1. Sysco Call Centre Presentation Training – a good or a bad thing? October 2004 By Catherine Murray-Howard (otherwise known as ‘the customer from hell!’)

2. Lianne – 156256 Gemma – 4771 Jackie – 4069 Brendan – 7536 Naomi – 8059 Lyndsay – 4899 Adele Cath Ann

3. What do all these people have in common?

4. The last candidates in the X-Factor? The names of the only set of Quinnes born in the UK? The most popular girls & boys names in the UK from 1979-1989? …None of these…they were in fact….

5. All people I spoke to at Argos Direct on Friday to resolve my problem!

6. They said one thing & meant another “How can I help?” meant “How can I get you off the phone” “I’m just trying to help” meant “I know I can’t help but I’m not allowed to say that” Where they went wrong…

7. They kept asking me about the “nature of the problem” and then explained how they couldn’t help ….and wondered why I was getting upset They cannot transfer – or they were deliberately cutting me off!

8. They couldn’t see a human being – they just saw a difficult ‘thing’ – I cannot say customer because they don’t understand about customer.

9. and then there was… Ann

11. She read my file before she spoke to me Empathised – not falsely She gave me a solution She apologised & gave me compensation (the least of my worries!) I felt that she had authority What did Ann do right?

12. And you are all probably thinking …all my staff are like Ann …And I hope that is true

13. We owe it to our people to support them – so that they can use their interpersonal skills effectively

14. What do you notice about my presentation so far?

15. Real people – Real names How annoyed & bored would you be if I said….

16. When asked… 100% of people state that they can find nothing positive in Call Centres 98% of people say that they hate it when operatives refer to a script Blah Blah Blah

17. how many of you when training your people refer to ‘the customer’ as a “being” who is just at the other end of a phone? Be honest….

18. I passionately believe… and as such Sysco delivers… the customer as a person Someone’s Mum; Dad; Sister……(Me)

19. It isn’t enough to give your people A script A set of procedures The right to believe that customers are wrong A hiding place Training is Vital – but not just technical training

20. We have to teach people – for their own sanity….

21. Real Empathy – putting themselves in the customers shoes The ability to speak away from a script Real Customer Care Accountability – they must & should give their names out Follow-up is VITAL

22. Technology was invented to improve Customer Care – not eradicate it We have more human beings now than ever dealing with customers

23. So why doesn’t it feel that way?

24. Why Apprenticeships Work The training takes place at your site therefore the training advisor can see exactly what improvements can be made. The training is totally relevant to the industry and delivered by somebody with a call centre background, someone who has been in the position of both the call handler, and probably the customer!

25. But why bother? The customer truly is King. It costs the company seven times as much to find a new customer than to provide excellent customer service and retain an existing one. But more importantly – you get the satisfaction of knowing you did your job well and customers stop complaining to you!

26. Presentation by: Catherine Murray-Howard Head of Sales & Marketing Sysco Tel: 0151-547-7660 x:220 e-mail: catherine@syscoconsultants.co.uk