April 23, 2014
It was a rather slow morning. There were no emails, no phone calls and no chats. Ruhi decided to discuss with me an issue that happened to her and another intern. It is that time of the semester where students are in a state of high stress due to exams, lack of sleep and caffeine. When this happens, students become extremely agitated at very small issues and their patience is very thin. Yesterday, Ruhi was being shadowed by another intern. The phone rang and this intern picked up the phone. On the other line was a female student who was extremely upset and frustrated that she only printed two pages but was charged $12 towards her quote. Ruhi asked me “what is the first thing you are going to ask?”. I did not know how to answer this question until it dawned on me. In order to verify what is being said, we were able to look up that information as consultants. We can check if what was being said is true and to properly diagnose the issue.
Ruhi confirmed that that is what she did. From that on, Ruhi noticed that what the user was saying was correct. There was not much that she could of done because the user was in the health science side of the campus and we did not have access to the printers there other than submit a trouble shoot ticket and hope that the quota gets reimbursed.
Although there was an issue with the system, Ruhi wanted to highlight the attitude of individuals that I may encounter through my time working at the Student Help Desk.
Here is a list of Do’s and Don’ts of how to handle a frustrated client that I learned from today’s Shadowing experience:
DO be patient- A lot of the times angry students and/or faculty will calls just to talk about everything and anything that is bothering them.
DO listen- Listening is a great asset. There are certain things to be picked up when a person is talking and things that the person is not saying. Listening decreases the barrier between the user and the consultant and provide a more understanding environment even through the phone.
DO offer help- Even if you know there’s nothing much you can do, help the client to the best of your abilities. Even if it is just to reassure them that a staff will look into the issue and that someone will get back to them.
DO ask questions- This will help you dig through the verbal vomit and to the issue that is at hand.
DO be polite- Smile while talking even though the client is being very disrespectful. It will keep your mood sane.
DO give your undivided attention to the client- This is similar to listening however this specifically means. DO NOT MULTITASK. The client can see it (walk in help) and hear it (phone call).
DON’T raise your voice- the client is not arguing with you, s/he is only expressing their frustration
DON’T give an attitude- it will make things worse.
DON’T ignore them- no one likes to be ignored especially if they are trying to get help.
DON’T be vague- this makes your job even harder and makes the client even more frustrated
DON’T talk over them-this is not your time to tell the client about your life story. It is your time to help them.
DON’T take things personally- The client doesn’t even know you personally (hopefully) so don’t take anything personally.