Tech Speak
By Ramy Mousa
Imagine that you invite someone over to your house and when they arrive, they start talking to you in a completely different language. You’d probably be confused, maybe even uncomfortable because you have no clue what’s going on — right? That’s how your customers feel when you use too much technical speak and industry jargon during your service calls!
Here are five helpful guidelines to follow so you can connect with customers and communicate with them in a language that’s just as comfortable for you as it is for them:
- Keep things simple and basic, avoiding industry words and acronyms that are unfamiliar to the customer.
- Be polite and courteous, asking questions but also letting the customer talk. Most techs don’t realize that if they just let the customer tell them what’s going on, it will actually shorten their troubleshooting time because the customer will give them a lot of the information they need to know.
- If a customer has a confused look on his or her face, you’ve gone too far with the technical information. Be situationally aware and read the customer’s body language.
- Using metaphors and relating what you’re talking about to something the customer will understand is a great tool. For example, you can explain that changing a system’s air filter is like changing the engine filter in a car — just as a car engine needs a clean filter to breathe, so does an HVAC system!
- You can test whether you’re communicating effectively with your customer by asking them if they understand or having them repeat what you’ve said in their own words. If they’re not on the right track, try to break things down further or correct them using even simpler terms.
Taking the time and extra effort to properly educate the customer and make them feel comfortable with your work and recommendations goes a long way. If you can effectively communicate with a customer, you’ve got a customer for life.
Become fluent in the language of customers by sharpening your skills with our Listening to Your Customers and Developing Strong Customer Relationships online classes.
Guest blogger Ramy Mousa is a technical trainer for HVAC Learning Solutions.
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Did you know that HVAC Learning Solutions offers a Customer Service learning path for Technicians? For more tips and techniques to hone your customer service skills, check out the Online Learning Path for Customer Service.