Selling Sales to Customer Service
Agents
By Carole Sue
Jones
The Sales Stigma
Somewhere along the way sales
got a bad rap. I’m sure all of us can relate to having dealt with a salesperson
that made us uncomfortable, pressured us into making a decision, or even mislead
us about the product or service.
We have all survived a
contract we didn’t want or have things in our house that we were lured into
buying only to be disappointed in their performance or usability.
However, some of us may be
able to recall a good sales experience in which a conscientious salesperson made
us feel positive about our purchase. In these instances, customer service
made all the difference. During a good sales experience, I feel as though the
salesperson really listened to me, understood my needs and provided a solution
that would satisfy those needs. Great customer service skills really drive an
outstanding sales experience and that is an invaluable trait to pass on to your
Call Center customer service representatives.
The Customer Service Challenge
As the needs of the Call
Center industry change and our customer service representatives are required to
take on more tasks and responsibilities, they also find themselves in the
position to sell more products or services Initiating this behavior can be a
challenge for those who feel threatened buy the sales process. Sometimes,
representatives are uncomfortable with positioning sales to customers who have
called in for other issues. They fall victim to the sales stigma – that the
customer will assume they are offering something that is not needed or that will
not be useful. But it is the manager’s responsibility to help representatives
understand that great customer service includes an additional sales offer.
Customer Service Sales
Providing great customer
service is about listening to the customer’s problem, investigating
the source of their problem, offering solutions and sometimes even
providing solutions the customer did not realize were available. Let me
share an example of a great customer service sale I encountered a few weeks ago
with my cellular phone provider.
I
received my cell phone bill several months ago only to be shocked by the
charges. I have exceeded my plan to the tune of over $200. Realizing that I
was probably going to continue to overspend I called my cell phone providers
customer service line to discuss a plan change and other options. Once the
agent had listened to my complaint and pulled up my account she was able to make
several recommendations about my cell phone plan. She noticed that I exceeded
my minutes by hours and suggested that I move to a plan that left me with more
minutes than I had used at my highest usage rate. She also noticed that a bulk
of my calls were placed between 7and 9pm and recommended that for a nominal
charge per month, I could start my free evening minutes at 7pm, which would
further save on overage fees.
The customer service
representative sold me additional services because she listened to my problem
and offered a solution based on my needs and usage patterns. She also was able
to offer information about other products and services that the company provided
because she had built rapport by addressing my basic needs first. My customer
service sales experience with this provider not only resulted in satisfying my
needs, but also engendered my customer loyalty. The customer service agent was
able to make the sale because she did what great customer service agents do.
She listened and provided a solution.
Customer Service Skills vs. Sales Skills
Effective customer service
representatives and sale people may not realize it, but they share several
skills.
Customer Service Skills
Sales Skills
Listening
ð Listening
Patience
ð Patience
Attention to detail
ð Attention
to detail
Problem solving
ð Problem
solving
Effective communication
ð Effective
communication
Empathy
ð Empathy
Handling difficult
customers ð
Overcoming objections
Although their skills
are similar, they are used in different formats and under varying circumstances.
Helping customer service representatives understand what skills they already
possess and how to use them to navigate effective sales is an essential step in
reassuring them that sales doesn’t have to be
uncomfortable, dishonest or aggressive.
Building new attitudes
Call Center managers can help
representatives enhance skills and improve comfort levels to ensure success in
customer service sales. As managers, we can adopt the following techniques when
coaching our representatives.
-
Help them see that the customer service skills
they already possess are transferable to the sales process.
-
Provide them with “cheat sheets” and lists that
link products and services to common problems.
-
Give them opportunities to role play and
practice the new behaviors you want them to develop.
-
Monitor them one on one and model effective
offers for them.
-
Provide consistent feedback on how they are
doing.
Wow! Customer Service Sale
Helping your representatives
become effective at offering additional products and services can create Wow!
Customer Service. When representatives really listen to the customer, they can
solve their problems, offer solutions that your customers may not be aware of
and create a rapport that will facilitate long-term customer loyalty. You will
build the confidence of your customer service agents in their customer
interactions and create a flexible workforce that will be able to face the
challenges of the changing work environment. Now that is Wow Customer
Service!
Carole Sue Jones is
a Trainer and Instructional Designer with 10 years of experience in Call Center
Management and Training. She is a major contributor to Call Center Tips
and
CallCenterCafe.com
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