!), we now have a new generation of workers that don’t get it . . . unless you text them!
That’s the new challenge, in my mind, going forward as a service organization. How do you get the young worker engaged in actually talking to a customer?
Email is a great resource but so many “vibes” can be taken if you type anything just a little wrong. I MEAN, CAPS CAN BE YELLING or CAN MEAN I’M TRYING TO PUT IMPORTANCE ON SOMETHING. Or the way I said it had the wrong “tone”. You didn’t think about that did you? Not only do you need to train someone on how to speak respectfully to a customer but now you have to train them on doing that in writing too! Double the fun!
I have 3 sons in college who will be entering the workforce in the next decade (hopefully!). I look at them and wonder . . . could they handle a customer service job? Now, I know that there are a lot of people that are not made for customer service but I’m talking about – can they communicate with someone and handle a problem? They’ll need to do that in any job position they hold. They’ll need to communicate effectively. Will they be able to do that if their cell phones are not in their hands? What will they do when they realize they actually have to have eye contact with someone as they talk? Will they be able to put the cell phone down long enough to actually be productive? And productivity doesn’t mean 1000 texts per month! It’s scary!
At one point, those of us in business were concerned about the multi-lingual workforce that we would need to train. Have you seen the Internet lingo? Hey, I grew up in the acronym world – and you remember “pig latin” when you were a kid? But, boy, they have definitely got us beat! They have their own language! LOL (Laughing out Loud OR Lots of Love) KIR (Keep it Real) KHYF (Know how you feel) PA (Parent Alert) and it goes on . . .
Now, of course, I exaggerate . . . but not by much! The communication tools by the younger generation makes the rest of us re-think how our business is going to be run. Look at this . . . I’m actually blogging! I have a Facebook account (which I love). I actually text my kids all the time (yes, with FULL sentences). And you gotta LOVE IM! But, the biggest difference is if we’re all in the same room – what the heck, let’s talk!
So, my question is, what is the next phase to customer service for a service organization . . . where SERVICE is our product? Do we need to train on grammer? Where each sentence starts with a capital and ends with a period? What the heck, let’s add a comma in there once in awhile. Well, I don’t have the answers yet but it’s definitely something that keeps me awake at night . . . can you imagine losing business because we aren’t communicating properly with the customer. Ugh! Or the email that was sent,
“JFI KYPO INMP LOL OO Z”
(Translation: Just for information, keep your pants on - it’s not my problem. Lots of love (I hope) Over and Out, Zach)
Well, it’s a changing world! But I would like to share my agony. If any of you have the answers (and don’t say, you just have to train them! duh!) please feel free to text me. MTFBWY. (may the force be with you)
But that’s not the way of the world nowadays. Not only have we introduced systems to handle these types of tasks (of course, to improve the bottom line!), we now have a new generation of workers that don’t get it . . . unless you text them!
That’s the new challenge, in my mind, going forward as a service organization. How do you get the young worker engaged in actually talking to a customer?
Email is a great resource but so many “vibes” can be taken if you type anything just a little wrong. I MEAN, CAPS CAN BE YELLING or CAN MEAN I’M TRYING TO PUT IMPORTANCE ON SOMETHING. Or the way I said it had the wrong “tone”. You didn’t think about that did you? Not only do you need to train someone on how to speak respectfully to a customer but now you have to train them on doing that in writing too! Double the fun!
I have 3 sons in college who will be entering the workforce in the next decade (hopefully!). I look at them and wonder . . . could they handle a customer service job? Now, I know that there are a lot of people that are not made for customer service but I’m talking about – can they communicate with someone and handle a problem? They’ll need to do that in any job position they hold. They’ll need to communicate effectively. Will they be able to do that if their cell phones are not in their hands? What will they do when they realize they actually have to have eye contact with someone as they talk? Will they be able to put the cell phone down long enough to actually be productive? And productivity doesn’t mean 1000 texts per month! It’s scary!
At one point, those of us in business were concerned about the multi-lingual workforce that we would need to train. Have you seen the Internet lingo? Hey, I grew up in the acronym world – and you remember “pig latin” when you were a kid? But, boy, they have definitely got us beat! They have their own language! LOL (Laughing out Loud OR Lots of Love) KIR (Keep it Real) KHYF (Know how you feel) PA (Parent Alert) and it goes on . . .
Now, of course, I exaggerate . . . but not by much! The communication tools by the younger generation makes the rest of us re-think how our business is going to be run. Look at this . . . I’m actually blogging! I have a Facebook account (which I love). I actually text my kids all the time (yes, with FULL sentences). And you gotta LOVE IM! But, the biggest difference is if we’re all in the same room – what the heck, let’s talk!
So, my question is, what is the next phase to customer service for a service organization . . . where SERVICE is our product? Do we need to train on grammer? Where each sentence starts with a capital and ends with a period? What the heck, let’s add a comma in there once in awhile. Well, I don’t have the answers yet but it’s definitely something that keeps me awake at night . . . can you imagine losing business because we aren’t communicating properly with the customer. Ugh! Or the email that was sent,
“JFI KYPO INMP LOL OO Z”
(Translation: Just for information, keep your pants on - it’s not my problem. Lots of love (I hope) Over and Out, Zach)
Well, it’s a changing world! But I would like to share my agony. If any of you have the answers (and don’t say, you just have to train them! duh!) please feel free to text me. MTFBWY. (may the force be with you)
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