During an economic downturn when times are tough you’ll often find customers either hanging onto their cash, not spending or being more selective with what they buy. Astute business leaders will quickly recognize during such times that any business downturn will have an affect on bottom line profits causing them to evaluate how to weather the storm and avoid staff layoffs. But what many employers fail to realize is that with some careful foresight and planning there can be some light at the end of the tunnel.
This article highlights 7 good customer service tips that can be effectively used by employer’s experiencing staff workplace problems during an economic downturn and what steps can be taken by them to provide ongoing good service for their customers.
1. Communication.
Ensure employees are kept up to date on what the goals of the business are and well informed as to its financial position. Inform staff members the reason why any changes need to be made and how staff can contribute to those plans. Encourage staff to remain focused on providing good customer service
2. Resources.
Streamline systems and processes so that employees output and time are being used efficiently. Ensure essential resources are used productively to avoid waste and that customers are always provided with good customer service
3. Health and Safety.
Ensure your workplace has an effective workplace Health and Safety Policy. This will help identify employees who may have stress symptoms and provide managers or affected staff members with an intervention and education plan on how to cope with any workplace health issue.
4. Managing Staff Insecurity.
In situations where redundancies may occur try to keep affected staff informed and provide options. For example, look for those employees who may have transferable skills and whether they can be transferred to another department.
5. Positive outlook.
As a manager and employer it’s important to remain focused and positive in order to keep team spirit and morale high during difficult times. This is one of the best good customer service tips because setting an example for staff by going the extra mile for a customer will encourage employees to do the same, having the affect of helping your business and ultimately bottom line profits.
6. Targets.
Focus on delivering good customer service and where necessary improving any poor customer service habits that may have crept in by ensuring staff training programs are up to date and relevant to the current market. Performance expectations should be realistic. Remember the golden rule is if you are loyal and supportive of your staff they will support you.
7. Workloads.
The last of the good customer service tips is to conduct an in-house job review exercise by measuring current workloads and expectations to ensure resources across the business are being utilized and managed effectively.
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