Kepler’s Five Laws of Customer Care

Holding Team Member of the Year Award “for exceptional technical customer support.”

I enjoy serving and helping people. I cared of my rifle platoon as an infantry lieutenant in the United States Army. I ministered and served my congregation as an ordained minister. I helped my customers and users as an information technology application analyst. I like helping people.

For years, people have observed my good job of caring for people. It resulted in my being named an Outstanding Junior Officer of the 9th Infantry Division for excellence in maintenance support while serving as an infantry battalion maintenance officer.

I have been recognized by my Fortune 500 privately held company employer by being named Team Member of the Year for excellence in technical customer support and care.

I share this to say I know something about caring for customers. I’ve handled over 20,000 customer support/service problems calls in the last twenty years.

I base my customer service and support philosophy on two things. First, I believe we should treat others as we want to be treated. Maybe you’ve heard of the Golden Rule. Found in the Holy Bible in the book of Matthew, chapter 7, verse 12, we are told to “Do to others what you want them to do to you.”

My second guiding force also comes from the Bible. Found in the book of Colossians, chapter 3 and verses 23-24. The verse says, “And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men; knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ.”

Over the years, I’ve developed a personal philosophy I call Kepler’s Five Laws of Customer Care. While you cannot make everyone happy all the time, if you follow these simple principles you’ll do okay.

Kepler’s First Law of Customer Care

Respond to your customer promptly. We live in an instant gratification world. Instant response equals instant happiness for most customers. Notice I did not say that it equates immediate problem resolution.

Yes, you may be able to provide immediate solutions, but they are the exception when it is a complex issue. People want to know you care. When you respond to their complaint or their support request promptly, it makes a difference. Sometimes the timeliness alone of your response is enough to keep your customer from going to the competition.

The customer or user needs to know you care.

Kepler’s First Law of Customer Care is responding to the customer promptly.

Kepler’s Second Law of Customer Care

As you respond to the issue, you must listen to and acknowledge the customer’s concerns. There are no small complaints. Treat them the same way you would help your spouse or your mother. I call it golden rule support. By that, I mean no matter how upset they get you remain cool, calm, and in control. You treat them like you would want to be treated.

It matters not if you are responding to email complaints, working the telephones in a call-center, standing at the customer service counter, or have a customer walk up to you with their concerns and complaints.

Regardless of the issue’s method of delivery listen to their problem. I like to repeat their issue back to them. I usually say something like, “Mr. Customer, I understand your new laptop’s monitor has the upper left corner of the screen that is darker than it should be. Is that right?” When they confirm I understand the problem, I work to correct it.

Kepler’s Second Law of Customer Care is listening to and acknowledge the customer’s concerns.

Kepler’s Third Law of Customer Care

This one is essential. Never promise anything you cannot deliver. Don’t tell them you will replace the broken equipment if you do not have the authority to make the exchange. The customer will take your words as your bond.

You do not want your customers to experience disappointment. They do not wish to hear your excuses for failing to deliver what you promised. Promising and then not delivering will drive your hard-earned customers into the arms of the competition.

If you make a promise, make sure you fulfill it.

Kepler’s Third Law of Customer Care is never promise anything you cannot deliver.

Kepler’s Fourth Law of Customer Care

You must keep the customer informed. There is nothing as nerve wracking as sitting in the waiting room wondering how long it is going to take to get the car repaired. Provide them with a realistic estimate of how long the job will take to complete. If you tell them an hour and finish in fifty minutes, they will be thrilled. If you run into an issue along the way, tell them. Customers hate not knowing. They should not be surprised by the cost of the repairs or have to keep looking at the clock asking is it ready yet.

Keep them informed. Remember, bad news only gets worse with time. If an additional issue comes up, tell them.

Likewise, if the problem is not as bad as initially diagnosed, let them know it. They will be thrilled.

Kepler’s Fourth Law of Customer Care is keeping the customer informed.

Kepler’s Fifth Law of Customer Care

Make sure you thank them for both their business and for bringing the issue to your concern. You need to know when we have an inferior product or service problem.

When they make you aware of a problem you can make necessary corrections. It helps you identify issues with suppliers and processes. It also identifies employees that require better customer service skills, developmental training or even dismissal.

People like to feel appreciated. Let them know you appreciate their business.

Kepler’s Fifth Law of Customer Care is thanking them for both their business and for bringing the issue to your concern.

If you follow Kepler’s Five Laws of Customer Care, your company, and your clients will have a better experience.

FREE DOWNLOAD of a .pdf file of “Kepler’s Five Laws of Customer Care.”

Written by Jimmie Aaron Kepler, The Customer Care Guy

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Use the Customer’s Name

I am an application support analyst for a Fortune 500 privately held company. Recognized for my ability in technical customer service by my customers, co-workers, and employer I give what I call world-class or concierge class customer service. I find their problem’s root causes and offer solutions. I make the application’s user have a better day.

Customers come to me for one of two reasons.

1. They need help getting something fixed that isn’t working.
2. They need to know how to do something (or how to avoid doing something).

They call me to get them from where they are to where they need to be. They expect me to make it happen in the shortest amount of time. They expect little disruption to their business. They do not want to blame for the current problem.

They call engaging my ability and my access/availability to needed resources. They are investing their time and energy. They expect a good return on their investment of time. They expect to deliver what they want.

I love assisting in resolving their problems. No one comes to see me or call me unless they have issues. I start by asking them how I can make their day better. I know they have a problem. I ask them to tell me how I can help.

Use the Customer’s Name.

I calm distressed callers by using their name. That helps them know I am listening and that they are not just another number. Another way I cut their stress is to repeat their issue back to them. For example, “Mr. Smith I understand your sales data is not up to date. We have not seen it updated in the last seven days. Is that correct?”

If I have misunderstood, I guarantee they tell me at this point.

Next I give them my name and my telephone number as the point of contact on the issue. I outline the steps I will take in troubleshooting. I give them a specific time and date when I will call time back with an update. I normally do that within the hour. If they call me at 8:15 AM I tell them I will call you back at 9 AM with an update on their issue. At 9 AM I call them back. By then I usually know what the issue is and steps to resolution with a projected resolution day and time.

My customers like my promise of calling them back. I give them permission to call me if they need an update. They can call if they feel I am too slow. I also offer to update their boss if they feel that will help.

I have found assuring my customers helps build credibility. I consistently do this with every person. This action helps with the engagement and adoption of our products and services. And I never forget to tell them thank you.

Written by: Jimmie Aaron Kepler, The Customer Care Guy

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Jimmie Aaron Kepler’s is a Customer Care Expert, computer geek, novelist, poet, book reviewer, and award-winning short story writer. His work has appeared in over twenty venues, including Bewildering Stories and Beyond Imagination. When not writing each morning at his favorite coffee house, he supports his writing, reading, and reviewing habit working as an IT application support analyst. He is a former Captain in the US Army. His blog Kepler’s Book Reviews was named a 100 best blogs for history buffs in 2010. You can visit him at http://www.jimmiekepler.com.

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Do Not Be Rude

The Customer Care Guy’s Tip – Do Not Be Rude.

There is never an acceptable situation that allows you to be rude to you customer or clients.

Join with me in searching your memory. Pull out that old remembrance of the customer service representative that was rude to you in 2010. You recall the one. He didn’t even put you on hold when he took a personal call on his cellphone and then told you to chill when you tried to get his attention.

Maybe your memory isn’t of a telephone experience, but a face-to-face encounter. You had asked for information on a product and the salesperson handed you a brochure and said it is in here. He then tells you to read it yourself or worse told you to go to their website and look it up. He never offered to show you the product or offered to sell you the product.

Even if you don’t think the above examples are rude, you have to admit they are less than helpful.

Never forget your customers will switch to your competitor because of rude or less than helpful behavior. This is a key reason many companies are improving and placing an emphasis on providing better customer service from all employees.

In our social network world, a bad experience is posted on Twitter by the time the unhappy person gets to their car. Their posting of one bad experience can destroy years of your hard work. You certainly don’t want customers reading dreadful stuff about you on Facebook.

How do you avoid this? Don’t ever be rude! You need to really care. You need to make sure your coworkers and employees really care. Even if you think the individual was a bad or less than a courteous customer, don’t say bad things about them to your employees or coworkers! Set the example.

People will be demanding. Customers will be difficult. Sometimes you will encounter rude people. Remember, you are not the reason they are having a bad day. You control how you respond to them. Reflecting their venom back in their direction is never the answer.

Never be rude to them. Instead, be the ray of sunshine that brightens their day.

The Customer Care Guy’s Tip – Do Not Be Rude.

Written by: Jimmie Aaron Kepler, The Customer Care Guy

Customer Care Dos and Do Nots

The Customer Care Guy’s Tip  – Customer Care Do’s and Do Not’s

Here are some customer care do’s and do not’s

The Dos:

1. Do introduce yourself. Your customer likes to know who you are. They want to know who is helping them.
   Do observe customer distress. Notice if they are unhappy. You can see it in their body language or hear it in their voice.
2. Do find out what the customer needs. Something is wrong or bothering them. Otherwise, they wouldn’t be talking to you. Find out what it is.
3. Do make sure the customer’s needs are met. You can’t fix everything, but you can make sure they know you care and that you are trying.

The Do Nots

1. Don’t pass a complaining customer or one that is requesting help. Help them or stay with them until you get the correct person to help them.
2. Don’t ignore a customer’s complaint. It is important to them. Make solving their issue important to you. You never know the life time buying potential of one customer, their family, and friends.
3. Don’t say “this isn’t my customer”. You may not have given them the bad service or defective product, but you can be the one to make a positive impact in getting the issue resolved.
4. Don’t think the follow-up is unimportant. A courtesy call to make sure all is okay can make the difference between keeping or losing a customer.

The Customer Care Guy’s Tip – Customer Care Do’s and Do Not’s

Written by: Jimmie Aaron Kepler, The Customer Care Guy

Only Promise What You Can Deliver

The Customer Care Guy’s Tip  – Only Promise What You Can Deliver

There was a little boy who adored his father. The father was deeply involved in establishing his career and business. He worked long hours. Once the boy was extra sad.

The father asked, “Son, what is wrong?”

The youngster said, “We never do anything together. You never have time for me.”

The father’s heart was pierced.

“I have time for you. I’ll take you on a picnic this very Saturday,” said the father.

“Really? You’re not kidding?” asked the little boy.

“Yes, really,” said the father.

“Can we play catch with the football?”

“Yes,” said the father.

“Can we go on a hike in the afternoon?”

“Yes,” the father replied.

“And swimming; can we go in the lake and swim? It is warm enough now that it is July,” begged the son.

“Yes,” said a smiling dad.

“And maybe go fishing, too?” queried the son.

“Yep,” nodded the father.

It seemed a hundred years before the weekend arrived to the boy. The anticipation was as great as waiting for the arrival of Santa Claus at Christmas. The boy had never been so excited. Plans were made. The little boy went to bed early on Friday evening to be well rested for Saturday’s events.

After the boy was asleep Friday night the father received a telephone call. It was a business associate. He had an opening in a golf foursome that same Saturday morning as the planned picnic. The friend knew how hard the father had been trying to meet this potential business client. He knew there was the potential for hundreds of thousands of dollars in business every year.

The temptation was too great. The father said yes to the golf invitation.

Saturday morning arrived. The little boy woke up to the sound of the family car starting. He watched from his upstairs window. He sees his father putting gold clubs in the car’s trunk.

Tears streamed down the boy’s face. He follows the car backing out of the driveway and then disappearing down the street. He starts crying. His mother hears the crying and races to his room. She tries explaining where father has gone and why.

The boy screams, “But father promised!”

Have you ever made your customers feel like the little boy? Have you ever told them something and then failed to deliver?

When you tell your customer you’ll do something, they take it as a promise.

Make sure you only promise what you can deliver. You don’t want your customers to experience the same disappointment as the little boy. Like the little boy, they don’t want to hear your excuses for failing to deliver what you promised.

The Customer Care Guy’s Tip – Only Promise What You Can Deliver

Written by: Jimmie Aaron Kepler, The Customer Care Guy

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Tell the Customer What You Are Going to Do – The Next Step

The Customer Care Guy episode nine, written by Jimmie Aaron Kepler, The Customer Care Guy.

The Customer Care Guy ’s Tip – Tell the Customer What You Are Going to Do – The Next Step

Let’s face it; we have all had bad customer service experiences. Like me, I bet you can recall the details of every instance of bad service. If you are like most people you probably told anyone who would listen about your dreadful experience.

The average customer will tell many people of a bad experience. That’s the type of word of mouth advertising we do not want.

One way to avoid painful misunderstandings is to tell the customer what you are going to do. Make sure they understand the next steps in the process.

Here’s a checklist to help:

1. Recap in summary form what has been discussed.
2. Ask the customer if your understanding is correct.
3. Tell them your name and that you are the person responsible for resolving the issue.
4. Tell the customer any requirements they have. Examples would be:
   1. What paper work or documentation do they need to provide?
   2. What format is the paper work or documentation needed? Electronic or paper?
   3. When is the paper work or documentation due?
   4. Contact information if they need help, have questions, or need an extension?
5. Tell them what to expect from you.
   1. Will you acknowledge receipt of the paper work or documentation?
   2. How long will it take to process?
   3. What you they expect to receive from you and when?
   4. How is notification handled when it is completed? The is a great touch point for a courtesy contact of the customer.
   5. Contact information if they have questions or if they feel you are too slow and need a status update.

Having a road map to help the customer understand the next steps is a great way to create goodwill. The customer has confidence when they have an understanding of the process. Knowing by name a contact person who is responsible for managing their issue is a key ingredient to world-class customer service. You can give this even if the work is assigned to someone else. The name you give is the one managing the incident or case.

Follow through on all promises. A great plan requires execution. Failure to follow through will lose all the great service and goodwill you work so hard to create.

The Customer Care Guy ’s Tip – Tell the Customer What You Are Going to Do – The Next Step.

Written by: Jimmie Aaron Kepler, The Customer Care Guy

Taking Short-cuts/Not Asking for the Sale is Bad Customer Service.

Taking short-cuts/not asking for the sale is bad customer service.

Let me share with my recent experience of receiving poor customer service along with the lessons learned from my situation. Here’s my story. On a recent Saturday morning my car battery died. It was the original equipment battery that came with the car. Let’s face it, car batteries die. My story is the service or lack of good services I received from a garage that has worked on my vehicles for fifteen years. During those years, I have paid them over $10,000 for both routine maintenance and major repairs on more than a half-dozen vehicles I have owned.

In the thirty days before, my battery died my car had been in their shop three times. The first time it was there my engine had shut-off when I was driving down the highway. It had happened one other time about a week earlier, as well. In both instances, I only turned the key and restarted the car. I asked them to check the fuel and electrical system to see what was happening. They found nothing.

About ten days later I was back to have for my annual state inspection. They inspected the car and sent me on my way.

My third visit was just a week before the battery failed. This time I was in for an oil change. When the car was ready I noticed, they had not washed the windshield, and windows like they usually do when I get oil changed. I also found they had not vacuumed my car. The complimentary cleaning of the interior is one of the services they provide that make them special as well as make their higher prices more tolerable.

Here is why I got upset this time. I realized they had failed to use their battery tester during my previous visits. Normally, when I was in for routine service or major repairs they would test the battery. If there were issues, they would let me know. They would attach a copy of the battery test to the invoice for their records. I had them pull my records. They had not tested my battery my battery my last three visits.

I addressed the lack of testing with the shop foreman and then the owner. I was correct. They had failed to test my battery and had not provided their normally complimentary services. I asked why it was not tested. I received the excuse that they had made a conscious decision due to the increased workload to service customers faster by not testing the battery or cleaning the car. They equated better service with handling a higher volume of customers instead of providing their past quality service.

The results of their actions caused me to get stranded for over an hour while I waited for assistance. They also missed out on selling me a battery weeks earlier. If they had tested and then told me the battery would fail soon, I would have bought a new one immediately.

I believe their short-cut contributed to my being stranded with a dead battery. They also missed out on creating good-will. Most of all they are now at risk of losing me and my extended family as well as my friends as customers.

I now ask if they have tested my car battery. I don’t want to risk getting stranded.

The Customer Care Guy’s Tip – Taking short-cuts/not asking for the sale is bad customer service.

FREE DOWNLOAD of a .pdf file of “TCCG #8: Taking Short-cuts/Not Asking for the Sale is Bad Customer Service”

Written by: Jimmie Aaron Kepler, The Customer Care Guy

It’s a Joy to Help

The Customer Care Guy episode seven, written by Jimmie Aaron Kepler, The Customer Care Guy.

The Customer Care Guy’s Tip  – Your attitude should be “It’s a joy to help”.

I do technical customer service and support by choice, not chance. There are other jobs and tasks I could do instead. However, I enjoy serving people and not being a servant to a computer server.

Years ago I decided customer service was a mindset. I could choose to give poor, average, or great customer service to my clients. My attitude toward them was not dependent upon how nice or demanding they were toward me. I believe everyone needs the same level of service I would give my mother or my spouse. I learned a long time ago that rarely is the client or users reaction to me personal. I should give my best. The result is they’ll get great service and reflect a more positive attitude back toward me. I truly believe this. I have experienced it.

Colossians 3:23 in the King James Version of the Bible reads, “And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men;”. You may ask what a Bible verse has to do with customer service. My thought is we need to realize that our role is serving the customer. When we give our best it has a positive reflection on us, our coworkers and management, and our company. If your life is guided by religious belief then “to God be the glory”.

Remember you not only hold the key to the type of experience the customer has, but you hold the key to the way you react to your customers.

I’ll be honest and admit not all customers are a joy to help. Some customers can become a major challenge. When the customer is a challenge to help it is time to give the extra effort and “love them from where they are to where they need to be”. By that, I mean I double my efforts to take care of them. I make sure in spite of their bad attitude that I am the point of sunshine in their day. I make sure their issue is handled to mutual satisfaction. I do not let them get to me. I enjoy the challenge of helping them get from where they are to where they need to be.

You can’t make everything right for everyone. You can manage how you react to them. You can do your best to make sure they have a good experience. Just maybe when their issue is resolved you might join me in telling them, “It’s a joy to help”.

The Customer Care Guy’s Tip  – Your attitude should be “It’s a joy to help”.

Free download of a .pdf file of “TCCG #7: It’s Always a Joy to Help”.

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Written by: Jimmie Aaron Kepler, The Customer Care Guy

Allow the Customer to Have a Good Experience.

The Customer Care Guy’s Tip – Allow the Customer to Have a Good Experience. What is a purchaser’s experience when they have a customer service issue with your company? Is the issue handled to a mutually acceptable resolution? Is the patron’s experience a good one or one of frustration? Is your customer left with a good experience?

Most businesses policies (the why) and procedures (the how) are bountiful. Many times the regulations exist because once upon a time someone had good intentions. Our fairy tale like intent can turn into a nightmare. Policies designed to help our customers can morph into a procedural obstacle course of frustration.

We need to take a step back and look at the real reason for the policies in place and at the procedures for implementing said policies. It is not uncommon on careful analysis to come to the realization that our processes supply our needs while forgetting about the desires of our customers.

When customer’s needs take second place, they receive second class service. Fortunately, the situation is correctable. Here are a few simple steps to help make the service better.

1. Ask your customers what their experience is like to work with you. Is it good? Is dealing with you a painful, cumbersome experience?
2. Use a secret or mystery shopper to rate their experience with your business.
3. Go undercover to find out for yourself what the experience is like dealing with your company. Will you like the answers you learn?
4. Many times a good reference point on the level of customer care your company gives is found in how you are treated by your computer support people.

You hold the key to a customer’s experience when they have a customer service issue with your company.  You can make sure the issue is handled to a mutually acceptable resolution. You can ensure the customer’s experience is not one of frustration. You are the one who can allow the customer with a good experience.

The Customer Care Guy’s Tip – Allow the Customer to Have a Good Experience.

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Written by: Jimmie Aaron Kepler, The Customer Care Guy

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Respect Your Customer By Respecting Their Time.

The Customer Care Guy’s Tip – Give Your Customer Respect by Respecting Their Time.

The late comedian Rodney Dangerfield had a catchphrase, “I get no respect”. If your customers feel they get no respect you’ll soon be out of a job. One way you can show respect to your customers is by honoring their time.

Today people are busier and busier than just twenty or thirty years ago. People are over scheduled. They work more hours now than ever before.

The last time I checked we still have only twenty-four hours in a day. Yet today people multitask working from home in the evenings and even checking email and text messages from home and when they are out shopping.

Time is valuable. That is why people get unhappy when they think someone is wasting or intruding on their time.

When I make an outbound service call or call back to the customer, I ask them if this is a good time for them. I ask this question even when I have an appointment with them. Why do I do this? Situations change. You can listen to the background activity if you are calling someone on the phone for clues. You can tell if they are busy and stressed. You can offer to call back if the timing is wrong. You can suggest they call you when it is a better time.

Other times you provide face to face service with a client. Never forget they come to us needing us to accomplish something for them.  When they arrive they want assistance now. They want everything solved on their schedule. Most of all they do not want to be made to wait.

You know what slow or bad service is like. Have you ever walked away because the person is just too slow? I have.  This is especially frustrating if it is taking too long for a job that should be quickly and easily handled.

You would think since we all are busy and all have experienced slow service it would be easy to remember to be not slow. Don’t do it too your customers! This includes how long someone waits on the telephone.

I find it easy to tell when someone is getting impatient. You should be able to decide that as well. If they are looking at their watches, you know you are probably guilty of doing things too slowly!

You need to put yourself in your customer’s shoes. Avoid chit-chat or small talk when possible. Sure, both are good to build rapport with the customer, but just shooting the breeze wastes time for this client and those waiting in a physical line or call queue. It’s okay to talk to your customer about their concerns and how you make them whole.

Never forget the great customer service is about putting your customers ahead of your needs. One way you do this is to respect their time. Respecting their time is

• Quickly identifying their needs
• Staying on task
• Seeing things from their point of view
• Solving their concerns the first time
• Avoiding transferring the customer to someone else
• Taking ownership of their concerns

When you do the above items in a timely manner, you show respect for your customer. This will build customer loyalty. Customer loyalty adds to your profits. And … you’ll never have a customer say, “I get no respect”.

The Customer Care Guy’s Tip – Give Your Customer Respect by Respecting Their Time.

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Written by: Jimmie Aaron Kepler, The Customer Care Guy

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