It can happen to you, and it often happens to almost any professional in the workplace. Don't beat yourself up for not being a know-it-all. Instead, master some techniques to properly handle situations where clients may ask you something you're not prepared to answer right away.
Spend more time listening and asking questions
Some people are verbose and quite talkative. They may phrase a question indonesia whatsapp number data in a confusing way, leaving you to believe that you don't know how to answer it or, worse, that you don't have the slightest idea of what they are talking about. Don't immediately resort to a panicked response. Instead, carefully go to the root of the question.
It could be that the customer is asking about a product or service that you don't even offer. If that's the case, you can simply inform them that they can look up the answer from the appropriate authority. If the question is based on a misunderstanding of the customer, it will only take a moment to clear things up. Ask more questions if necessary.
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Choose what you know
Even if you can't know everything for a customer, you can at least offer some helpful gems. If their question is multi-layered or multi-faceted (or if they have a large number of questions), answer what you can. An immediate partial answer is always better than confusion and stumbling forward. Answer what you're ready to answer. If you need more information to fully satisfy the customer, worry about the latter. Answer what you can answer at first. You'll seem knowledgeable, even if you need to double-check some facts or bring in another employee to handle the rest of the questions.
Never lie to a client
The worst thing you can do is blatantly lie to a customer. Sooner or later, that customer will find out. They'll be smart enough to realize that you said something to save your ego and sent them on their merry way. This can damage relationships between a customer and a business - leaving them with such a negative impression as a representative of a company can give them an unfavorable opinion of the company as a whole.
A customer would rather hear “let me check that out for you” or “I want to do some more research on that for you” than something you made up on the fly. Wanting to get the facts straight before helping them doesn’t make you look incompetent, it shows them that you care. This is exactly the opposite of the impression lying would give. The customer would rather wait for the truth than feel immediately and temporarily appeased by a misleading statement.
woman with bluetooth headset
Be clear when to redirect the topic
There are two different ways to redirect when you're not sure how to properly help a customer. One is to move them forward by redirecting them to a different topic, and the other is to redirect them to another employee. If you can, you should try to redirect them to a different issue first. If the questions they're asking aren't necessarily relevant to the help they need, there's no shame in not being sure how to answer them.
If the nature of the questions is such that the customer is going off topic, it is a good policy to gently redirect them to the topic at hand. This has two benefits. The first is that you will not find yourself in an awkward situation, and the other is that you can serve a customer effectively by focusing directly on their needs.
Do not redirect the customer unless you have to.
Customers don't like being passed on to someone else. They feel reassured knowing that if they approach an employee with their questions and concerns, everything will be resolved immediately. Being passed from one person to another creates frustration for the customer who simply wanted a little help.
If you can discreetly look up the answers you need quickly for the customer, you can bounce back from an awkward situation. If your company has a manual, handbook, or online database that you can use to get answers while talking to a customer, use it. If you don't have such a resource , it might be worth asking management to hire someone to create it. Everyone will be able to use it, and it can improve overall customer satisfaction by having everything compiled and easily accessible. Do this under the guise of providing more value, and be honest about the learning process.
Many times, a customer would rather hear that you go above and beyond to provide the service they deserve. They would rather hear that you are willing to take your time to find the right answer to a complicated question than to send them to someone else or give up on them. Your effort shows that you value that customer.
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If you do redirect, redirect correctly
Sometimes, you won't know the answers or have the authority to do something. You may not be able to easily access what you need to help the customer. When all options fail, redirect the customer sooner rather than later. Try not to send them on a wild goose chase or let them feel like they're wasting their time with you. If after a minute or two you're still not sure, you have a duty to put them directly in touch with someone who is sure.
Try not to transfer phone calls or leave someone on hold for an extended period of time. If you can, run and find someone you know for sure will be able to help you. We often avoid bringing up problems with our bosses , but sometimes it's the right thing to do. Even if this person is a busy member of senior management, they'd probably prefer you to focus on serving the customer quickly rather than fumbling around trying to figure things out on your own. It's worth making sure you only redirect them once.
Conclusion
Even if clients may sometimes have unrealistic standards, it's important to remember that you can't know absolutely everything. You're not a poor employee if you don't know every last tiny detail about something specific. It's all about the grace and ease with which you handle a situation that defines your value as an employee.
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