Essential Customer Service Skills Series (Volume 1)

Hello 👋🏼,

I am not certain if I am permitted to say ‘happy new month’  just 4 days away from Christmas 🎄🎁,but since  my  ‘Customer Service & In -Between community hasn't read from me in a while, I don’t think its out of order ☺️.

Happy new month and cheers 🥂🍾 to a  jolly  wonderful holiday celebration!.

There are various sayings about time and one of the most common one is ;

“Time and tide wait for no man”

 Meaning that time is always ticking by the second and does not wait for anyone, so it should be valued by organisations in carrying out their processes and procedures while also managing that of their customers appropriately and reasonably while at it.

A little background story:

A  few weeks back my mom had a medical emergency and we had to rush her down to a popular hospital around Gbagada .

We got to the hospital a little  before 4:00 p.m. and the processes were out of this world as we went from one end of the hospital to the other,all while my mom was sitting weakly and grappling to stay conscious.

We finally got to see the doctor. 

As at 9pm, I was still at the pharmacy and the queue was long with  quite a lot of other people still behind me.

We eventually left the hospital at about 10.30 p.m!

While all this was going on ,I observed a woman with her daughter  of about 3-4 years old (still in school uniform at that time of the night ).She was also carrying a baby  of about 6 months in her hand.The woman looked extremely tired.

I moved close to her and asked her how come she had her children out at that time and her response was,

“ I have been here since 12pm going up and down trying to get approval and  to see a doctor”.

I was taken aback.

As at the time we left ,the woman was still waiting in line at the pharmacy trying to get the drugs prescribed for her children 🥹.

That incident and a lot more I have experienced, has made me ponder on the lack of respect and value for  the customer’s time by organisations and businesses. 

I also remember calling the contact centre of a particular bank and was kept on hold with their brand jingle ringing in my ears for approximately 590 seconds 😱( 9 minutes & 30 seconds).I know because I looked at my screen immediately the call got cut off. Guess what?I still didn’t get to speak with an agent 😤.

TIME MANAGEMENT is an integral part of any business these days where we have customers that expect to be attended to’ like yesterday’ or they move to the competition 

It is also a SERVICE NEED of Customers. Customers want you to value their time as they also have things to do.

They don’t want to wait on endless queues, wait for your responses to their emails/inquiries/DMs/complaints forever,be kept on hold trying to speak to an agent from when they call ‘till Christmas’.

Time management is essential  in Customer Service, as it impacts directly on the quality of service provided to customers. 

It is a crucial Customer Service skill that enables :

👉🏼Prompt response

 *Customer inquiries and concerns are attended to  in a timely manner.

👉🏼Multiple customer conversations 

*Various interactions are handled simultaneously, without compromising quality.

👉🏼 Meeting service level agreements (SLAs)_

*Adherence to established response and resolution timeframes is maintained.

👉🏼Prioritized tasks

*High-priority customer issues are focused on, while managing lower-priority tasks that are not necessarily urgent.

👉🏼Maintain a high first-call resolution (FCR) rate

*Customer issues are resolved efficiently and at once, reducing the need for follow-up .

Effective time management has the following benefits ;

BENEFITS OF TIME MANAGEMENT 

💥Improved customer satisfaction

💥Increased productivity

💥Reduced stress( for both the organisation and it’s customers)

💥Enhanced brand reputation

💥Cost saving(need for overtime, callbacks, or escalations)

💥 Customer loyalty 

💥Referrals

💥 Positive reviews 

 The  tips  below can help boost  time management skills:

*Multitasking

*Prioritization

*Organization

*Adaptability

*Self-management

For an organisation to improve  time management for both itself and its customers some strategies need to be adopted.

STRATEGIES FOR TIME MANAGEMENT 

📌Implement a ticketing system that organizes and prioritizes customer interactions that can be seen across board

📌Set clear goals and objectives that are SMART( specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, time bound)

📌Provide ongoing training and coaching that  enhances employee time management skills 

📌Monitor and analyze ‘Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) e.g response time, resolution rate, and customer satisfaction.

📌Foster a culture of productivity that values efficiency, productivity, and effective time management.

As an organisation customers expect you to respect their time  You also need to be mindful of your time management in order to maintain seamless processes that make the customer experience memorable that they always look forward to coming back because they know they will receive prompt and efficient service that satisfies them, meets their needs and exceed their expectations m

 If you found this helpful,do repost.

Till I write to you again ,sooner than later.

Yours truly,

Kemmy

PS: Start your organisation’s Customer Service journey powerfully  in 2025 ,by empowering your team through our quality  training  .We  are currently taking bookings for 2025! Hurry so you don’t miss out on the 20% discount offer we are currently running 💃🏼.