An insanely simple customer service tip (above 3rd grade math skills not required) – SCN Encourager
If you can count up to 2 you might find this tip valuable
Remember…
the math isn’t important.
But what the numbers represent certainly is!
It’s 1 for “yes.”
And it’s 2 for “no.”
That’s pretty much it.
Shep Hyken, a first-class customer service trainer, says this tactic has worked wonders at every company where it’s been tried.
And it was by researching Ace Hardware – a company which has won many top independent customer service awards for years – that first got this on Shep’s radar.
This tactic is anchored in two real-world customer service “delivery” facts.
• Many customers don’t like to be told “no.
• Many employees will hesitate to say “yes” due to lack of support or the effort involved.
This effective tactic acknowledges both of the above realities and is also able positively turn them around.
This is why Shep says it’s a winner.
Let’s say a customer goes into an Ace Hardware and asks for an item not on the shelf or even in stock.
At many other places, the customer will be told, “Sorry, No how. No way.”
Ace wants to prevent this from happening.
At Ace, every employee must try to work with the customer to arrive at a “Yes. Can do.” condition.
To ensure the likelihood of this occurring, every employee at Ace is trained to only say “no” to a customer AFTER consulting with the store manager or another Ace employee.
The company wants everyone to work toward “yes” if at all possible – and have this mindset – even if a call has to be placed to the manufacturer or another Ace resource.
So you see why this tactic works, right?
It’s incredibly simple to communicate and monitor.
1 person for YES
2 persons for NO (or for the tango!)
What’s not to like about it?
Except once again, it’s yet one more fantastic tactic I can’t use at home.
Whether I’m thinking “yes” or “no” about something at home doesn’t really matter.
I’ve discovered things seem to go a lot more smoothly if I just go ask right away.
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