Today I heard a wonderful example of combining great customer service with “fun with a serious intent”
Val at Beyond the Numbers was telling me how her team had realised that many of their conversations with clients include jargon that we expect clients to understand. Phrases like “we’ll journal that in your accounts” or “we reconcile your bank”.
So, they have a “Jargon Monkey” – an actual toy monkey that the team are allowed to throw at any other member of the team if they are speaking “accountants speak” or jargon on a call to a client.
Not only does that make a bit of fun in the office, but more importantly it makes the whole team aware of the language they are using.
We know that clients often question value. And we also know that when this happens it’s because they don’t understand exactly what we are delivering and the difference we are making – whether that be saving them time, saving or earning them money, or taking away a stress associated with their business. Our language is the way to explain this. When we ‘reconcile a bank” what exactly are we delivering? We are giving them confidence that when they look at their live data on their cloud accounting package the figures shown in the bank account are true, and therefore spending decisions can be made based on that number. If you didn’t reconcile the bank then their picture of their income and spending would be wrong and they would be making decisions “blind”. That would not be great business sense!
When we are doing their payroll … we are removing the hassle of having to keep up to date with current legislation, ensuring their team are paid correctly and on time, helping them manage pension contributions and ensuring that the correct tax is collected to be paid over to HM Revenue and Customs. All of which saves them time and stress.
By explaining your services this way you are not only explaining the value but you are also thinking more like the client, and by doing this you can often spot other ways you can add value, by offering additional services, or by making the customer experience extra special.
What phrases do you and your team use with clients that you “assume” they understand? How could you explain things in a way that demonstrates value?
What fun way can your team come up with to remind themselves to explain the value of the services they are providing rather than using our “accountants speak”?