Chapter 3

Chapter Three

Apply Your Best Listening Skills

Customer Service, 5ePaul R. Timm 2

© 2011, 2008, 2005, 2001 Pearson Higher Education,

Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. • All Rights Reserved.

Calvin Coolidge said:

“No man ever listened himself out of a job.”




Hearing differs from listening

Hearing is a purely physiological activity

Listening involves the physiological process, but it also involves the psychological processing of the sounds




SALES PERSON: Hi, I’m Jerry. Welcome to Cell Phone Kingdom. How can I help you today Mr. . . . ?

The Way It Is . . . How Can I Help You? Help Me? Try Listening!




DON’T TUNE ME OUT-

Three factors complicate the listening processInternal elements

Environmental elements

Interactional elements




Read page 72, Looking on the InsideAnd take the self test.

What was the average over all the questions if you assign a 1 to Almost Never and a 5 to almost always?




Internal elements include

Ability to receive the sounds produced by another speaker

Referents for the sounds being produced




Environmental elements include

Our individual listening capacity (500 words per minute!)

The presence of noise (“white noice)

The use, or misuse, of gatekeepers (some managers use as a buffer FROM the public…)




Interactional elements include

Self-centeredness

Self-protection




What was Sparky’s secret (pg. 44?) How did she foster trust?




To be a better listener, avoid poor listening behaviors




Faking attention

The “wide asleep listener”

Eyes on speaker, mind elsewhere

Automatic nodding

Commit yourself to the conversation




What is in a face?

What’s being communicated in a face? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Facial_Action_Coding_System




Changing channels

Tuning out

Switching between the speaker and your own thoughts

Be patient and listen




Listening only for facts

Listen for feelings, impressions, and emotions

Listen for what they are not saying

People buy based on emotions and feelings

Go beyond the facts and words




Gender Difference?

Are Men from ______ and Women from _____?




Interrupting/Impatience

We want the speaker to get to the point

We interrupt for clarification

We want information immediately

Be patient and wait for the speaker to finish




To improve listening effectiveness, take positive steps to better listening




Solicit clarification

Clarify tactfully

Don’t figure it out on your own

Don’t guess or interpret

Don’t worry about sounding uninformed

Take the time and make the effort to understand




Use counter-attitudinal advocacy (CAA)

Take the other person’s position

Restate the position that is counter to your own

Defend that position

Ask if your interpretation is correct

If not, try again




Of all the sources of information we have when dealing with customers, listening is the most important.

Chapter 3

Education

Transcript of Chapter 3