A high level look at improving the communication with Customers when working/resolving issues for those in Support & Service Roles.

1. 1
Customer Communication
some guidance for Support and Service
Graeme Petrie
Support | Service | Strategy

2. I once described the job of Support Engineer as Counsellor / Trainer with some
Technical Problem Solving skills, and that seems increasingly accurate as
organisations move from break/fix to focus on Customer Experience.
With Support often being the primary customer interface for a company post-
sale, they have a huge influence on that experience and whether they remain
as a customer in the future.
How Support communicates with a customer is therefore key to that future
customer relationship and hopefully these slides give some food for thought…
When confronted with the old adage “The Customer is always right”, the response
from Support can often be along the lines of “No they are not!! / They don’t know
what they are talking about”, possibly accompanied by varying descriptions of why.
The problem for Support is, regardless of the Customer’s knowledge, they need to
help that customer resolve their issue, do it in a way that satisfies the customer,
doesn’t increase their frustration and doesn’t leave them feeling like an idiot.
Why is communication key?

3. 01
03
02
For many Support Organisations, the majority
of customer communications are still done in
written format in their ticketing system
Support teams need to remain professional at
all times in the way they communicate in their
ticketing system - it’s the legal record
When making updates, consider how you
would like to be treated yourself if you were
the Customer
04
06
05
Don’t jump to conclusions - take the time to
understand the issue the customer is reporting
and don’t make assumptions
If the issue is not clear, contact the customer to
get further clarification - but don’t ask them for
information they have already provided!
If a customer updates the ticket, acknowledge
this, don’t ignore them - a lack of Support
response can lead to customer frustration
Communicating On Issues
The Basics

4. Communicate with Care
It may seem like stating the obvious, however the examples on the following
slides are all updates that I’ve seen provided to customers via support
communications over the years
- I’ve even been on the receiving end of a few of them!

5. Bad vs Good Communications
Basic Tiggers
• “I was busy with another customer”
• “I will ask <someone else> for advice…”
• “Please create a new ticket….”
• “Just do what I am asking for!..”
• “Sorry for the delay, I’ve been investigating
your issue”
• “I need some time to do further
investigation on your issue”
• “I will create a new ticket for you and
continue investigation”
• “Please can you provide the information in
the action plan?”
Imagine you have been stuck in traffic, its raining and the coffee
machine is broken. You then check for progress on your ticket and see
these type of updates there, how would you feel?
In many cases, the customer starts to feel rejected, not important, no
one cares - your update is the final straw - suddenly you are the focus
of all that is wrong and they vent their frustration on you!!
How would you react?

6. Bad vs Good Communications
Now you’re really pushing their buttons
• “YOU ARE WRONG!…”
• “You don’t know what you are talking
about”
• “We are all very busy and have no time…”
• “This is a known error…”
• “There may be some misunderstanding
here, can we clarify……”
• “Our documentation could be more
detailed for this – can I explain?”
• “Sorry for delay, I will update you by…..”
• “We’ve reproduced your issue & a defect
has been raised…..”
Don’t be abrupt, or use ALL CAPS, exclamation marks etc. this just adds
fuel to the fire. So stop…….read and re-read updates before sending.
Always think, “Is this how I want to be treated?” or “Is this good
customer service?”.
Before we cross a road, we stop, look, think and listen so we are not hit
by the traffic. We need to do the same to a degree with customer
updates so we don’t make them want to hit us!!
Don’t take your frustrations out on the customer

7. Bad vs Good Communications
It’s someone else’s problem
• “Its with Engineering, I cannot do any
more….”
• “This Case is for another area….
(transferring)”
• “PS, CO, SDM, IS need to get involved….
(don’t use acronyms)”
• “The issue is with Engineering but we will
continue to investigate for workarounds
where possible….”
• “I would like to get input from a colleague
to clarify your issue and give you the
correct level of service”
• “Your issue has several processes we need
to go through before we can have a final
solution (discuss process)”
Do not involve customers in internal arguments like who should or
should not handle/own their case – that is your problem, not theirs!!
Try not to give the impression they’ve reached a dead-end
Do not use acronyms and buzzwords that a customer may not be
familiar with, explain what needs to happen
Actually, it’s your problem…

8. 03
04
01 Avoid black holes…….
…update the customer!!
Let them know what is
happening. Give them light
at the end of the tunnel
02
Give timescales
Let the customer know
when you expect to provide
the next update
Keep to timescales
Ensure you keep to update
timescales, even if you have
no positive news
Highlight delays
If there is no quick solution
- e.g. defects - don’t let the
customer have unrealistic
timescale expectations
Setting Expectations
Keeping the customer informed
There is nothing worse than being
kept in the dark, keep the customer
engaged in the process.

9. Call the Customer
In today’s Omni-channel, Multi-channel world where customers are
communicating through email, web portals, live chat, social media, etc
sometimes the best option still remains the telephone -
pick it up and use it!!

10. Issue Understanding
More information is discussed
verbally than is ever written down
- an item considered unimportant
by one side could be the key to
the resolution - “Oh, we did do
<x> last week, does that matter?”
Save Time
Calls allow immediate response,
avoiding the delays introduced by
the question & answer ping-pong
that is often seen in electronic
communication (especially across
timezones)
Build Relationships
Customers appreciate you taking
the time to call. This helps build
the relationship, improving the
Customer’s experience - and, if
you go on to solve their issue, you
have a much better starting
position next time
Assess Urgency
Hearing the customer explain the
impact can provide a far better
understanding of the urgency
than just seeing “it’s urgent, I
need a solution asap” in a written
update
Reasons to Call
And why it helps you and the customer

11. Objections to Calling
03
04
01 Be prepared
Ensure ticket is up to date,
you have latest status
summary and a clear idea
what you want to achieve
from the call
02
Regional Barriers
Language - are ticket
updates understood? Then
you can probably talk.
Time of Day - customers
have voice mail as well,
leave a message to re-
arrange
Can’t give answer
Chances are you won’t
provide an immediate
answer - use the call to
gather the information that
will help you get there
While I have you…
Your focus is on resolving
the initial issue - if the
customer raises another,
you will need to look into
that, but arrange to call
back, don’t research on the
call
(or receiving calls)
Everyone can make an excuse for not
calling, however one of the biggest
complaints from customers is being
unable to speak to someone in an
organisation.

12. 03
04
01 Explain purpose
Know what you want to
achieve and explain this.
Advise the customer in
advance if you need them
to provide something
02
Limit call/stay focused
You will get more relevant
information in the first 15
mins of a call, than the next
15 mins, so try to keep
focused on the agenda,
gathering / delivering the
information needed to
progress the issue
Ensure Understanding
Support typically have
greater knowledge than the
customer, so need to take
care to explain in terms the
customer will understand
Agree next steps
Advise the customer what
needs to happen next -
research/testing/etc - then
agree (& keep) timescale for
next update.
It’s much easier to end the
call if they know when they
will hear from you again
Call Guidelines
High level steps for more productive calls
Ending a call is often more difficult
than beginning, but if you have an
agenda, stick to that, clearly
communicate and agree what
happens next, it’s much easier.

13. Communication is Key
Good communication is key to success in so many things.
For those in Support roles it is essential for receiving and delivering the
information needed to provide a quality level of service to customers.
I hope these slides provide some help with that.
As ever they are not designed to answer all the questions, in fact the
intention is really the opposite: to get you thinking about your own
answers to the questions, so you are prepared next time they come up.

14. Thank You!
For questions, contact me on LinkedIn
Graeme Petrie
Support | Service | Strategy