Emotional Intelligence and the Customer – David Beaumont

A customer walks into your store. The customer is browsing around the electronics section of the store. You as the service specialist approach the customer and ask, “How can I help you today?” The customer replies, “I’m just looking.” You begin to walk away, but you notice that the customer has a handkerchief and seems to have been crying.

“You ask, is everything ok?” “Can I get you anything?” The customer replies, “No, just having a bad day.” As the customer service professional, what are your next steps with this customer?

I write this blog post to bring attention to something I believe is picking up traction in the world of customer service and customer experience; Emotional Intelligence (EI). What does it mean?

Here are a few definitions and statistics on this: 

If you Google the definition of Emotional Intelligence you will find this: – the capacity to be aware of, control, and express one’s emotions and to handle interpersonal relationships judiciously and empathetically.

From the book Emotional Intelligence (Why it can matter more than IQ)- Daniel Goleman

There is an old-fashioned word for the body of skills that emotional intelligent represents: character.

Character, writes Amitai Etzioni, the George Washington University social theorist is, “the psychological muscle that moral conduct requires.”

Interesting facts about the EI (Emotional Intelligence) 

• A study of over 40 Fortune 500 companies revealed that salespeople with high Emotional Intelligence outperformed those with medium to low EI by 50%.
• Technical programmers who were measured in the top 10% of the Emotional Intelligence competencies were creating new software three times faster than those with lower measurements.
  

• Companies who do a better job of communicating with their employees outperform those who do not, financially. On average a company with an exceptional communications program delivered a 47% greater return to shareholders than the least communicative firms.
• According to JCA Global, an 18% improvement in productivity for senior managers, resulting from emotional intelligence training, would lead to a 150% increase in pre-tax profits.
• A series of studies found that approximately 30% of occupational performance is based on EI.

According to Daniel Goleman, an American psychologist who helped to popularize emotional intelligence, there are five key elements to it: Self-awareness, Self-regulation, Motivation, Empathy & Social skills.
I will highlight on a couple of skills necessary for building emotional intelligence, they are:

• Self Awareness – The ability to correctly understand your own emotions at that moment and understand what your behavior might be at that moment.
• Self Management – The ability to use your awareness of your emotions and easily modify and direct your behavior in a positive way. (Managing the emotional reaction)
• Social Awareness – The ability to get the details correct about the emotions of other people and understand what is really going on.
• Relationship Management – The ability to use your awareness of your emotions and the emotions of other to manage interaction with success. (building a bond)

Being able to connect to a person on an emotional level says a lot about how in tune you are with the big picture of what that customer is going through. It says a lot about yourself that you are able to understand your emotions and filter them in such a way that a smooth interaction happens.

There are four key traits which I believe emotional intelligence allows your customer (both internal and external) to see in you. They include – 

• Empathy
  When you show a sincere caring and understanding of a person’s problem, concern and request. You can truly give a feeling of self-worth to that person. You make them feel valued, important and that you understand them. You genuinely care about what the customer is going through.
• Transparency
  Being open and telling the whole truth about what you can and cannot do for the customer sets the mindset of the customer that they can be worry-free of certain problems or concerns. Upfront honest and clear communication is paramount.
• Sensibleness
  Doing the right thing for your customer is key in keeping a customer. If it makes sense, it should be done so that you are seen in a good light with your customer. This is where walking in the customer’s shoes becomes very important. I always say you know how you like to feel as a customer and how you want to be treated.  Apply that feeling when you interact with the customer.
• Relatability
  When you relate to the customer on a level they understand, you are on your way to building a lasting relationship. Find a something about that customer that you both have in common and talk about it. The initial conversation does not have to be about the sale! If there is common ground between the two of you the sale will come and the customer will not feel pressured.

Thank you for taking the time to read my post. If you have found the information is customer service important please share.

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David Beaumont

Known for delivering outstanding customer support to clients, David Beaumont is a knowledge seeker and results driven visionary who builds relationships with clients and peers by aiding the end-user through training and development tasks. David is a qualified support professional, HDI Certified and holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, Finance from The Ohio State University. He has more than 15 years of experience in customer service, EDI and client support.

Latest posts by David Beaumont (see all)

• 5 Actions that can improve the customer service experience - August 28, 2020
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• Emotional Intelligence and the Customer – David Beaumont - September 26, 2018