Knowing your stuff matters

If you ask a customer what they look for when interacting with customer service staff, they'll give you a list a mile long. Let's face it, the expectations are as varied as the customers are; yet there is one key area that probably matters more than the customer knows -- confidence. This can only come from a foundation of "knowing your stuff", and making the customer feel that you're in control of the situation.

Have you ever been dealing with someone in customer service and caught that fleeting moment when you knew instantly that the person you were interacting with didn't "know their stuff"? That hesitation, that pause, that "ummm", that gave away their hand? The minute you sensed it, you'll remember that deflated feeling in your stomach when your intuition told you "this isn't going to be as easy as it should". No matter how perky, charming and assuring that customer service person is, from that point on it's all uphill.

Don't get me wrong; i'm not implying that customer service staff need to know everything about everything within their organization, that's simply impossible. However the customer knows even less about how your company works, and the first thing they want when they interact with your customer service is to feel that the person who's looking after them "knows their stuff".

I recently dealt with Bank of the Philippines credit card team and had the pleasure of being looked after by an agent who really did know her stuff. She was obviously experienced, knew the right procedure and process I needed to follow, and had me dealt with quickly. In a situation where I was already anxious and stressed, this level of confidence instantly put me at ease. This was really important because I was already expecting the lengthy and stereotypically daunting process of dealing with a bank.

Customers use customer service because it's the gateway to a businesses core operations, and when they contact it they want to be wrapped in the warm blanket of confidence, to know that things will be taken care of, and that the person who's dealing with them really does have their best interests at heart. So you're next homework topic after patience is to know your stuff.

Build your personal knowledge bank of tips and tricks and have it ready to deploy whenever needed. Take the extra effort to learn things most other people can't be bothered knowing, even if it has nothing to do with your department. Talk to other people and find out how their job works, learn where those processes go after they leave your group, and discover the answers to questions your customers may potentially one day need you to know. Oh and whenever your company offers training, sign up! Learn learn learn.

A true customer service professional is a jack of all trades, as well as a master of at least one - and that one should be information and knowledge. Get cracking!