101 Ways to Improve Customer Service: Training, Tools, Tips, and Techniques

Chapter 31. Attention, Please: Keeping the Customer’s Attention

Some service-related problems relate directly to a misunderstanding of the information provided by the service representative to the customer. One of the reasons this occurs is because the customer has not paid close attention to the details of the conversation. This is especially true when the interaction occurs over the telephone; the customer loses the face-to-face engagement of body language and must rely totally on voice and message content. Some of the more common pitfalls and suggestions to remedy these situations are described in the following table.

Pitfall	Remedy
People are impatient when they listen.	Make your main point at the beginning of your conversation. Keep your information short and specific.
People jump to conclusions before you are finished talking.	Stress a benefit at the beginning of what you say and make it too attractive to reject. Hearing what they will gain gives customers some perspective on the conversation, lets them know what point you are trying to make, and tells them why they should listen.
People typically fully concentrate for only approximately 15 seconds at a time. Their minds may wander for a few seconds and then they pay attention to the speaker again.	Present only one idea at a time. Adapt your important points to meet the individual customer’s focus of attention.
It takes work to remember something. Even if people listen closely, they don’t automatically store what you have said in their ...