Service Skills

Email communication is a fundamental component of everyday business life. Email is so ubiquitous that it can be easy to forget that it has only been with us since the mid-90s. While most team members know how to send and receive email messages, there are dozens of important nuances which can make the difference between your customers and coworkers getting mediocre service or receiving top of the line treatment. The goal of this series is to present trainees with various workplace email communications challenges and help them to develop the skills and techniques to turn these challenges into opportunities for delivering stellar customer service.

Course Overview

An overview of this series and when to yield to existing organizational policy.

 

The goal of this course is to identify the ways email has impacted how we do business today and show that using the proper skills and techniques can enhance the level of service we provide to our customers.

 

Learning Objectives

Participants who successfully complete this course should be able to demonstrate the ability to:

<ul>
	<li>Explain how email can be used to efficiently deliver excellent customer service to both external and internal customers.</li>
	<li>Explain the importance of adherence to organizational policies whenever a conflict is encountered between those policies and ideas taught in this series of courses.</li>
</ul>

Introduction

Email is an asynchronous method of communication, and while it can be efficient, it's not always the most effective. Sometimes, it may be more beneficial to use a synchronous method of communication. This lesson details the differences between these two styles of communication, and the goal of this course is to help learners determine which to use in various situations.

Learn the difference between synchronous and asynchronous communications.


Synchronous vs Asynchronous

The subject line is often overlooked, but it is an important aspect of your email communication. The tips and reminders in this module will help you to gain maximum value from the subject line of your emails. This course will explain why the subject line matters and show you how to use the subject line to the best advantage when composing an email message.

Learn the importance of the subject line in an email message.


Subject Line

Imagine you receive an email that tries to sound personal to you, but you can see it was sent to 20 other people at the same time. Misuse of the address fields in emails can result in confusion, embarrassment, and annoyance. The goal of this course is to explain the difference between the To, CC and BCC address fields and the proper way to use each of them.

Recognize the difference between the To, CC and BCC address fields and the proper way to use each of them.

Address Fields

When sending emails, little things can mean a lot when it comes to how the recipient perceives your message. This course explains the importance of proper greeting and closing phrases and will help you learn how to compose them.

Understand the reasons why personal greeting and closing phrases can be so important.


Opening and Closing Lines

The structure and tone of your business email can significantly impact the way your message is received. The goal of this course is to help participants learn all the various components of an email message and how to put them all together in the most effective message possible.

Learn the various components of an email message and how to put them together in the most effective message possible.

Composing a Message

Errors in spelling, punctuation and word choice can result in misunderstandings and make a bad impression on the recipient of your email. The goal of this course is to emphasize the importance of proofreading all your email messages before sending them, and to provide some guidance on what common errors to look for.

Understand why it is important to proofread outgoing email messages before they are sent.


Proofreading

Your emails will be less effective if people don't bother to read the whole thing. In today’s attention deficit society, brevity is important. This course will explain why “less is more” when it comes to the length of an email message and give you tips on getting your messages read.

Recognize why shorter email messages are better when it comes to communicating your point.


Message Length

How can you sound confident and avoid using weak and wimpy wording in your email messages? The goal of this course is to provide an understanding of why some words are better than others when you have a message to communicate. It’s intended to help trainees learn to identify words they should avoid and learn the more appropriate replacements for them.

Learn the types of words that are considered “weak and wimpy” and why this is so.


Writing With Conviction

Industry jargon and shortcuts can help you communicate quickly, but they can also be confusing. It's important to avoid being too casual in business email writing.The goal of this course is to explain the dangers associated with using company jargon and shortcuts in your email messages and help you communicate more effectively.

Learn the dangers associated with using company jargon and shortcuts in your email messages.

Jargon and Shortcuts

Delaying a response can make the sender wonder if their message was received. However, sometimes a speedy response just isn't possible. The goal of this course is to explain the importance of a prompt reply to business emails and provide the learner with a method to manage customer expectations when an immediate reply is not possible.

Learn why a prompt response to email messages is so important.


Respond Promptly

Email is a convenient tool for sharing information, yet there are information security issues that can arise. The goal of this course is to explain the confidentiality shortcomings of typical unencrypted email messages and help the trainee learn the types of information that it would be better not to share in their email messages.

Learn confidentiality of unencrypted emails and help trainees learn the types of information not to share.

Confidentiality

Learning how to properly handle and defuse upset and irate customers is an important skill. It can be especially difficult to do it well over email. The goal of this course is to help trainees learn how to separate themselves from the thing the customer is upset about, discover some techniques for defusing and satisfying the customer, and also know when it’s best to abandon email and talk to the customer directly.

Understand that it is not a personal attack when a customer sends an angry email message.

Handling Irate Customers - Telephone Doctor Customer Service Training

When responding to an email that was sent to you and others, it's important to understand the potential pitfalls of hitting “reply to all”. The goal of this course is to help employees understand the proper use of “Reply” or “Reply to All” options and the dangers sometimes present when using “Reply to All.”

Understand what “Reply to All” means and why it’s important to use this option only when it’s appropriate.


Replying to All

Safe, gentle humor can be beneficial in building business relationships. However, some types of humour are inappropriate or don't translate well over email. The goal of this course is to help trainees identify the types of humor that are OK to use in business email messages and why it is important to avoid those that are inappropriate.

Identify the types of humor that are OK to use in business email messages and the types that are not.

Humor in Email

Expressing tone and putting emphasis on certain words is much more difficult in writing compared to verbal communication. This module explores methods to deliver a particular “tone” through the written word. The goal of this course is to help employees understand the tools available to them for creating a particular tone or emphasis in their email messages, and when (and when not) to use them.

Learn how and when to use formatting tools to stress important points in an email message.


Tools for Emphasis

When we're angry, that emotion can cloud our judgement of what is a reasonable and professional response. This course discusses the lasting effects of authoring or replying to email when you are angry, and it emphasizes the importance of avoiding it so that you don't put something in writing that would be better left unsaid.

Learn the lasting effects of authoring or replying to email when you are angry.

Authoring Emails When Angry

Do your internal customers receive the same service as external ones? This module introduces the concept of “WACTEO” (We Are Customers to Each Other). The goal of this course is to help learners realize that everyone in an organization serves customers – either directly or indirectly – so every action should be undertaken at the same high level of service you would provide to external customers.

Understand that everyone in an organization serves customers – either directly or indirectly.

Internal Customer Service

An email containing rude or unprofessional language and jokes can cause great damage to business relationships and land you in hot water. This module contains reminders about sensitive topics, off-color messages, and dangerous forwards.The goal of this course is to provide the trainee with an understanding of the extreme danger that can be introduced into a business relationship through the authoring or forwarding of certain types of messages.

Learn the importance of keeping emails free of derogatory comments about your organization, employees, and customers.


Inappropriate Topics

Course Contents

SoftSkillsU eLearning

Effective Email Communication

Using Appropriate Email Etiquette

Email Tone Management

Communication etiquette

Format Emails

Proper Chat Etiquette

Message Handling

Learn the proper techniques to maintain control of challenging email interactions that might occur without warning.


Email Matters: The Art of Better Service Series

What you'll learn

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