Service Management Cornerstone: Communication with Your Customers

Communication should be the most obvious thing that we get right, but it’s often the last thing we get right. Especially with our customers.  Why? It’s mainly because it requires a few ingredients that we don’t always think of. Yet when it comes to service management, communication is undoubtedly the cornerstone to delivery of great service.

Through the lens of a service provider, we observe that customers want 5 things when we’re communicating with them. These are: meaningful content, clarity of the message, care in delivery, sensitivity to culture, and attention to criticality of the message delivery.

Content is everything.

Content.

What customers want is content that they care about. They live in a world where there’s nothing that’s more valuable than time and wasting it perusing unnecessary content frustrates them.

What to avoid: Unnecessary information, excessive details, and the inappropriate use of the channel. Don’t waste your customer’s time with content they don’t care about. They will ignore your future content and miss its importance as a result.

Keeping it simple is a solid approach.

Clarity.

Brene Brown says it best, “Clear is kind. Unclear is unkind.” Customers yearn for clarity. By this I mean using the simplest language and grammar possible. Short, succinct sentences, and uncomplicated words work best. Think of the like recruiters reading a resume- they will give it a 30 second scan, and if it lacks clarity, it will go to the bottom of the pile or get deleted. If they’re in the audience receiving it visually/verbally, they will tune out. Pictures are worth a thousand words, but less may be more with this aid. Err on the side of precision, editing and re-editing for clarity.

What to avoid: Emails that are longer than 2 paragraphs and without any bullets and spacing. PowerPoints that are excessively wordy, lacking imagery/charts/diagrams where necessary, and instant messages that don’t introduce the why you’re reaching out.

Build trust by caring to be respectful and kind.

Care.

Caring about the words you use, the tone, the body language even is very important in delivering good communication to your customers. Customers always want to be respected and handled with professionalism, so taking time to be appropriate with language and style is core to good communication.

What to avoid: Inappropriate, excessively casual or slang language in any communication channel; check yourself for this or allow a colleague/manager to review before sending/delivering. Do not use cynical, sarcastic terms or language- it never goes well with customers. Also don’t forget the appropriate use of titles, they matter. And most importantly, never send a message when you’re emotionally hijacked- just wait. If you delay the communication and give yourself time to re-evaluate, you’ll likely find a way to improve the messaging, or resort to other ways to achieve your purpose.

It's all about people, from the beginning to the end!

Culture.

Someone smart once told me that “culture is the behavior that senior leaders either display or tolerate.” I find this to be a very realistic definition. Every organization has its own culture, and within the organization there are sub-cultures. Understanding how your customer expects and likes to be treated, or generally acts will help you deliver appropriate communication. Ex, if their culture is to use email sparingly and in-person communication pervasively, deviating from this will be ineffective.

What to avoid: Don’t dismiss cultural norms. A department that prefers handouts of a presentation at a meeting will perceive your delivery differently than if they are comfortable having the content. Don’t assume a one-size-fits all way of communicating works in every department; communication is personal. Take the time to ask what works for them and get feedback often to ensure you’re on the right track.

Time sensitivity, a key!

Criticality

Knowing when to communicate is just as important as to who and how. In fact, it may be even more important at times. I love the expression, “bad news doesn’t get better with time” as it denotes the importance of respecting people’s need to know, even if it’s not the best news.

What to avoid: Holding on to information that should’ve been delivered or communicating information too early are both issues. Keeping those who need to know continuously informed as well as those who should be out of the know excluded can be tricky. In this case, erring on the side of caution and checking in with your leadership or trusted partners is best.

Communication, the more you put into improving it, the more your customers will appreciate and trust you.