Making a Good First Impression!

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• Making a Good First Impression!
• Creating Moments of Truth Everyday!
• Developed and Presented by
• Jan Dwyer, MBA, CSP
• Boundless Results

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When you leave here today, you will be able to

• Create a positive and lasting first impression
• Identify negative attitudes and behaviors
• Discover practical ways you can project a
  positive image
• See how you can enhance your agencys image and
  credibility

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Introductions

• Think if a time when were you a customer and a
  first impression impacted your service
  experience. What was the result?
• Why are good first impressions so important in
  serving customers?
• What is your particular challenge in making and
  maintaining a positive first impression?

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The Importance of Positive First Impressions

• It takes 30 to 60 seconds for someone to make an
  immediate judgment about you
• In fact, people form up to 11 different opinions
  about you in those first 30 seconds. The great
  majority of those opinions are formed with the
  first 7 seconds

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Challenges to Customer Service

1. Different Perceptions
2. Different Expectations
3. Not dealing with the human side of the
   interaction
4. Not attentively listening
5. Not using Supportive Language
6. Not adapting your Style to the Style of others

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Perception

• Virtually every problem in human relations stems
  from a difference in perception.
• Robert L. Katz

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Perception
Our perceptions represent how we interpret or
view what goes on around us. It is mostly a
learned process through personal experiences and
what is told to us by others. It is a filtering
system Since we all have different backgrounds
and past experiences, our individual perceptions
differ.
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What do People want from their jobs?

• From Supervisors
• High wages
• Job security

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What do People want from their jobs?

• From Employees
• Full appreciation of work done
• Feeling of being in on things

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Perception
FOULED UP FILES ARE THE RESULT OF FOOLISH NEGLECT
AND FINISHED FILES ARE THE RESULT OF SCIENTIFIC
STUDY COMBINED WITH THE EXPERIENCE OF MANY
YEARS Count the Fs in the sentence
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Expectations are Perceptual!

• Expectations exist in the mind of the customer
• They are sometimes accurate and rational
  sometimes not!
• They reflect an overall reaction to the whole
  buying experience
• The way customers evaluate their customer
  experience is how their expectations were met or
  exceeded!
• 50 Powerful Ideas You can Use to Keep Your
  Customers, by Paul R. Timm, Ph.D.

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Exceeding Expectations Breeds Loyalty

• Satisfied customers are those whose basic needs
  are met- they are NEUTRAL (Indifferent zone)
• To motivate customers to return, something more
  than adequate service must be experienced.
• Exceeding expectations leads to motivated, loyal
  customers
• 50 Powerful Ideas You can Use to Keep Your
  Customers, by Paul R. Timm, Ph.D.

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Ways to Exceed Expectations in Service
Interactions

• Provide extra value (Value brings reassurance and
  comfort)
• Give better information (Explain things clearly)
• Provide add-ons (Small, tangible ways you can
  give away to customers)
• Improve timing and follow-up (Immediate
  follow-through impresses customers)
• 50 Powerful Ideas You can Use to Keep Your
  Customers, by Paul R. Timm, Ph.D.

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Ways to Exceed Expectations in Service
Interactions

• Make the last part of the transaction positive
  and motivating (Behaviorists say the end part of
  the transaction is what customers will remember)
• Reassure the customers decision to partner with
  you (Contact your customers after the sale to
  help with buyer remorse)
• 50 Powerful Ideas You can Use to Keep Your
  Customers, by Paul R. Timm, Ph.D.

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Ways to Exceed Expectations in Service
Interactions

• Make service speed and customer convenience a
  priority (People value anything that saves them
  time and effort.)
• Have sufficient staff available
• Offer to handle the transactions efficiently
• Offer to handle additional details
• Make your website or phone handling efficient
• 50 Powerful Ideas You can Use to Keep Your
  Customers, by Paul R. Timm, Ph.D.

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Why is the Human Element so Important?

• Most customers will remember how they feel long
  after the interaction
• You are putting deposits in their account
• Most advanced service strategies focus on the
  human element

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Relationships in your own team

• When something happens -
• We dont know the full picture
• We dont know the intent of the other person
• Most likely there was joint contribution
• We need to approach the other person with a
  learning mind frame
• We may not have realistic expectations
• (Adapted from Difficult Conversations, Douglas
  Stone)

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Task Human
A given What can separate your agency from other agencies?

• Task and Human Needs

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Attentive Listening

• Exercise
• Divide in groups of three
• One person share a story the other person
  practices attentive listening. Third person
  observes
• Listener to relay the story back to the speaker.
  Third person to provide feedback
• Switch roles

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Using Supportive Language

• Use partnership Language
• Focus on what can be done
• Treat people as equals
• Focus on the behavior
• Use I messages
• Take responsibility and ownership

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Successful People

• Understand themselves and how their behavior
  affects others
• Understand their reactions to other people
• Know how to maximize on what they do well
• Have a positive attitude about themselves which
  causes others to have confidence in them
• Know how to adapt their behavior to meet the
  needs of other people and particular situations

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Behavioral Styles
D DOMINANCE I INFLUENCE S STEADINESS C CONSCIENTIOUSNESS
Loves challenges Fear Loss of Control Limitations Lack of concern for others Persuades others Fear Social rejection Limitations Disorganization Achieves stability Fear Change Limitations Overly willing to give Quality Focus Fear Criticism of work Limitations Perfectioninstic
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Culture of Service

• Be clear on the vision of service
• Inspire learning at every level
• Align your systems to support this vision

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Standards of Service

• How long it takes for a customer to be greeted?
• How long it takes for the phone to be picked up?
• How long it takes for an email request to be
  answered?
• How long it takes for a customer to be served?

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Service Feedback

• Are you hearing from your customers?
• Do you make it easy for customers to provide
  feedback?
• How do you handle negative feedback?
• What do you do with the data?How do you
  communicate back to the customers that change has
  happened?

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Service Evaluation

• How are you being evaluated on your service?
• How often are you being evaluated on your
  service?
• What are you taking into consideration in your
  evaluation system? (Comments from internal
  customers? Comments from your boss? Comments from
  external customers?)

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Service Recognition

• How are people being recognized for outstanding
  service?
• What processes can you put in place so
  recognition can be given by everyone?
• How does your team or agency recognize champion
  service providers?
• What is the criteria for outstanding service?

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Final Exam

• What are 5 things you can do to create a positive
  first impression with a customer?
• What is 1 way you can exceed your customers
  expectations?
• Expectations are perceptual. Share what this
  means as it relates to customer service.
• What is the difference between defensive and
  supportive language?
• What are some ways you can create a culture of
  service in your team?
• What is a moment of truth in service?
• Finish this sentence - It is virtually
  impossible to have personal power if you have a
  ____________ ________.

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Final Exam

• We need to connect with the customer in two
  levels - _________ and __________.
• There were 6 challenges that prevents us from
  giving good service. Identify 3 of them.
• Our ___________represent how we interpret or view
  what goes on around us.
• Identify the four communication styles.
• Joint contribution what does it mean?
• What is an internal customer?
• What is one thing you will work on in your
  service?

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All the best to you as you turn on de-light in
service!