Customer Service Standards

When answering an inbound call or making an outbound call, Member Services Associates are expected to offer a warm and welcoming greeting, maintain a professional tone of voice, tactful demeanor, use professional word choices, engage in active listening skills, and tact. When closing each and every call, thank the caller, as applicable - for their time, express appreciation for their business, and summarize what was done for the Member. Use the appropriate closing greeting and let the caller hang up first.

1. We will answer 95% of phone calls in three rings or less, while in the Phone Queue.

2. We will respond to all voicemails within 4 hours during normal business hours.

3. We will identify ourselves when we answer inbound calls and use the customer's first name to personalize the call.

4. We will listen to the caller’s request and assist the caller accordingly.

5. If we cannot assist the caller, we will take detailed notes on the customer's request and handoff to the proper team member. If a live transfer is warranted, before transferring the call, we will obtain the caller’s permission and provide the caller with the name and extension number of the person who will be helping the caller.

6. We will obtain the caller’s permission before placing the call “on hold” by asking and waiting for a response before initiating the hold function.

7. We will end the conversation in a courteous and professional way by thanking the caller. We will wait for the caller to hang up first.

8. We will notify our customers that someone is unavailable by saying, “He/She is unavailable. Is this an urgent issue or may I take a message?”

9. We will follow up all phone conversations with an email outlining what was discussed on the call and the next steps, if applicable.

10. We will log call notes on the case after each phone call to ensure all customer interactions are available to internal staff.

Greeting Customers and Handling Requests

Opening Greeting

When members call in, always answer with enthusiasm and a smile. Remember to state your name first before engaging with the caller.

“Good morning (afternoon, etc), thank you for calling AdvisoryCloud, this is <your name>, may I have your name please?” (Gives Name) - Great, how are you today?/How’s your day going? “Thank you, member first name, how may I assist you today?” - Use your judgment for upset customers. If multiple members with similar names or difficulty finding them “Could you please confirm the email address associated with your profile?”

Actively listen to the Customer:

Once the member verifies their identity, listen carefully to the reason why they called AdvisoryCloud today:

• Utilize your active listening skills when they disclose why they called in today.

• Listen to the specifics and their tone to adjust your response.

• If the member has a lot to say or seems frustrated - have a pen and paper handy to take notes on what their concerns are so they do not have to repeat themselves and ensure they feel heard.

• Once they are done explaining why they called in, you will need to conduct your research to effectively resolve the ticket with the customer.

Placing the member on hold tactfully

Before getting into the key areas you need to research a member, let's talk about the most effective ways to place a member on hold while conducting your research.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Never place a member on hold longer than 2 mins without checking in and offering an alternative way of communication in lieu of waiting for you to conduct your research.

3 Ways to Effectively Place a Customer On Hold

• ASK

  1. Question A: “May I please place you on hold for 2 minutes?” before you subject them to your upbeat super awesome hold music. If they say no, help them understand why you’ll be placing them on hold. Or, if they don’t want to be put on hold, don’t put them on hold at all and allow them to hear what is going on in the background. ALSO–if you tell the customer you’re placing them on hold for a specific time, such as 2 minutes in the example above, set a timer to make sure you follow through.

  2. Question B: “If we’re disconnected, what’s the best number I can call you back on?” Things happen. Calls drop. It bites. But, having a number to reach them as soon as the call slips away is the absolute best thing you could do.

• CHECK-IN

If the issue is advanced and you’re not sure how to handle it, and the hold time clock is ticking and your customer is waiting on the other end for your return. The 2-minute rule always seems to be a decent amount of time to check in with your customer. Ideally, it’s less than 2 minutes, but if it will be longer, set a timer to check in with your customer every 2 minutes they are on hold.

• EXPRESS THANKS

1. There are better things to do than wait on hold, so make sure you express how thankful you are to the customer for waiting as you find the answer to their problem. A simple, yet genuine, “Thanks for waiting!” acknowledges you are appreciative of the time they spent listening to our hold music.

2. Even placing a customer on hold briefly makes or breaks the customer experience. There’s nothing wrong with a little hold time as long as you make sure you are doing it right!

Prompt, helpful, and professional email reply service is invaluable. Below are the Customer Service Standards when responding to customers via email (case).

1. We will respond to inbound cases (emails) within 8 hours during normal business hours.

2. We will respond to high-priority emails Case Types and Case Reasons within 8 hours during normal business hours.

3. We will update our e-mail notification message when we will be out of the office for an extended period of time (full day or more). We will indicate our expected return date and indicate a contact person (if applicable).

4. We will utilize the email templates as framework for applicable responses and personalize and customize the response based on the customer's specific need.

5. We will provide clear and effective written communication to the customer.

Prompt, helpful, and professional email reply service is invaluable. Below are the Customer Service Standards when responding to customers via email (case).

1. We will respond to live chat cases within 5 minutes.

2. We will always start by introducing ourselves.

3. We will commit to resolving the ticket with as least interactions as possible.