Customer needs and problem identification

In business, it is imperative to develop good rapport and build clear lines of communication with customers since that would increase levels of customer satisfaction and retention. If a customer feels that a specific company pays heed to their individual problems, they are more likely to return, thus increasing the overall profitability of the firm (Paul, 2014). The purpose of this report is to provide a guide for communicating with customers, which forms the foundation of healthy and fruitful customer – company relationships (Blazevic et al., 2013). For new employees, interacting with customers can be intimidating at first. Yet, in marketing and advertising organizations like Ogilvy Australia, the entire running of the operations relies on customer. However, this guide serves to familiarize the new employees with communication tactics and solutions to problems that might be encountered while communicating with customers.

Discussion:

Customer needs and problem identification

One comes to realize in due course of time that in marketing, acquiring and retaining customers should be the primary focus of any company. In fact, keeping customers happy and satisfied on a long term basis would positively affect the scalability and longevity of the organization. As such, it can be said that effective communication skills are instrumental when it comes to meeting the unique needs of individual customers (Stein & Ramaseshan, 2016). Every customer with an intention to purchase goods and services from a company would expect premium levels of service. That can be assured only by effectively communicating with the customer.

This would be beneficial for both parties; while the customer would be aware of the company’s stance on matters of concern, the latter would be able to gain better insight into customer needs, demands and expectations. They can align their business goals and objectives accordingly. In the initial stages of the relationship, effective communication would ensure that the services provided by the company are adequate to meet customer needs (Khodakarami & Chan, 2014). With the passage of time, regular and continuous communication with customers would help the company grow and adapt to the evolving needs of customers.

• The employees in charge of customer service should be able to gain clarity into what exactly the customer might be looking for. For instance, if a customer has certain doubts about a specific issue, the customer care executive dealing with him would need to decipher the exact requirements of the customer. This can be done by framing the questions in such a manner that the customer is able to explain his problem clearly. Once the problem has been identified, the employee would also have to keep the customer informed about the measures the company intends to take with respect to the solutions (Naeem, Bilal & Naz, 2013).
• It must be remembered that the relationship with the customer does not end with the provision of the service. The employees are expected to follow up with the customer at regular intervals so as to ensure that the service provided has satisfied customer needs. For instance, if the customer has been facing certain issues, they could communicate the same to the employees who would then take quick actions to solve them. This lays the foundation for successful, long term relationships which lead to customer retention.
• In the highly dynamic environment that marketing companies function in, customer needs are ever changing and constantly evolving. Failure to live up to the changing needs of the customer would affect customer satisfaction levels. Instead, it is imperative to stay in touch with the customers, keep them updated about new services, carry out regular surveys and ensure that customers provide feedback on services provided. This would help the employees anticipate customer needs and expectations as well.

Communication barriers

In marketing services, the customer interactions mostly take place face to face, through telephones, emails and through video chats (Melero, Sese & Verhoef, 2016). In all these instances of communication, chances of misinterpretation and miscommunication are high. The communication process mainly consists of three elements – sender, the message and the recipient. The sender is the person conveying the information whereas the recipient is the person receiving the message. The way the message is communicated plays a key role in how it is perceived (Berger & Iyenger, 2013). Thus, it is mandatory for employees to communicate their messages with clarity so that the customers can understand their point of view. Nevertheless, there are a number of barriers to effective communication with customers. Some of them may be discussed as follows:

• Language barriers in customer communication are common. The employees might not be familiar with the language or the culture of the customers. These are known as semantic barriers. In that case, an escalation procedure would have to be implemented. For instance, there should be a team of employees, who all speak different languages in the customer service team. This would ensure that a wholesome customer service is provided.
• A negative organizational climate, the absence of a proper communication policy and high levels bureaucracy may also act as communication barriers. If a customer has to go through several layers of the company management in order to have their issues addressed and solved, it can leave a negative impression on the customer.
• Personality and perceptual differences are examples of communication barriers as well. When a customer reaches out to an employee, he expects a certain level of service and attention. If the customer care experts appear to be inattentive or indifferent, it would not only leave a negative impression on the customer but also affect his intentions to return (Quintanilla & Wahl, 2015).
• Halo effect is a major communication barrier which most employees have encountered at some point or the other. It must be remembered that using the same communication tactics which worked on one customer might be ineffectual for others. Thus, employees need to be quick, tactful, smart and adaptive when it comes to dealing with customers.
• In face to face meetings, body language, gestures, posture or voice tone can prove to communication barriers. The way a person behaves with the customer, the way he is seated or positioned, his hand movements, his style or manner of speaking and the gestures he exhibits is proof of his intention towards the customer. If the customer perceives the body language of the employee as indifferent or nonchalant, it could have an adverse impact on customer service delivery.

Barriers to effective communication

Role of verbal and nonverbal communication

Verbal communication refers to the utilization of auditory language in order to exchange messages and information. It would involve the use of words and speaking. On the other hand, nonverbal communication is entirely based on wordless cues. When two people are in a mutual space, they are bound to communicate either consciously or subconsciously. Nonverbal communication would include eye contact, body language, hand gestures, posture and facial expressions (Bonaccio et al., 2016).

Verbal communication is a soft skill that every employee must possess. It is not restricted to just speaking; on the contrary, verbal communication refers to the art of effectively conveying messages to the customer (Keyton et al., 2013). Here are some verbal communication skills that employees would need to demonstrate while speaking or interacting with customers:

• Annunciating clearly
• Advising them on their next course of action, with clear details on the path to be undertaken.
• Asking and clarifying
• Anticipating their needs and concerns
• Open ended questions which fuel dialogue
• Assertiveness and patience
• Employees should be able to calm anxious or restless customers by assuring and reassuring them
• Use of concise, precise, crisp and formal language. Verbosity should be avoided at all costs.
• Clear enunciation of words in case of telephonic conversations.
• Planning communication strategies before interacting with customers.
• The ability to receive and accept criticism
• Listening skills
• Refraining from interruption
• Requesting feedback
• Confidence and use of captivating language

Nonverbal communication too plays an important role in customer-employee communications. It is not only important for employees to control their nonverbal behavior (Phutela, 2015). They need to be aware of the nonverbal behavior on part of the customers as well, so as to get better understanding of what the latter actually wants.

• Employees need to be good listeners and focus entirely on the customer and what he is saying. Taking notes and consciously using body language that shows eagerness are examples of nonverbal communication skills (Halberstadt, Parker & Castro, 2013). For example, nodding one’s head, inclining one’s body towards the customer, maintaining eye contact are some favorable non verbal cues.
• Similarly, it is important to keep in mind that facial expressions too are an integral aspect of nonverbal communication. For instance, raised eyebrows, relaxed mouths and smiles are perceived as favorable whereas furrowed brows and wrinkled noses can make the customer feel unwanted and unappreciated. Hand gestures are important as well. The employees should be relaxed and demonstrate natural hand movements, instead of trying to control their gestures. Furthermore, a slouched posture would indicate nonchalance and indifference whereas a straight posture would be more preferable as it would indicate a desire to provide service to the customer (Mandal, 2014).
• Conflict resolution in customer service

When it comes to marketing services, conflict and confrontations are inevitable. It must be remembered that customers and employees might have different opinions on how a service should be delivered. For instance, while planning a marketing campaign, the customer might have his own idea on how to proceed with the campaign whereas the company might have different plans. In such cases conflicts are common. The key is effective resolution of conflicts that have surfaced. Guidelines for conflict resolution would be as follows:

• Employees should allow the customers to talk. The customers are likely to have their own ideas and concepts and should be allowed to express their opinions (Saarijärvi, Karjaluoto & Kuusela, 2013).
• Empathy is instrumental in effective resolution of conflicts. Irrespective of how upset customers are, they would expect a degree of empathy from the employees. It is important to make the customer understand that their feelings complaints have not fallen on deaf ears and that they have been taken into account.
• When it comes to conflict resolution, it is important to be neutral. While the employees are expected to acknowledge the opinions of the customers, they are not supposed to agree or even disagree with the clients in order to avoid further conflicts.
• During conflict management, customers often tend to be tangential. In other words, they tend to deviate from the main issue. It is then the responsibility of the employee to redirect the conversation back to the concerned problem.
• Another important aspect of conflict communication is the response. Irrespective of the tone used by the customer, the employee cannot lose his patience or composure and react in a negative manner.
• Cross cultural communication

While working in the marketing sector, it is expected that the employees would be interacting with customers and clients belonging to different cultures and traditions. Each customer has a different viewpoint and follows a definite set of beliefs which is largely due to cultural differences (Merkin, Taras & Steel, 2014). The diversity management policy at the company dictates that an inclusive working environment must be created, which extends a degree of tolerance and respect for the myriad cultures and traditions that the customers belong to. Failure to take into account the cultural differences in customer service can result in frustration, chaos and confusion.

It is important to think in terms of low context and high context cultures. Countries like Australia are low context cultures, which are characterized by less formalities and attitudes which are explicit, assertive and more direct. However, if Australian employees are interacting with customers belonging to high context cultures, they would have to change their communication styles accordingly. For instance, a more formal communication strategy may have to be adopted (Ang & Van Dyne, 2015). While Australians tend to be more friendly and extroverted, other cultures might find such behaviors unacceptable and overbearing.

Verbal and nonverbal communication skills

Recommended strategies for effective customer communication:

• Communications training is mandatory for new employees. Such training sessions would entail role plays and cross cultural communication, which would educate the new employees about potential challenges and how to solve them. The training sessions would also prepare the employees for all possible situations and the appropriate communication tactics during these events.
• Awareness about nonverbal communication and their implications. Most body gestures, hand movements and facial expressions are involuntary and cannot be controlled. Employees need to be made aware about these nonverbal cues and how they could impact the quality of customer service.
• Scripts and templates can improve quality of customer communication. In marketing, several communications are repetitive and generic. In that case, standard templates or scripts would help employees provide quick and effective customer care. These templates would be tried and tested, and would prevent chances of errors or miscommunication (Stone & Woodcock, 2013).

Conclusion

To conclude, it can be said that communication with customers is a sensitive issue in any organization and due attention must be paid to the various aspects involved in it. For instance, communication is mostly subjective and different people have different perspectives with respect to it. When it comes to communicating with customers, a certain decorum must be maintained. Additionally, it is important to respect individual perspectives, points of view, cultural views and beliefs. As such, the level of customer satisfaction and the customer’s intention to return would depend on their interactions and relationships with the company and its employees.

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