Customer Service: Unit 1: Outstanding C.S.: Lesson 1: Foundations: Topic 3: Who is your Customer
April 16, 2022It’s easy to think that there is only one kind of customer. The fact is, however, that we often serve different types of customers every day.
Here’s a simple definition of a customer.
A customer is anyone you serve.
You probably have a group or groups of people you already refer to as customers, clients, guests, or some other similar term. Keep in mind that we often provide service to other people while doing our jobs; like our coworkers, contractors, and even vendors who provide essential supplies and services. To become an outstanding Customer Service Representative, understand the importance of treating everyone like a customer. Treating each other like customers makes everyone’s job easier. I was able to respond to my external customers much faster as a result. Let’s examine this further by looking at an example.
Meet Joanne, a customer service representative who is working in the contact center for a major telecommunications company. There are three major customer groups that Joanne interacts with on a regular basis.
1-External customers are the people who use the telecommunication services provided by Maria’s company. They typically need assistance in establishing new services, billing questions, and getting technical support.
2-The technical support team working for Joanne’s company is another customer. Joanne transfers calls to this department when there’s a technical problem that’s beyond her level of expertise. The team depends on Joanne to gather information on the caller’s problem, so it does not need to be repeated.
3-The Field Technicians are the third group of customers, Joanne. They depend on Joanne to provide accurate information on the type of request, the time of the appointment, and any special considerations, such as the name of the person who will be home to meet the technician.
Understanding these different customer groups helps Joanne do her job more effectively. Her ultimate customers are the people who use her company’s services, but she also knows that working well with the technical support and field service teams helps to ensure that her ultimate customers get the best possible service.