This is Meghan and me on our annual Christmas pilgrimage to Fortnum’s.
We do the rounds and then have a glass of bubbles and some mini sausages in the 3’6 Bar (never thought to ask why it’s called that). Anyway… later that day, I realised I must have left my phone on the sofa there. Doh! Mind you, if you’re going to leave your phone anywhere in London, right?
The phone call.
I phoned Fortnum’s, where the call handler went into chatbot mode and was about as empathetic and useful as… well, a chatbot really. So we walked back to the store.
Two surprises.
As we got to the bar, Meg exclaimed, “Oh no, it’s shut for a private function!” Then a young lady called Aster walked past, stopped, and asked if she could help. And — as if by a Christmas miracle — she said, “This one?!” She had it in her hand and was on her way down to Lost Property with it.
The timing was unbelievable.
One easy approach to train your staff that makes all the difference to your customers.
NOW! Fortnum’s team members are expected to make eye contact with every customer in their periphery. Had she not bothered to see us, she wouldn’t have read our body language and anxiety. She may not have stopped, and our day would have been very different.
Feeling ignored makes everyone cross — it doesn’t matter if they are a customer, a family member, or a stranger in your vicinity.
It doesn’t cost any money to train your teams in how important seeing customers is. If your teams are avoiding eye contact because they’re too busy, then you may need to look at your ergonomics and streamline or simplify your customer journey.
✅ Practise giving people eye contact and a smile! You will be amazed at how it will make you feel.
Oh — and don’t forget that mystery-shopping your call handlers to make sure they are delivering the same experience is just as important!
https://www.silentcustomer.com/online-and-phone-call-audits/
