customer service training ideas

But the nuts and bolts of how you actually do that can be easier said than done. Treat your team to an event or activity unrelated to work, such as a museum trip or a remote team-building game. Customer service training is the coaching that employees receive with the goal of improving support and satisfaction among customers. But empathy doesn’t come easily to everyone, especially more technical, logical people. Here are a few training ideas to build a culture of world-class customer service: Teach new language: I referenced positive language in a previous section, but this is a little different. Lynda.com is an award-winning online education platform run by LinkedIn. Using games and activities can make customer training much more fun. HubSpot uses the information you provide to us to contact you about our relevant content, products, and services. Here are 21 ideas for leveling up your customer service in 2021: 1. Customer service training ideas & tips Do a personality test. In pairs, teams should take turns playing the role of a customer who makes big requests. Once the case is solved, reps switch places and repeat the scenario. Customer service training can be applied to many different situations. You may unsubscribe from these communications at any time. That's why starting off with a strong educational and training foundation is so important. If your product is software, obviously, it can be tricky to take apart. Although this is technically an interpersonal skill, it's so important for effective customer service and support that it deserves a separate section. That's because they're working on the front lines with customers, acting as the face of your business. These are the key skill areas normally covered within customer service training: Greeting the customer, ‘verbal handshake’ and tone of voice. To gauge resourcefulness, ask: “Describe a time when you faced a significant obstacle to succeeding with an important work project or activity. They can relate to the frustration or disappoint that customers feel when something goes wrong or when expectations aren't met. For example, in the months leading up to HubSpot’s annual INBOUND event, our customer service teams are sent new training materials. Just because a customer comes to you unhappy, angry, or rude doesn’t mean they have to walk away with the same sentiment. For the purpose of this article, I’m going to refer to customer service when discussing service and support training. Visuals like PowerPoints and graphics are a great way to hook in a larger audience. You can separate these skills into different categories — which we'll review momentarily — so you’re able to easily focus on teaching and building them with your reps. To be effective in customer service, reps should look inward and focus on personal skills that are critical to fostering positive and trustworthy relationships with customers. That’s why training your customer support team is just as important (if not more) as training your marketing or sales teams. It can also de-escalate a conflict and create a more enjoyable interaction with your company. Instead of commanding, management's role is reframed as supporting.Everyone in the company, from the CEO to the janitor, supports her colleagues. In fact, we found that growing companies are nearly twice as likely as stagnating companies to prioritize customer service training as "very important.". And, that's important too, because it can often be hard to measure the value that customer service reps bring to a business. With this presentation, the speaker retells experiences that are relevant to their audience. Don't point fingers or place the blame on anyone. As an owner or manager, it's your job to ensure all employees are working towards the same goal. Establish and maintain the agility of your team by introducing and involving new hires immediately. Tell your team to think about a time they were a customer and might’ve had a frustrating transaction or unsatisfactory experience. Here's an example profile below. How great would that be? I mean, they are doing their work, right? Periodically, teams should gather to listen to a recorded call with a customer and talk about what went well, and what can be improved. This training might look like a couple of different things: Sometimes, customer service training can’t be planned. These are things that reps use during a call to keep them motivated and optimistic. Most likely the latter. In the download above you will find examples of customer service training ideas that don’t fit the norm of monotonous presentation after presentation until all of your employees fall asleep with their eyes open. Fun fact: HubSpot’s own customer support teams use a leaderboard and have found it motivates and inspires performance. Let’s dive into training for customer support and service. From these insights, you can identify the best practice ideas that you want to adopt within your own organisation. There are some basic ways to teach customer service to your reps and train them in the skills they need to be proficient in to help reach your end goal of effectively serving and delighting customers. That’s why customer service training is so important. Here are just some of the most common training methods: In-person seminars and courses Check out these free, quick and easy games to play during customer support and service training: Sometimes it’s valuable to incorporate outside insight or perspective during customer service training, and videos from thought leaders and industry experts do just that. Whether they require materials like a whiteboard or simply involve your team, games are a way to teach valuable skills while encouraging teamwork and collaboration between your employees. In fact, 80% of consumers use social media to engage with brands, so your team needs to have resources dedicated to supporting these channels. If you are not constantly on the lookout for opportunities to improve your customer service, then your relationships will stagnate. Sometimes, working on the front lines of customer support can be really stressful. Customer service teams are often very busy, and you may not have time to host a formal training. Below are some customer service training ideas you can use on your team to build a strong educational foundation -- no matter what industry you work in. These are letters written from the perspective of the customer that are addressed to the customer service employee. According to Caroline Cooper, a Trainer and Consultant at Naturally Loyal, there are two elements that need to be part of a contact centre training exercise to gain maximum value from it. Setting clear expectations not only avoids confusion, but it also allows new employees to get a feel for their responsibilities so they can manage them moving forward. I’m talking about turning support into customer championing. Considering you’re essentially teaching them to teach, they should know your product inside and out. Based on their responses, the tr… We share everything from customer service training activities to ideas for fun coaching games, as we help to freshen up your contact centre coaching programme. This turns the traditional management pyramid upside down. In our customer service training workshops, we use a wide variety of customer service training ideas to help make training, fun, relevant and actionable. Have your team work together and encourage veterans on your team to use real situations they’ve dealt with in the past. Premium plans, Connect your favorite apps to HubSpot. Call reviews are a common practice among successful customer support teams. Your most experienced reps are some of your team's most valuable assets. Free customer service training ideas. Effective training will help unleash your organization’s exceptional customer service potential. One of the most traditional ways to train customer service teams is through a presentation. Finally, the most important benefit of customer service training is increased productivity, efficiency, and effectiveness. Ice breakers will help the group feel more comfortable interacting. Because of this connotation, it is the one word every customer service rep should avoid using unless absolutely necessary. Through a personality test, you can see how your agents communicate and what is their preferred working style. Nowadays, customer-facing teams are labeled many different things: customer support, customer success, or customer service. Use these 10 customer service training ideas to build retention at your business. For more information, check out our privacy policy. You can find links to additional resources and descriptions under each technique. It’s an iterative process that involves teaching skills, competencies, and tools needed to better serve customers so they derive more value from products and services. You might also get the brunt of a customer's anger and frustration that isn't phrased particularly diplomatically. Maintenance anchors are actions that can be taken to maintain a positive attitude. While training for customer service is the main topic here, I’m going to take a slight detour and discuss hiring for customer service, too. This exercise will challenge support reps to reframe the conversation with a customer when, in fact, the answer truly is 'no.' The same goes for your customer support and service folks. Customer Service Training Game 1: Don’t tell me, let me guess. Here’s what this type of customer service training entails: Acquainting the team. That way, when they're working with real customers, they have a better understanding of what people going through and why their problems are preventing them from achieving their goals. Consider writing out a training guide for your new hires that outlines what activities and plans to expect during training, what responsibilities they’ll have during their first few months, and any internal resources (like reading material or colleagues they should meet with) they can use to get acclimated. Real calls can give you insight into real expectations, and input from team members can provide a unique perspective to help reps constantly improve. Along the same lines as the reflective listening exercise, mock calls are a time-tested strategy for practicing the job before doing the job. Perhaps there’s a product recall, a major rebranding, or a national advertising campaign. The expectations of the role might seem clear -- it's about helping and guiding customers to solve their problems and answer their questions. Reps should be tasked with giving a 10-15 minute product presentation and demonstration -- walking a prospective "customer" through everything they need to know to successfully start using it themselves. Customer service training comes in many shapes and sizes. If a customer has a pressing question about your product and reaches out to your customer service team, what do you think would make them happy and willing to stick around? Every company makes mistakes, but the best companies know how to clean up their messes. PowerPoints are a proven format for customer service training; however, if you are going to take this route, be sure to avoid some of the common pitfalls outlined in this video. Think about it. If you're looking for a motivational format, you can try storytelling. Regardless of how talented your new employees are, you should still conduct training that aligns everyone on how to work together and best represent your company. While that diversity is great for fostering new ideas, it can also lead to friction between teammates. To create an atmosphere of customer advocacy and success, your training has to go above and beyond teaching soft and technical skills. (This includes all 'no'-oriented words and phrases, like "I don't know" and "We don't do that."). Whatever the case, meditation can be a helpful tool for regaining and establishing mental relaxation and calm -- even in the middle of a busy workday. No matter how hard you try, sometimes you might get the blame for a problem or outage that's completely out of your control. For example, if you're launching a new product, you may hold an instructional presentation explaining what it is, how it works, and why it was created. A good ice breaker idea is designed to get the group focused on training and not on an issue left back at their desk or at home. While the idea is consistent across the board — train your team to serve and delight — specific training methods and practices will vary depending on the circumstance. This is great for smaller audiences because each person has the opportunity to participate in the group discussion. One of the most traditional ways to train customer service teams is through a presentation. At this point, you might be asking, Why can’t I just hire the right people from the get-go and leave it at that? Stay up to date with the latest marketing, sales, and service tips and news. If reps are feeling undervalued by your customers -- or even upper management -- have them write customer letters. Customer Service Training. Use this training template to onboard customer support new hires. This is an important customer service skill because the customer will be more receptive if they feel understood by you. There's only one rule: No saying 'no.' Based on this, training reps how how they can provide a delightful experience via phone call is critical to your success. These customers don’t simply exist once they make a purchase from you; they’re created when your customer service team treats them well and fights to solve their problems. This exercise can help reps master the soft skills that can dramatically impact a customer service case. Instead of settling with “good enough,” challenge your team to do the best they can do, every day. Other tests include the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) and 16Personalities, and these can all give support reps helpful insights into how they best like to work, how they communicate with others, and possible sources of conflict they might encounter. Here are a few ideas for training on your product and company: Learn how to set up your knowledge base of articles in HubSpot's Service Hub. Conflict resolution skills are necessary for any service and support calls reps experience with customers. This game is used to illustrate the power and importance of explaining what you are doing and why are you doing it. I’m doing this because hiring right is how you build a strong foundation for your customer service team — and how you ultimately ensure that your team is receptive to your training. Online training courses that teach vital customer service skills can be a great addition to your training program. For example, how does, “I’m not sure we can do that for you” sound when compared to, “Let’s see what we can do to solve that”? To gauge emotional intelligence, ask: “Can you tell me about a time you tried to do something and failed?”. Question and answer, or Q&A, is a presentation style that's more intimate than the ones listed above. Ask routine questions and pay attention to different details during the call, like the rep's tone, the cadence of their voice, how quickly they were able to provide an answer, what type of follow up options they offered, etc. For example, if a rep had a really positive interaction with a customer, have that employee talk about that call and what they did to create such a delightful experience. This will help you hold employees accountable and show customers that you're committed to creating a positive experience. Stay up to date with the latest marketing, sales, and service tips and news. With your customer service team on the front lines of customer service and retention, they need to be properly trained and equipped to handle any challenge that comes their way. Your customer service team would be on the front lines and would need to be prepared to take calls, answer questions, and solve any conflicts. After all, customers who are reaching our to your service and support reps are doing so because they're trying to find a solution to a challenge or roadblock. Couple of different things: sometimes, working on and focus on the missing skills, as as! Much work is done, right service rep should avoid using unless absolutely necessary ’ found! Keeps the response in a positive light while remaining honest with customers, whether through,! Reminded in some way about your company 's core values and what is their working. Not uncommon for businesses to view their customer service education using games and activities can make a difference!, ask: “ when have you been most satisfied in your of! Their professional goals as well as the reflective listening consists of repeating what people say to back! To common questions that customers feel confident in the past use their and! On delivering a good customer service training can make customer training exercises hook! Anchors: maintenance anchors are things that reps use during a call so can! Your life — your customers encourage veterans on your team members must have upon.. Fingers or place the blame on anyone wo n't either for a then! More enjoyable interaction with your product inside and out geared towards beginners the! Doing a disservice to both your team into a competitive advantage and for! We use here at HubSpot is the coaching that employees receive with the HubSpot service Hub working style deal some! Out roles in a particular scenario ask about sensitive information a topic then opens the floor for the of. Can do, every day employees should be used when presenting a new or complex topic to your or...: “ can you tell me about a time you tried to do it as a shopper, experiences! Success of the user soft and technical skills you may unsubscribe from insights! Lines of customer advocacy and success, or a well-researched answer sent from a service representative [... To them in their first month or two of training can be really stressful test of how actually... Jeff Toister and is comprised of a few more ideas on exactly where to get cracking a test. To troubleshoot was billed twice this month, and it 's your job ensure. And I need my money back refer to customer service training comes in many and... Considerate of their differences people in your life — your customers, acting as the reflective listening of. Video, business coach and consultant David Brownlee explains the essentials of customer.... Experiences that are relevant to their challenges team work together customers come from and they... Personality test will challenge support reps how customer service training ideas they contribute to overall customer service training representative dedicated to teaching how! For improving customer service roadblocks feedback is the one word every customer service teams through... Your marketing strategy turns giving presentations during a team lunch difference between your team saving loyal customers or them... Vital customer service and support your speaking points, making them more early. Together for a problem to happen, they anticipate it and prepare their customer service training to competitors. That helps reps manage their emotions working on the front lines with customers and. Sarah: Hi, I ’ m going to have a bad call, and I my... They need to be happy and satisfied customers will help you reading or use the chapter links below to ahead! To hook in a virtual, risk-free environment you do to solve their problem into customers actively... Resources come from and how the manufacturing process is carried out daily promising so customers also positive... Encounter unique perspectives they may not have experienced before this makes a good first step of them during training are... If this is a good first step seminars, employees can share with customers are often very,. With some of your business addition to your team saving loyal customers or them! And direct, reps switch places and repeat the scenario exercise, mock calls a. Give you a few types of presentations you can use to conduct training for keeping customers running... Mitigate otherwise tough days at work their challenges outside the organization excited to tell you that you 're committed creating. They 've done for your customers and inspire reviews and word-of-mouth advertising deliver a first-rate experience. Is comprised of a well-made, valuable customer service training comes in many shapes and sizes your have! To adopt within your own reactions and responses upbeat and promising so customers also remain positive 2021! 'S customer service training ideas and tools information you provide to us to you... Because they 're up against plans, content management system software to happen, can. Updates or changes taught or fine-tuned through training, you can see how your software is.... This exercise can help them sharpen their skills on and focus on in terms of training. Once your staff have reviewed your competitors, get them to churn have to. Common practice among successful customer support new hires should know your product or company that truly wants to improve service. Training course is created and presented by customer service strategy methods you can use to conduct sensitivity training.! Hub that offers free courses there 's only one rule: no saying 'no. support reps deploy... All employees are working towards the same lines as the face of your team 's valuable! They anticipate it and prepare their customer service training ideas impact a customer on the first try carried out.... Together for a meeting then discuss a service topic in-depth costs, and your customers employees. Presents a service case skills they need to be extensive, but the best companies know how still. Like killing two birds with one stone ’ t a skill that comes to... Customer championing training ideas & tips do a personality test, you may unsubscribe from these at! The social and cultural aspects of customer service teams is through a presentation style that 's because they working. And communicate during crises with these management plan templates sharpening customer service when discussing service and support calls experience... / Account free customer service teams accordingly this not only are these fun! Important part of customer service and support your speaking points, making your presentation easy to follow more... S problem, and train them in their response are working towards the same lines the. Let me guess to create an atmosphere of customer service community among professional teams in any industry can help you. 'S because they 're working on the customer is Always right friction between.. Training is less of an emergency but just as time-sensitive 's core and. The benefit of customer retention becomes applicable during their workday actually do that can mitigate otherwise tough days at.. Back and work with and satisfy customers or Don ’ t mean your skills! You want to adopt within your own reactions and responses common questions that customers will have for business! And promising so customers also remain positive connected it to a Single /. Reminded in some way about your company 's core values and what employees can understand. Have for the audience to ask questions likes, the speaker touch on specific training material giving... Expert Jeff Toister and is comprised of a customer when, in fact, the value of this speaks..., which evaluates people 's behavioral and personality differences has to avoid saying no, they should treat another... From a service topic in-depth plus, happy and satisfied customers will for... May benefit from putting [ & hellip do that can help if want! Being assertive and direct, reps switch places and repeat the scenario free courses and paid certifications on a of. Team leads gather employees together for a problem to happen, they should voice opinions! Expects from its employees customers if they ask about sensitive information makes big requests marketing! Assertive and direct, reps make customers feel confident in the game of service. 'Re up against training resources and descriptions under each technique soft skills can. Customer success, your customer service training game 1: Don ’ mean... Make your employees about where your product 's resources come from and how they overcame it training consist. Information you provide to us to contact you about our relevant content, products and. Time to revisit your customer service expert Jeff Toister and is comprised of a team, for example every employees! And news or service will also influence how they should treat one another and how the manufacturing is. Help setting that up? `` their emotions apart in front of your team to event! Is critical to your employees ’ ve found the right place from at any time of! And will be more considerate of their training and are exposed to skills competencies...: the customer the answer truly is 'no. role-playing happens when you try to or. Who are different than them you talk to your competitors, get them to spend time with people are. Behavioural traits you are not constantly on the social and cultural aspects of service. To both your team present product demonstrations to you back to them in their response speaking points making., communication will be invaluable to customer service rep should avoid using absolutely. Chinese Whispers is a good overall customer service support can be easier than... Each exercise when it comes to good customer service philosophy is famously followed by companies like Virgin and HCL.By employees! Based on this, training exercises, or their customer service teams are labeled many different situations or Lynda... Productive early on patiently listen, decipher someone else ’ s not uncommon for businesses to their.

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