RESOLVE CUSTOMER

QUERIES
 What is a query?
• a question, especially one expressing doubt or requesting information.
 ELEMENT 1: Identify and analyse the
complaint to establish the underlying cause
 Establish the query through active listening,
questioning and empathy.
In order to successfully identify our customer's requst you need
the communication skills of listening,empathy and questioning

Empathy- seeing a
Active listening-
situation from the other
Concentrating on both
person's point of vies and
the person who is
trying to udesrtand his/her
speaking and what
situation,motives and
he/she is saying.
feelings.
Good listening skills are essential in helping you to interpret
your customer's queries and identify his/her needs.
Your ability to listen and empathise with your customer is
fundamental when it comes to building a relationship with them.
Your cusomer will continue to do buisness with your company if
their interaction with you makes them feel that:
• care about them
• listen to them
• respect their point of view
• will try to resolve their queries
When you listen actively, you'll not only be able to repeat what
the customer has said, but how he/she feels about it. You can
demonstrate that you are listening actively by:
• Using verbal encouragers such as 'um', 'yes', 'of course', 'I
understand at appropriate moments
• Paraphrasing what your customer has said, and seeking
his/her agreement
• Asking questions to elicit details or clarification of requests
• Asking the customer to repeat what he/she has said if you do
not understand
• Staying focused on the conversation
An empathetic response requires that your comments reflect
what your customer has told you. When you listen with
empathy you are able to read between the lines, and listen
for what is not being said. You will be able to do this if you:
• Listen with your heart as well as your head-this means
listening to the customer's feelings as well as his/her words
• Show him/her that you understand how he/she feels
• Apologize when necessary
• Commit to finding mutually acceptable ways of resolving the
problem
• Use warm, friendly and encouraging tone
• Be sincere in your interactions with the client you must avoid erecting
barriers to active listening and empathy

Questioning Techniques

Open questions, to gather information and facts, for example

'What do we call this type of text?’
• Probing questions, to gain additional detail, e.g. "Can you explain why
that matters?"

• Hypothetical questions, to suggest an approach or introduce new

ideas. An example might be "If you could get additional funding or
resources, how might that help?"
Reflective questions, to check understanding, such as "So
would you prioritizes the most critical areas for attention first
and make sure that everyone knew what was most important?"

Clarifying questions, is a form of reflecting question that

seeks to eliminate ambuiguity,confusion or misunderstanding
e.g Did I hear you say.......?

• Closing questions, to bring agreement, commitment and

conclusion, e.g. "When will you talk to your team and the client
about this?"
"Garbage in, garbage out," is a popular truth, often said in relation
to computer systems: if you put the wrong information in, you'll get
the wrong information out.
The same principle applies to communications in general: if you
ask the wrong questions, you'll probably get the wrong answer, or
at least not quite what you're hoping for.
Asking the right question is at the heart of effective
communications and information exchange. By using the right
questions in a particular situation, you can improve a whole range
of communications skills. For example, you can gather better
information and learn more, you can build stronger relationships,
manage people more effectively, and help others to learn too.
Assess the impact of the query on the customer
to respond appropriately
• Make sure that you understand the complaint and the products and
services that caused the problem or complaint to occur
• Develop an understanding of the complaint from the customer
perspective. Think about how you would be feeling if you were in the
customer’s situation?
• If you are unsure about what the complaint is about or what the customer
expects from you, give them a call, email them or arrange to meet with
them
• Know when and how you can resolve a complaint straight away. If you
can take prompt action to resolve the complaint, do so – and confirm
back with the customer the action you have taken.
• Know when and how you escalate or refer a complaint. If you
do not have the authority of knowledge to handle and resolve
the complaint, make sure that you promptly refer or escalate to
another staff member. But, make sure the customer is kept
informed.
The purpose of the assessment is to:
• To identify the source of the complaint so as to assign the
complaint to the appropriate department/ complaint owner
if not already done.
• Classify the complaint appropriately to determine the
appropriate action
• To ensure the process is commensurate the seriousness
of the complaint and the issue raised.
• The prioritization of a complaint shall be based on the
severity of the complaint and the individuality of customer.
Manipulate systems to capture data which relates
directly to the query as stated by the customer.
• Manipulation is the skillful handling, controlling or using of
something
Data is transforming the way companies operate today.
From business decision-making to day-to-day operations,
everything is dependent on data especially when large
amount of data sources are involved. This is why as
customer care agents you must be able to manipulate
systems to capture data regarding customer queries.
• This is where system manipulation comes into play. It
translates data into the required format so it can be easily be
read and organized.
• Organisations have various ways of collecting and storing
customers queries such the use of database collection systems
such as spreadsheet.
• With a database system info is available into one centralized
place. It provides storage for large capacity of data and quick
data retrieval. This makes it easy for you to identify the sources
of the info that will satisfy the customer’s queries.
 Question the customer for information related to the query and possible cause(s).

There are times when you need additional information from a

customer in order to clarify his/her queries. You may have
inadequate information because a customer may have forgotten
to mention a key point, perhaps because he/she may not have
realized the usefulness of this particular information. If you are
unable to fully address the customer’s concerns , you should not
hesitate to ask questions to seek out additional facts. Obtaining
relevant information is critical in addressing your customer’s
queries and providing quality customer service
When a customer makes a complaint, he or she is voicing a
concern in relation to your product or service. When
your customer has a concern you need to find the
root cause. To find the cause (s) of the customer concern
you must ask the right questions to get to get the right
information you require to help the customer. Questioning
will help you to gain greater insight into the customer query,
helping you to resolve the customer query better. Asking the
right questions helps you get to the root of the complaint
 Apply previous experience with similar queries to the
situation.

An agent’s mission is to provide the highest quality support to

customers. To accomplish this, they need to be able to learn
and memorize previous experiences.

There are times when customer ask routine questions. As a call

centre agent you should be able to remember answers to
frequently asked questions and troubleshoot with ease in order
to give prompt responses to customer’s queries
Analyze data captured to provide further information about possible cause(s).

• Analysing customer queries data helps companies to identify

useful information to help them improve the quality of services
and identify the factors that leads to customer’s queries
• To understand what’s really happening with customers, its
crucial to dig deep into the data. It is also vital to fully analyse
data to get the most out of the feed back to solve customer
queries .
• Proper analysis provides a company with a better view of what
it has to change and improve on to help increase customer
loyalty and reduce customer support cases
 Identify, summarize and agree the underlying cause of the query with the customer.
 

CAUSES OF CUSTOMER QUERIES

Not keeping promises
Poor customer service
Low quality of products or services
Customers don’t understand how to use products or services
Keeping an issue unresolved
Identify the underlying cause of customer query

Listen to your customers

Listening carefully and understanding the issue is the first step in identifying
customer query. This is pertinent to determining how to solve it
Always listen to your customers. They have complained for a reason and it is
important to understand why they are complaining. Research has shown that 
customers care more about quality than a fast response – Take time to listen
and understand what their problem is.

Ask questions
If the customer says something that is not clear ensure to ask clarifying
questions. Questioning helps you to get additional information from customers
to help resolve queries.
Summarize and agree on underlying cause of the query
with the customer
Once you have identify the underlying cause of the customer
query ,summarize the query with customer to ensure you get
the key points or facts .
Ensure to leave out detail that may distract from the most
important information. Used correctly, summarizing can save
time, increase understanding, and give authority and
credibility to your work.
Summarizing and gathering key points can help call centre agents
to determine the underlying cause of the customer query.
 ELEMENT 2: Comply with enterprise
standards and procedures when resolving queries
 
 Demonstrate an appropriate level of ownership of the customer
query.
Taking ownership simply means accepting responsibility
for ensuring the problem gets solved.
Research has identified that the single most important
factor in creating positive word of mouth is to take
ownership in customer service situations.  Studies also
identified that, when we take ownership over customer
service situations, customers are more likely to perceive
that you actually care about them. Taking ownership of a
problem ensures you make the customer happy and
advance your career. 
After apologizing it is important you demonstrate to the
guest/customer you will take responsibility for resolving the
complaint. There is little point acknowledging a problem and
then ignoring it – this will only make a bad situation worse.
Proving you want to be involved in resolving the complaint is
critical because this is usually what the guest/customer wants
you to do – fix the problem
How to take ownership of customer query?
• Express empathy.
Customers need to know you hear and understand them.
Listen to their feelings and let them know you empathize with
where they’re coming from. Say something as simple as, “I
understand how frustrating it is when a product doesn’t work as
expected.” Focus on recognizing a customer’s feelings even if
they don’t speak up. If you detect a customer sounds uncertain
or angry, take the time to ask if they have questions or
concerns.
• Make the customer’s problem your problem.
Sometimes, a customer has an issue that’s not directly the
fault of your company. If you can still step in and help solve the
problem, you’ll earn that customer’s brand loyalty because you
went the extra mile.
• Find out answers you don’t know.
If the customer has questions you cannot answer, don’t wash
your hands of the situation. Let the customer know you’ll look
into the issue and provide a reply back. Talk to your supervisor
ASAP and find out how to get the question answered – then
get back to the customer.
• Know company policy.
When a customer has an issue, know what you are authorized
to do. If you cannot offer a refund, find out if you can provide a
discount or learn who to talk to so you can get permission to
offer the customer an appropriate remedy.

• Focus on what you can do for the customer.

If the customer asks for the impossible, don’t just say no.
Instead, immediately suggest alternatives for how you can
satisfy their need.
• Follow up.
If you must hand the customer’s problem off to another team
member to solve, be sure to follow up with your coworker and
the customer later to make sure the issue was resolved
properly. Let the customer know you’ll be monitoring the
resolution of the problem.

Video on ownership link:

• https://
www.toistersolutions.com/blog/2019/3/28/why-customer-servic
Observe time management when dealing with queries in accordance with workplace guidelines/standards

• One of the things that is most important to the overall

success of your company is to utilize time in an efficient and
productive manner when dealing with customer queries.
• Using time management when handling queries will help you
to provide the best service to customers. The time taken to
deal with customer queries is a key contributor to customer
satisfaction.
• Good time management leaves a good impression with
customers and make them trust you.
We are also living in a competitive world where companies
compete for customers. If you don't manage time you may find
customers queuing for your attention which may tarnish company's
reputation. Most customers are not patient enough to wait for your
availability. Instead they will go and find an alternative company
that will urgently attend to their needs. This means that poor time
management may lead to lost business and you may end
up  closing shop. Time management is key in luring customers as
well as retaining them thereby growing the business.
NB: It is always preferred that you can resolve customer
queries at the time it is received. However, this will not always
be possible
 Maintain appropriate records for future reference
• All documentation relating to a complaint must be collected, stored and
made easily accessible. If there is confidential material, you may need to
store this in a locked cabinet or password-protected database.
Documentation should be backed up – electronic files should be copied
to a back-up server and paper files should be copied and held at a
separate location.
• You may be required to prove that you took action following a customer
complaint. For example, a customer may say nothing was done after they
made a complaint to you. If you have a record stating the actions taken
following the complaint and the date the actions were taken, it is easier to
prove your competence as a customer service officer. You may also need
a record of the customer’s details for future reference
• Complaints provide an opportunity to improve an
organization's service. Reviewing complaints is something
you, your colleagues and your manager can do to ensure that
situations leading to complaints are not repeated. Reviewing
complaints is also an opportunity to rectify any outstanding
problems. The organization may track the nature of complaints
over a period of time to learn how, when and why they occur.
The register of complaint documents should be regularly
maintained. This allows for ongoing review.
• A record detailing a complaint and the steps taken to process
the complaint provides a reference allowing anyone in your
organization to see what happened. Your manager may want
to read your documented complaint to learn what happened
and how you dealt with the situation. A colleague may receive
the same complaint you received and wish to refer to your
documents to find out how you dealt with it.
ELEMENT 3: Determine and agree appropriate
action to resolve the queries
 Determine and review possible options to resolve the query within
workplace constraints.
• Most staff are given guidelines as to what action they can take in the workplace in
response to resolving queries without having to get special permission from
management.
• In relation to resolving customer complaints, organizations may give staff limitations
to act/respond in one (or more) standard ways such as:
Offering a free product – glass of drink, free dessert, complimentary coffee
Offering a service – such as dry cleaning if guest clothes have been soiled by
spillage of drinks
Offering a set percentage discount on advertised/stated selling prices

By knowing your limits and being familiar with your you should be able to offer them a
deal to resolve their complaint
Agree and communicate a preferred plan of action to resolve the
query of stakeholders.
Plan of action- is a detailed plan outlining the steps to be taken in
order to resolve a query. It outlines what resources you’ll need to
resolve the query and the timeline.

• Discuss alternatives and explain any benefits or drawbacks

• Agree on a proposed course of action. Be specific on what will
happen next
• Make sure the customer knows who will do what and when
• Make sure the customer knows what they have to do
• Take action immediately and keep your promises
Follow through the commitment, made to the customer, as part of the plan of action.

• commitment is a promise or agreement to do something. It

also involves the way you carry out any agreed course of
action designed to fulfill customer queries.

• Having understood the customer’s request, discussed and

agreed on a course of action to fulfill his/her request. The
customer expects you to implement the steps that will result
in the fulfillment of your promise.
Commitment can be demonstrated in many ways:
• Build rapport
• Owning the customer’s request
• Discussing and agreeing on the action you will be taking
• Keeping promises
• Doing it right the first time
• Keeping the customer informed
• Responding to the customer’s request with operational
efficiency
Failing to act on your commitment can have unfavourable
effects:

• Loss of the sale of the product or service you were negotiating

• No repeat business from the customer
• Less job satisfaction
Refer the query to the next highest authority in accordance with
standard procedures if necessary.
• There will be times when you will not be able to respond to
an enquiry and you may need to refer the call to a higher
authority such as your team leader/supervisor. The correct
escalation of a call is an important process in any
customer engagement centre.
• It is important to observe the following procedures when
escalating a call:
Explain to the customer the reason for escalating the call
advise or her it may be necessary to put him/her on hold
 Check if the person is available and willing to accept the call
Return to the caller, thank him/her for holding and give the name,
department and telephone number of your colleague in the event that
there is a disconnection during transfer and ask him or her to continue
holding while you explain the details of the situation
Supply your supervisor with the necessary information:
Customer’s name
Account number
Exact details of the inquiry
Any other relevant facts

Return to the caller,thank them for holding and transfer the call
Give all data relevant to the query to person to whom it was referred to.

• When referring a query ensure sure all the relevant details

regarding the query is passed on to the individual to whom
the query is referred to, that way customers don’t have to
repeating themselves. When customers have to repeat the
same information over and over again this gets customers
frustrated.
Maintain appropriate posture and composure throughout the
contact.

Since good posture impacts sitting positions, the agent

needs to examine the work station noticing the posture used
when sitting in the chair. When sitting, knees should be at 90
degree angle. If the chair is too low, the knees are elevated
and one’s body may lean back too far. If the chair is too high
the feet tend to dangle creating a need for stability by
crossing the feet and leaning forward. Furniture and the
positions of the monitor,phones,computers and equipment all
impact the sitting position and should be adjusted for specific
body types.
Here are some general tips on how to get started improving
posture:
• Become aware and observe your posture when rested and
fatigued
• Practicing aligning your body properly
• Walk using an aligned position, get feedback from peers
• Sit at your work station with good posture and consult with an
ergonomics specialist about placement of equipment. Some
value in sitting on an exercise ball for a period during the day for
balance.
• Consult with an orthopaedist or physical therapist about
positions and conditions that are not easily changed.
Want to be more productive on the job? “sit up straight”! and
“take a deep breath”. We’ve received those pieces of advice
many times during our lives. What we probably didn’t realize is
that they can help us do our jobs better. That’s because, believe
it or not, posture and breathing play a vital role in making us
more productive at work, especially when work involves talking
on the phone.

A recent study of the most-productive customer engagement

representatives revealed that they were 24% more likely to shift
their posture throughout the day than their less-productive
counterparts.
What is it about this motion that makes for better phone
conversations? Just as savy airline travellers know to move
around often to avoid potential deadly blood cots from long
periods of immobility, customer engagement representatives
need to do the same in their work environments. By sitting up
straight, especially on an ergonomic chair , changing your
seating position often and taking frequent breaks to stretch
your legs, you’ll keep your brain and muscles fresh and
invigorated and your productivity energized.
Breathing properly has a similar effect on productivity,
especially during phone conversations. Most of us are shallow
breathers ; we take rapid, short breaths in and out. The trouble
is, shallow breaths make us sound tired while on the phone.
Successful phone professional knows to take a deep breathe
before beginning a phone conversation and to quietly continue
to do so throughout the call. Those deep breaths enable them
to project energy in their voices and provide a sense of
confidence to the caller.
Element 4:Action agreed plan to resolve the query
 Coordinate the implementation of agreed plan to resolve the query.

• Coordination- is the act of arranging, putting things in

order, so that they work together properly

• Coordination helps to minimize the conflicts, delays and

other organizational problems. It ensures smooth working
of the organization. Therefore, with the help of coordination
an organization can achieve its objectives easily and
quickly.
Action systems and records involved to implement the plan.
 Identify additional customer information to resolve the query.

There are times when you need additional information from

a customer in order to clarify his/her queries. You may have
inadequate information because a customer may have
forgotten to mention key point (s), perhaps because he/she
may not have realized the usefulness of this particular
information. If you are unable to fully address the customer’s
concerns , you should not hesitate to ask questions to seek
out additional facts. Obtaining relevant information is
important in addressing your customer’s queries and
providing quality customer service.
Element 5: Evaluate and communicate
effectiveness of action
 Monitor implementation of the action plan to resolve the query.

• As an Action Plan for a solution to a problem is being

implemented it is important to monitor its progress. Once
the plan has been implemented, you need to evaluate the
success of the solution.
• Monitoring the plan should not be confused with evaluating
the solution. Monitoring the plan helps to ensure that the
solution is being implemented as expected. Evaluating the
solution occurs after the plan has been implemented and
provides an indication of whether the solution has rectified
the problem.
Monitoring The Plan:
In order to monitor the plan the following questions should be
asked:

• Has each step been implemented correctly?

• Has each step been implemented on time?
• Has the expected outcome materialized from the completion of
each step?
Based on the answers to the above questions the following
questions may need to be considered:
• Is more time required?
• Are more tasks required?
• Are more resources required?
• Was the plan realistic?
• What action needs to be taken?
• Does the plan need to change?
 Provide feedback on progress or resolution to the customer.

You will find that when you are dealing with a complaint, being
proactive is useful in making sure that your customers are kept
happy. Never leave your customer wondering what is going on,
call them at every step of the process and make sure they
know the status of what is going on. Do not leave the customer
on their own.
A feedback after any query is a very good way of ensuring the
customer will be a repeat customer.
Always let customers know about the outcome of an
investigation into their complaint. If the customer has no idea
what you have done or are doing about their complaint, they
are likely to become angrier or more frustrated and make
further complaints. Some complaints may be particularly
complex and the investigation process may be long. By the
time you come to the end of it, you may forget to tell the
customer. You need to tell them briefly what was involved in
the investigation process, the outcome of the complaint and
the justification behind the outcome.
Even if some parts of the complaint are being finalized, the
customer should be informed of any decisions reached. You
can inform the customer verbally or in writing. It is usually
recommended that you respond verbally for smaller complaints
and in writing for more complex complaints. If the complaint
was lodged in writing then it is customary to respond in writing.
Always explain the outcome in a way that the customer can
understand. Ensure you respond to each point made by the
customer. This will help them to see that you have investigated
their complaint in full. A thorough explanation of any decisions
reached should be provided, as well as an outline of the next
course of action to be taken.
 Determine customer satisfaction on the resolution of the query.

• Customer is typically defined as the feeling that a person

experiences when an offering meets the customer’s
expectations. When an offering meets the customer’s
expectations, the customer is satisfied.
• Dissatisfied customers are likely to tell many more friends
about their negative experiences than satisfied customers are
about good experiences. This is why customer satisfaction is
very important.
• Over exceeding their expectations should result in both repeat
business and positive word of mouth for a firm.
• Many organizations make a point of contacting the
customer at a set time (for example, two weeks) after the
resolution of the query to check that they are happy with
the outcome and ask whether there is anything else that
can be done. Some organization's ask the customer to fill
out a questionnaire to ascertain whether or not they were
happy with the customer service and the way the
complaint was handled.
• The aim of customer satisfaction is to turn around a
dissatisfied customer into a satisfied one
Seek feedback on escalated issues if required
Your job does not end when you’ve taken the customer’s
query or escalate the customer’s query. It is important that you
follow up within a reasonable time with the appropriate
personnel /department to gain prompt decisions on what the
outcome is. Once you have found out any information about a
complaint you should (if it is within your scope of
responsibility) notify the complainant.
Monitoring the progress are important aspects of your job.
This will go a far way in enhancing the customer service
image of your organization.
 Document and record action taken
• Records are “information created, received, and maintained as evidence
and information by an organization or person, in pursuance of legal
obligations or in the transaction of business.”

• You may be required to prove that you took action following a customer
complaint. For example, a customer may say nothing was done after
they made a complaint to you. If you have a record stating the actions
taken following the complaint and the date the actions were taken, it is
easier to prove your competence as a customer service officer. You may
also need a record of the customer’s details for future reference
• Helps to recall information accurately rather than just relying on memory