Working with Citizens:
Delivering Great Service to Residents
and Customers
Prepared and Presented By
Alan Vandehaar
Iowa State University Extension & Outreach
July 16, 2013
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Topics for Today
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Customer Service - Customer Satisfaction
What are the barriers to good service?
What is our attitude? The office attitude?
What does the customer want?
Dealing with difficult people – behaviors
Difficult situations in city government
Working toward customer satisfaction
Building a service culture
Who are our customers?
• Important to recognize all our customers:
• Internal
– _______________
– _______________
• External
– _____________________________
– ______________________________
Unique aspect of customer service in
local government
• Contrasting private businesses and local
governments, in delivering customer service
• How are citizens going to their city hall for
service, different from a consumer going to a
private business?
Unique aspects…
• If I don’t like the products/service I get at my
city hall, what choice do I have? Where else
can I go for my water supply?
• Citizens may be seen as ‘owners’ of the city,
with vested interest, can’t go elsewhere for
city services
• Citizens may have an ‘entitlement’ view that
city staff ‘work for them’.
What would people say about the
service provided by your city
office (city hall)?
Service & Satisfaction: defined
• Customer Service – provision of service to
customers before, during, after a purchase;
Designed to enhance ________ __________
• Customer Satisfaction – measure of how well
a product or service meets a customer’s
____________; the __________ that service
has met the customer’s expectations
What are the barriers to
providing excellent customer
service?
Barriers to Excellent Service
a short list
1. Service not identified as a ______, no explicit
policy that good service is important
2. No regular discussion by staff on ____ service
situations, training, goals, etc.
3. ___________, unmotivated staff
4. Not __________ to the customer
5. City may not view itself as needing to give
good service, unlike a private business
Payoff from Excellent Service
For customers:
- Get what they ______
- Achieve customer ____________,
expectations met
Payoff from Excellent Service
For you, your staff at city hall:
- Satisfaction that customers served well
- More pride, value in your work; enjoy work
more
- Feel appreciated by customers/citizens
- Creates a more desirable work environment
- Should recognize and reward those who give
great service
Payoff from Excellent Service
For you, your staff at city hall:
- Satisfaction that customers served well
- More pride, value in your work; enjoy work
more
- Feel appreciated by customers/citizens
- Creates a more desirable work environment
- Should recognize and reward those who give
great service
Payoff from Excellent Service
• For the city (city hall):
- Creates better work environment
- Creates a enviable reputation, respect and
more professional environment
- Make it a more desirable place to work
- Is cost effective with less mistakes
Dealing with Citizens/Customers
• What are customers’ expectations?
• When you, as a customer, have a problem
with government or a business, what do you
want them to do? What are your
expectations?
Service
• What would the customer like from you?
- To _______ to them
- ________ their questions
- _______ their problem (as quickly as possible)
Customer Service Standards:
Specific, Measureable, Reasonable
• What are your office customer service
standards? List:
How do you measure your customer service
standards? (to know if we are improving over
time) – measurements:
Service Standards
Basic service expectations:
1. _____ Smile or Frown
2. Have ______________ in view
3. G_____ the customer, ask ‘how can I _____
you’ in a helpful tone of voice
4. Everyone answers phone with your adopted
____________
5. Apologize if you made a ________
Example of a Service Standard
http://www.rockvillemd.gov/government/custserv.htm
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Standards Covering All Customer Interactions
“Customers have a right to expect ...”
Courtesy, respect, honesty and professionalism.
That the staff person will listen to their
request/question, ask for clarification if
necessary, and provide complete, knowledgeable,
accurate, precise information regarding their
inquiry.
• The staff person will make a reasonable effort to
provide information about the City and, as
appropriate, other outside agencies related to
their department’s/division’s function.
For great service environment,
two key factors are essential:
1. People , trained, with good _______and skills
who ______ to work with other_______
2. Procedures (policies) on how to
________customer service questions, issues,
known by staff and _________and discussed
by staff from time to time
What you can do to build a great
service environment
1. Give each customer your full attention
2. Take their issue seriously. Customer service is
not about you – it’s about the customer
3. Your work is important, you should take pride
in doing a good job. You are helping people
solve problems.
4. Your sincere attitude (empathy) will make the
customer feel you are helping them.
Why do customers get upset
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I_____________
N________ attitudes
Not l_________
R_________
Didn’t ______ _______ as promised
How can we address the reasons
customers get upset?
1. Train staff on importance of customer service
2. Better communication among staff on
customer service information, goals
3. Utilize technology
4. All staff go through orientation and training
on customer service
5. Better communication, coordination in your
department and between departments
6. Clear communication to the public/customers
on which departments do what in city gov. and
clear signage in city buildings to find depts.
7. Good customer service is recognized and
rewarded on regular basis, e.g. monthly,
quarterly.
Difficult Customer Behaviors
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WHAT do we do with --Know-it-alls
Complainers
People who can’t make a decision
Those who run over you to get to someone else
Explosive, dominating personalities
Saboteurs
Strategies to Deal with
Difficult Behaviors
Strategies:
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Stay calm (don’t take it personally)
Let customer vent
Show empathy (recognize other’s feelings)
Restate the problem
Work to find agreement, and a solution, on
the issue
Words to avoid in dealing with
difficult customer behavior
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I _____ do that; we _____ do that
It’s our policy
No, I don’t
You should have
Why didn’t _____
I _____ know
______ have to
Words to use in dealing with
difficult customer behavior
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Here’s what we can do
I understand why you
I can see why
Can
I will find out
The best option, I think
Resolving Problems
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Acknowledge the problem
Apologize, “I’m sorry this happened”
Work on a solution
Tell customer – “ This is what I am doing to
fix the problem”.
5. Follow up with customer (as promised)
Difficult Situations
• Customer calls and is loudly upset at you over
water and sewer rates
• Customer calls and is upset because they
received a different answer from someone
else
• Customer has waited in line for 20 minutes,
then it is discovered they don’t have correct
information with them and will need to come
back
• Negative-attitude people you work with
Consequences of problems
not resolved
• When people have a good service experience
how many people will they tell about it?
• When people have a bad service experience
how many people will they tell about it?
• Reputation of you, the staff , the city
What customers want…
Feel appreciated as a customer
and respected as a person
= Customer Satisfaction
What can you do to build
customer satisfaction?
Three key elements:
- ___________ with customer
- Build/maintain their _____________
- __________ to them
Empathize with customer
• Let customer know you listened and
understand their issue/situation
• You can empathize with their emotion
• You can empathize without agreeing
Build/maintain self-esteem
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Demonstrate interest
Treat them with respect
Use customers name
Don’t waste their time – work effeciently
Be friendly and courteous
Thank them
Listening
• If we listen, demonstrates we are interested in
their issue/problem
• First step in resolving their problem
Your office service ‘team’
• All staff need to buy-in to providing good
customer service.
• Must be office wide priority. Everyone needs
to get on board
• Communicate expectations for good service
• Why is a good team member essential for the
office to provide good service?
Characteristics of a great team
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Positive attitude
Like people
Commitment to providing good service
Knowledge of work and city
Knowledge of bigger picture
Keep it fresh
• How to keep service a top priority every day?
- Regular review of customer service issues,
topics, etc. Same issues come up again?
- Training programs on new service techniques
- Consider recognition, awards for great service
What would you like people to
say about the service they get at
your city hall?
Superior Service Culture
• Superior service is a priority throughout the
city – from city council through all staff.
• Policies and procedures developed and
followed on why and how to deliver good
service
• Regular training on service and follow up on
service standards