It’s a strange time for businesses at the moment, what with the economic crisis everyone is suffering. The actual impact varies widely across different sectors, but it is generally agreed that both for the businessman and the consumer there is a general air of doom and gloom. This may mean that you have to face more frustrated customers – especially if you have had to downsize staff numbers to save money.

As such, this is a good time to make sure your customer service is right and to invest in some soft skills training for your staff to avoid losing valuable custom. Here is a quick trio of things your customer service team might want to take on board:

Say you’re sorry
It’s important to sincerely apologise to the customer for their problem and inconvenience. You must be sincere and make sure they know you are there to help them and not just defend your organisation.

Active listening
Pro-actively ensure you understand the major and minor points of the issue, by asking clarifying questions and by taking time to recap the salient points to ensure you have understood the issue fully.

Empathy
This is critical; if you can’t put yourself in your customer’s shoes, you either don’t understand the problem or you don’t care. Employing empathy will help you focus on a positive win-win outcome for your organisation and the customer.