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Everything is not equal in the customer journey; customers don’t remember their time with you in an even-handed, equitable way. Rather, there are moments in their customer journey that are disproportionately likely to define how they remember the customer service you’ve provided them. How you treat customers in these moments will disproportionately lead them to have a negative, neutral or — if you nail these moments — supremely positive impression of their time with you.
As a customer service consultant and turnaround expert, I prefer that you get every single moment in the customer journey right! But if I have to choose, here are the two specific moments I want you to focus on right now because getting these right will give you an enormous advantage over your less-attentive competitors.
What the Ritz-Carlton knows (and you need to learn)
Did you ever notice how, when you stay at a Ritz-Carlton hotel (if you haven’t yet, I suggest you head off on a junket!), they have everything supremely polished and choreographed for the moment you arrive at the beginning of your stay? The valet greets you when they take your car, the bell staff already know your name, and everyone you encounter goes out of their way to make you immediately feel welcome.
Also, when you’re leaving the hotel, they send you off warmly, perhaps even with the GM or hotel manager coming down to thank you and wish you a good journey.
These two points, the beginning of the customer interaction and the ending, are emphasized at Ritz-Carlton’s and at other customer-focused companies because they’re the two moments in the customer journey that are nearly guaranteed to remain in the memories of your guests more than any others, perhaps for life.
Related: How to Turn an Upset Customer Into Your Company’s Best Advocate
Two scientific effects you need to learn
The primacy effect — The fact that first impressions are lasting impressions is called the primacy effect.
The recency effect —The fact that final impressions are also disproportionately influential is called “the recency effect.” another well-demonstrated psychological effect. (Together, these are known as “the serial position effect,” which is a scientifically verified, well-proven psychological phenomenon.)
Thus, these are two critical moments in the customer’s journey to be sure you get right because of how prominently they are likely to figure out how your customers remember their time interacting with your company.
How to nail step one: the warm welcome
Use a welcoming tone of voice. Put down anything distracting you, whether from a prior customer or something else you’ve been working on. (The worst impression you can give a customer is that they’re interrupting the work. Truly, they are the reason for your work!)
Make eye contact in person or what you could call “voice contact” on the phone: displaying a similar focus that can truly be picked up on audio. And smile as you greet the customer, whether in person or on the phone.
Can customers tell if you’re smiling over a phone line?
Of course, they can! Smiling unlocks all that beautiful treble in your voice.
When you smile, it changes your vocal tone in a very easy way to pick up, even within the limited audio range of a phone line. Some veteran call center professionals even use tape or Velcro® to affix a compact mirror at eye level in their workspace to remind them to smile every time they pick up the phone. (I know this is dorky, but it works.)
Now there is an exception to always smiling. If you’re talking with a guest telling you disappointing news, please don’t smile!
Related: How to Use the Least Sexy Customer Service Channel to Get Your Cash Registers Ringing
The exact words you should use when answering every customer call
Since the telephone is often where the customer makes the first contact with your company — or at least the first contact with a human — let me tell you what I recommend as far as the actual specific words you should use when you pick up the phone.
The best way to answer a ringing phone is with a greeting that includes all four of the following elements. (This is easier than it sounds, as you’ll see when we get to the examples.)
- A greeting
- A business identification
- A self-identification
- An offer of assistance
Example 1:
Good morning, (The greeting)
Business [X]. (The business identification)
This is [Jerry]. (Identifying yourself.)
How may I help you? (Your offer of assistance.)
Example 2:
Thank you for calling (The greeting.)
Business [X]. (The business identification.)
This is [Jerry]. (Identifying yourself.)
How may I help you? (The offer of assistance.)
Related: 4 Simple Ways to Communicate Better With Your Customers
How to bid goodbye to your customer at the end
The other scientifically proven moment to matter disproportionately is the closing of service, the fond farewell. Ask if anything else is needed, if there’s anything else you can help them with. Offer a personal farewell. “It’s been great working with you, Jim; I will see you back here on Thursday. I’ll call you if anything changes.” Invite them to call on you for assistance in the future if that’s appropriate to the situation.
Also, try not to rush the caller as they approach the end of their time with you. It’s easy to be so relieved that you have resolved things on this call, or to get distracted by what you have coming up next, that you speed things up unattractively.
But don’t miss out on an opportunity to turn an ending into another scientifically proven “unfair advantage.” Refrain from rushing off to the next task on your list. Instead, take an extra moment (really! It’s only a difference of 5-10 seconds) to bid each customer a genuine and personalized farewell. Spending that additional minute, or even a handful of seconds, can have a significant payoff for you in terms of how your company is remembered by customers who have interacted with you.
This story originally appeared on Entrepreneur
