Chapter 20 Customer Support, Communication, and Professionalism 873
sharing knowledge and reinforcing good work products. If you are not willing
to function as a team member, then you will most likely not be a member of the
team very long.
Helping team members
You must be willing to do more than just what you have been assigned. For
example, a collection of repair tickets might be divided between team members.
Each member is assigned four tickets each. If you finish your repairs before
anyone else, you should not assume that you are done for that day. You should
see if you could help someone else with his or her assigned work.
Employers do not like to see employees that are doing just enough to get
by or wasting company time. Employers love to see employees going above
and beyond their assigned duties. When you finish your assigned tasks, you
should immediately inform your supervisor and volunteer to help other team
members with their assigned duties. This will impress your employer and also be
appreciated by fellow team members. Remember, the company goal is to repair all
the customers’ computers, not just the ones assigned to you that particular day.
Summary
✔ A help desk or call center is usually the first contact point for service.
✔ A help desk can belong to a single company or be part of a call center.
✔ A call center typically provides support for more than one company or
product.
✔ Level-one support is the initial contact with technical support.
✔ Level-two support is support provided by a person with more expertise than
someone in level one.
✔ Level-three support is typically provided by a company outside the level-one
and level-two location.
✔ Avoid using computer jargon or computer acronyms when talking to
customers.
✔ Body language says more to a customer than the actual spoken words.
✔ Smile when dealing with customers, even when on the phone.
✔ Always maintain good eye contact with a customer and avoid distractions.
✔ A customer makes an attitude judgment of your character based on their
perception of how you meet their needs.
✔ Listening is the most important communication skill listed by employers.
✔ Sarcasm is never appropriate when working with customers.
✔ Keep e-mail messages short and to the point.
✔ Never send inappropriate material in e-mail.
✔ Avoid large e-mail attachments.
✔ Keep the work environment professional.
✔ When handling angry customers, allow them to vent.
✔ Respond to angry customers with a calm, reassuring voice.