MGMT385IP5

** TWO-PART ASSIGNMENT**

Part 1. Powerpoint -Create 2 slides with 150-250-word speaker notes for each slide. APA 6, in-text citation, Cite at least two (2) scholarly online references.

Part 2. 600 words APA 6, in-text citation, Cite reference.

Attached is the PowerPoint the TWO slides will be added to.  

Assignment Description  

Part 1:

For the final Key Assignment in this course, you will need to discover how measurement and continuous improvement are part of success in customer service excellence. Complete the following for the first part of this assignment:

• Find 2 articles, one that describes how customer service excellence is measured and the other on how continuous improvement can be practiced. 

  These articles need to be verified to be valid and from a source that can be used in academic writing.

• Include a summary of each article into your current PPT presentation from Week 4.  
• Remember that this needs to have the quality and content to be presented to an incoming HR Manager after your recent promotion to Vice President.

Part 2: Review and reflect on the knowledge you have gained from this course. Based on your review and reflection, write at least 3 paragraphs on the following:

• What were the most compelling topics learned in this course?
• How did participating in discussions help your understanding of the subject matter? Is anything still unclear that could be clarified?
• What approaches could have yielded additional valuable information?
• The main post should include at least 1 reference to research sources, and all sources should be cited using APA format.

CUSTOMER SERVICES DELIVERY PRESENTATION

Unit 4 Individual Project

Carlene Baines

MGMT 385

Professor Libell

January 11,2023

COMMUNICATION AND CUSTOMER SERVICES
Communication is integral for excellent customer service within the company. According to Fletcher et al., (2021), when communicating with customers, the central area of focus should be on the following:
Communication medium: Use the most convenient communication method the customer prefers
Feedback and replies: get back to the customer sooner
Communication courtesy: Deploy the highest level of manners

Communication is integral for excellent customer service within the company. When communicating with customers, the main focus should be on the following communication medium. Feedbacks and replies-The company uses different communication mediums, and it is your role to ask customers which medium they are familiar with and comfortable with. Use that medium to keep the customer happy and more willing to talk.When handling any complaint, ensure you provide immediate feedback to the customers. When you do not have any solutions, tell them you will get back with the correct information to help them solve their problem. Please do not wait until they call, but ensure you call them back within the shortest period.When communicating with customers, communication courtesy and manners matter more than anything. Start with a greeting, use a friendly tone, and be patient with customers even when they are irritating. After the calls, wish the customers the best of luck and urge them to contact the company.
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COMMUNICATION CHANNELS TO USE
There are different channels to communicate with the customers, using their most preferred medium.
Focus on expanding the available communication mediums to make communication easier.
You can use the following video calls, social media, SMS, phone calls, etc.
The suitability of every communication channel will depend on customer preferences.
The choice of communication will also depend on the type of customer.

Suppose you must demonstrate to customers how to solve a problem, for instance. In that case, electronic settings, a virtual or live presentation, will be ideal for offering them a visual and step-by-step guide on how to fix the problem. Use the phone calls for other explanations that may not need visuals. It would be more suitable than using SMS.
When dealing with the teenage population, use social media communication to reach them and guide them based on their complaints effectively. You can text them procedures on how to solve the complaint. If feedback is needed after the communication, social media will be suitable for issues such as service ratings and feedback.When dealing with professional matters or corporate clients, the best communication strategy and platform to use is email services to maintain professionalism.
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SERVICE EXCELLENCE PYRAMID
Excellent customer services delivery must be based on and guided by the service excellence pyramid:
It consists of four levels namely (Zeithaml et al., 2018):
Level 1: Core value proposition: offer services according to customer expectations
Level 2: Complaint management: Solve the problems once and for all and solve them perfectly.
Level 3: Individual services: Tailor the services for every customer to make them feel valued.
Level 4: Surprising services: always surpass customer expectations.

Core value proposition: Every customer expects the company to deliver its core services and the values promised. When handling every customer, ensure the services are according to the organizational values, such as excellent customer service.
Complaint management: The main goal is to solve all customer complaints to ensure the complaints never arise again. Therefore, the team should use the reports from the complaints to boost the products and services to ensure the company or the customers avoid incurring the same issues again.
Individual services: the key to excellent customer service is to customize and tailor the services based on the individual customers to make them feel valued.
Surprising services: Service delivery aims to surpass what the company promises to offer and what the customer expects. Offer more than the customer needs and extend to ask if they would need any other additional services.
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MEETING CUSTOMER EXPECTATION AND PITFALLS TO AVOID
Handling customers is a delicate process hence you need to be cautious in your approach to avoid any challenges and complications.
Consider the following:
Be proactive but not annoying
Keep the communication straightforward. Refrain from bombarding customers with explanations and terms.
Humanize complex interaction: Avoid being emotional
Offer consistent communication experience.

Consistency: select one communication channel and use it throughout the integration with the customer. Keep the mode of communication the same since it can irritate the customers. Use the same method of communication unless they ask you to change.
Complex interactions: Customers may call when rude, angry, and insulting. Maintain your emotions, ask them to calm down, apologize for the problem and reassure them that their issues are noted, and you are solving the problem.
Keeping things simple: Make the communications straightforward to what the customer needs. Directly answer their question and only provide additional explanations and information when necessary otherwise, there is no need.
Proactivity: Make technology part of the strategies to solve all customer problems and track all their complaints. However, only bothering them with necessary technology may affect their service experience leading to other issues such as poor service.
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SERVICE QUALITY DIMENSIONS
The nature of the services will significantly impact the service delivery and customer perceptions. When offering services, focus on the following.
Timely services: prioritize the customer time and make the interaction shorter (Chowdhary & Prakash, 2017).
Reliability: Unsure if the replies guarantee a solution or can solve the customer’s needs
Humanity: Show some empathy and concern
Additional offers: You can offer them additional services or help, such as discounts and replacements.

Service timing: the duration spent interacting with the customer matters. Focus on one customer at a time and solve their needs without undivided d attention to other needs. This will ensure that the service delivery is fast and timely.
Reliability: the product offered, explanation and guidelines should help the customers and fully satisfy their needs. If unsure, seek clarification. The product and service must also focus on customer needs; hence you need to offer the customers what is best for them. You can also advise them on the selections.
Humanity: A little empathy, concern, and some emotions bring closure to the customers enabling them to feel valued. Refrain from being too formal when dealing with customers, and show concern about their needs.
Additional offers: to boost customer services you need to have some services to boost customer interest. In case of any issues with products, you can offer a replacement, free shipment, or discounts in case of bulk purchases.
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MAINTAINING CUSTOMER LOYALTY
The main concern and goal of service delivery are to maintain customer loyalty.
The following strategies should help in maintaining customer loyalty.
Utilizing company reward programs: be keen about different rewards programs and offer them conveniently.
Show gratitude: Appreciate and thank customers for all their contributions to the company.
Seek customer feedback: utilize online and offline feedback systems after every service.
Customer loyalty management: Use different CRM loyalty programs to keep track of the customers.

Reward programs: The company should focus on utilizing different service rewards programs to boost customer satisfaction. Offer free delivery once in a while for loyal customers, discounts for bulk purchases, and replacements in case of any product faults.
Customer feedback: Feedbacks are necessary to make the customers feel part of the company and that their opinions matter to the company. It shows them some value. You should review and respond to the feedback effectively.
Showing gratitude: appreciate customers by customizing thank you messages for their purchases. For special occasions such as Christmas, and festivities, you can send loyal customers gift cards or holiday messages. You can also send them messages on special days, such as birthdays.
Using CRM loyalty programs: Collect, store and use all the data within the CRM systems. The data is integral for service personalization and customization.

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UNDERSTANDING THE CUSTOMERS
Understanding your customers is critical to ensure you offer them the right services based on their needs. Consider the following factors:
Demographics: Teens, gender, age, etc.
Market research: Research the potential customers, market needs, and competitor customers.
Purchase behavior: Frequent. Loyal, occasional customers
Customer questionnaires: Provide questionnaires to help understand the customers you are handling.

Demographics: Demographic factors will help with issues such as selecting the right product for the customers or the most suitable communication method. First, you need to understand the customer segments and target markets, then personalize the services based on available demographics.
Purchase behavior: the purchase behavior will help determine critical issues such as loyal, occasional, and one-time customers. This will help them decide on the right incentive programs to boost their loyalty. For instance, they offer occasional customer discounts and frequent free delivery.
The questionnaires will help understand customer-specific needs and opinions about the services offered. The questionnaire can help customize the products based on customer preferences. It can also help in tailoring customer communication.
Market research provides you with a range of information that enables you to stay ahead of a competitor through excellent customer service. The research will help understand all customers and attract all the customers.
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UNDERSTANDING CUSTOMER BEHAVIOR
Customer behavior is critical to offer them services and understanding their purchasing patterns.
Service delivery must leverage these behaviors to improve service quality and delivery.
Using technology: Use data collection, storage, and analysis tools.
Maintaining customer loyalty: Focus on changing their purchase behaviors to make them loyal.
Improving product and service perception: change their perception of the organization by seeking their opinion on improving services.
Trend forecasting: once you understand consumer behavior, you can forecast future needs.

Using technology: Use different technologies to boost customer understanding and collect data about them. Used product reviews, market surveys, and other digital or social media tools to collect and analyze relevant and collected data.
Increasing customer loyalty: Once you understand their purchase behavior, the emphasis should be on improving their loyalty through excellent service delivery. Once you understand their behaviors, you need to utilize programs and incentives to boost loyalty.
Changing customer perception: Sometimes, you can seek customer opinions on improving the services and making them more suitable to their needs. Ask for suggestions, then focus on strategies to improve the services to make them more than the customer expectations or their current perceptions.
Trend forecasting: once you understand consumer behavior, the data is used to forecast demand, service, and product dimensions. These aspects are significant for improving customer service quality and delivery.

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HOW TO LISTEN TO THE CUSTOMERS EFFECTIVELY
There are various procedures for listening to customers speak and raise their issues.
These strategies help in understanding all their needs.
Engage them in preferred communication channels: phone, text, social media, physical meetings, etc.
Be open: Do not limit the customers on issues to talk about.
Consider body language: In the case of physical presence, body language can tell a lot about customer communication.

Focus beyond the problem: When communicating with customers, focus not only on the negatives but also on their opinions about positive aspects of service delivery.
Preferred communication medium: Using customer preferred communication medium gives them the feeling of being valued and makes them feel free to communicate. They will comfortably communicate all the issues they need to raise.
Open communication: Allow customers to discuss a range of issues or those that are specific to them. Do not restrict what to talk about since the restriction may limit them from discussing some issues affecting them.
Body language: Watch for non-verbal cues when interacting with customers. This will help gain additional information that the customers may need to tell you. It can help detect pretense, happiness, satisfaction, and other minor communications.
Focus past the problem: Listen to customers even when they need to communicate other issues. Do more than just focus on listening to them when solving problems. Listen to them describe their positive experience so that you can replicate the experience with other customers.
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IMPACT OF ACTIVE LISTENING ON SERVICE DELIVERY
Listening to customers is part of the process and strategies to boost customer service delivery. It helps in the following ways.
Increased customer retention:
Improved customer loyalty: Failure to listen to customer needs can lead to others moving to other brands.
Improved services: using customer concerns and opinions to improve service delivery.
Identify opportunities; Customer ideas and opinions are a source of opportunities to create new products or improve the existing ones.

Impact on service delivery: Customer opinions and communications is significant to improving service delivery since it helps to customize the services for future interactions. You can also replicate their opinions to other customers.
Increased customer retention: When you listen to all customer needs effectively and correct their issues as needed, many will stick to the brand and never have a reason to switch to other brands.
Customer loyalty: When customers freely communicate their ideals to a business and their opinions used to improve services, they feel part of the brand. They are likely to feel appreciated hence sticking and owning the brand as part of their mission to improve it.
More opportunities: Customer opinions can significantly help identify new opportunities to improve the existing products. This improves service delivery by improving customer services and products. It can also provide new insights about new markets and products for the business.
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EMPOWERING EMPLOYEES TO OFFER THE BEST CUSTOMER SERVICES
Employees are an integral part of customer service delivery; hence you need to ensure they are up to the task and with the right skills.
Communication skills: Excellent communication, engagement, and listening skills (Melhem, 2014)
Presentation skills: Employees must have presentation skills to boost aspects such as dressing and appearance approach to customer needs.
Employee training: Constantly upgrade employee skills and abilities to deal with customers in an ever-changing environment.
Empathy and patience: Employees must have emotional connection and patience to enable the customers fully express their needs.

Communication skills: All employees, regardless of the department, responsibility, and duties, must have the right communication skills to handle customer needs. They must have the courtesy and manners to communicate effectively with the customers.
Training: Organize frequent training on areas such as market changes, customers’ needs, communication, and human resources to enable the employees to have the necessary skills to handle customers. They must train rapidly to boost their communication skills and preparation to handle customer needs. The training should also focus on problem-solving skills to enable them to handle all the problems effectively.
Presentation skills: Observable aspects and employee attributes such as facial expression and dress code can affect service delivery. Therefore, all employees must be trained in presentation skills to boost customer communication and change customers’ perceptions about the service offered.
Empathy and patience: Employees must be patient with customers when they deal with frustrated and angry customers. They must also empathize with the customers, understand their needs, and sympathize with them.

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ROLE OF TECHNOLOGY ON BOOSTING CUSTOMER SERVICES

Technology can boost customer service delivery due to its role in the following areas.
Communication technology: Diversified communication channels
Customer data: data collection, storage, analysis, and security
Automated communication systems: 24 hours customer services and digital interactions: the use of Bots to handle all customer needs.
Creating CRM systems: These systems are critical for managing aspects of customer services.

CRM systems: technology is significant for creating CRM systems that can be used to manage
aspects of customer services, trace customer journey and manage it all through the different stages. These services and systems are critical for mapping the customer journey and customizing customer services through all stages.
Communication technology: Communication technology helps the company set different communication channels. The multiple communication platforms make it easier for customers to select the ideal communication strategy and medium with the company hence improving communication efficiency.
Customer data: Customer data is critical for service management, hence the need for technology to collect, store, and analyze data. From the analysis, the company can improve services, and products, thereby boosting customer loyalty and retention.
Automated communication: Using communication strategies such as automated communication systems enables the company to respond to customer needs anytime without human intervention. It solves fundamental problems boosting service delivery periods hence offering timely services.
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REFERENCES
Fletcher, R., & Melewar, T. C. (2021). The complexities of communicating to customers in emerging markets. Journal of Communication Management.
Zeithaml, V. A., Rust, R. T., & Lemon, K. N. (2018). The customer pyramid: creating and serving profitable customers. California management review, 43(4), 118-142.
Chowdhary, N., & Prakash, M. (2017). Prioritizing service quality dimensions. Managing Service Quality: An International Journal.
Melhem, Y. (2014). The antecedents of customer‐contact employees’ empowerment. Employee relations.