May 31, 2023 – Laurie Brown is a communications coach and customer service expert who has worked in a wide range of sectors for over 30 years. From working with bull semen salesmen to teaching customer service skills to the government of the kingdom of Bahrain, she has literally seen it all.
Brown recently sat down with Repertoire Magazine to discuss the difference between customer service and the customer experience, where companies get the idea of the customer experience right and wrong, and how companies can improve their communication processes.
More than likely, all of the challenges your company is facing stem from poor communication habits and processes within the organization. Whether it’s a break in the communication lines from the top to the bottom or simply due to the use of outdated tools, fixing those communications problems internally will help you to better communicate externally.
Internal communication is what sets up the external communication for success. It’s impossible to have one without the other, and anyone who has figured out how to make the best of a bad situation is doing too much work for one person. Communication is intrinsically linked to the customer experience, which makes it a critical resource for your organization.
“Communication is the lifeblood of any organization,” Brown said. “You can’t have good external communication if you don’t have good internal communication, and you can’t have great external customer service unless you have great internal customer service.”
Just by rephrasing the way you answer questions from customers can greatly improve your communication processes. “When I teach customer service, what I’m really teaching is persuasive communication,” she said. “That’s all customer service is – good communication. Am I saying things in a way that isn’t people-focused? Do I say things like, ‘Well, that’s our policy,’ or, ‘Can’t do that,’ instead of saying, ‘Here’s what we can do.’”
Read more in the latest issue of Repertoire Magazine.