An essential aspect of customer service is to define potential customers.
1. Potential customers include the community at large, but can also comprise the following: developers and builders, elected officials, other departments, other governmental agencies, and numerous interest groups.
2. The basic needs of customers include the following:
a. To feel welcomed,
b. A comfortable environment in which to do business and,
c. The need to know that the Town will handle their concerns carefully and completely.
3. Their expectations and desires may include:
a. The expectation that you, as a Town employee, will fully understand their concerns.
b. The expectation that you consider them and their matter important.
c. Expectations of courtesy, reliability, responsiveness, and empathy.
4. On any given day, you may be confronted with customers exhibiting any of the following characteristics: Angry, unhappy, argumentative, talkative, flirtatious, a non-talker, a habitual complainer, obnoxious or rude, demanding, indecisive, abusive, or a person with a heavy accent. While the basic needs and the expectations are common, it is crucial that the staff go through the mental gymnastics to best handle customers displaying these behaviors.
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