Identify Problems and Solutions
Learning Objectives
After completing this unit, you’ll be able to:
- Reply to the customer using empathy.
- Ask the right questions to get to the root cause of an issue.
- Identify tools to inform recommendations.
- Help customers find solutions.
Show Empathy
To adequately engage your customer and get to the root of their issue, there are two best practices to follow. The first is to acknowledge, and the second is to show empathy. Acknowledgement (which you learned about in a previous unit) is the ability to recognize and accept the customer’s experience and perspective. Empathy is understanding and sharing the customer’s feelings.
Empathy is the ability to imagine yourself in a similar situation as your customer. It shows you’re invested in the customer’s success. It allows you to relate to your customer and their issues, and helps build trust, enabling you and your customer to better work together to achieve successful resolutions.
Ask Questions to Understand the Customer’s Perspective
After you acknowledge and empathize with the customer’s current problem, ask questions to try to get to the root cause. When a customer gives an answer, get to the “why” using open-ended questions to allow for a conversation.
Each person you speak to regarding the issue at hand helps you gain new insight and information. Those in different roles hold unique perspectives that can help you with problem solving.
It’s important to gauge when you’re asking too many questions and need to pivot into listening mode. Here are some go-to questions to keep your customer conversation going in the right direction.
- Can you tell me more about this situation?
- What’s working well in this situation?
- Can you help me understand what changed?
- How can I help you get you to your goal?
- What’s the biggest obstacle in reaching your goal?
- What does my team need to do to improve this situation/partnership/feature/integration?
- How can I help you make this change?
- Who has eyes on the data to measure value and success?
- What measurements are you taking or monitoring?
- What was your expectation?
- Why? Why did this happen?
Asking questions shows you care. It helps the customer see you’re responding to the concern and trying to help. It allows you to uncover root causes, but it also builds trust.
Once you get to the root of the problem, it’s time to dive into the art of problem solving.
Make Recommendations
Have you ever sought out someone you really trusted for advice? Did the person provide that advice? What if they didn’t? What if they simply listened and empathized, but offered no coaching of any sort?
You are that someone customers are seeking out for advice. They see you as a trusted advisor who can guide them to success. It’s up to you to not only listen, but to recommend.
Recommending is finding the right solution(s) that work best for the customer right now. Ideally, you offer multiple options with factors such as financial investment, time, and level of effort for the customer to help them make an educated decision as to what solution is best. Always try to recommend maximizing their current investments and products first before trying new investments.
When recommending solutions, use the best practices: Be transparent, offer a solution-focused mindset, and follow up. This helps your customer weigh all the options and ultimately make the decision they feel is best for them. Sometimes you may personally agree with them and sometimes not. Recommending is about empowering the customer to make that decision. So, how do these best practices work?
Be Transparent
After you engage with a customer, it’s time to help them look for an answer. Be transparent—if you don’t have the answer, tell them that. Unless you have a solution you’re confident about, it’s best to regroup with your team. Getting new information and other perspectives can open the door to solutions.
If you’re not the expert they need, be honest about it. Put aside your ego and help them find the right person to solve their problem. Admitting that’s not you doesn’t undermine your credibility—it builds it.
Being transparent also includes presenting all options to the customer. Talk the customer through the options you recommend and the why behind them. Be transparent about which options you think are the best and why. This kind of transparency lets the customer know you empathize with their situation and are committed to helping them achieve their goals. This is a huge trust builder.
Focus on Solutions
Being solution-focused means putting aside your own agenda. You may want to sell the customer on a feature or service that doesn’t suit their needs at that moment. Make the right recommendations at the right time to build trust.
Always brainstorm with the customer. Use a whiteboard or sticky notes (real or virtual) to brainstorm solutions together. Ideally, help the customer identify their own solution. Solutions that the customer owns or identifies tend to be the most successful. Sometimes these recommendations also mean compromising.
Use the tools (key performance indicators, metrics, value maps) available to help drive solutions. What are the metrics or KPIs telling us? What can the customer do to actively measure success toward their company goal or objective? Should you complete a business value map to understand more about the customer’s concern?
When you’re done and have selected a recommendation, it’s always best to recap the entire conversation with steps forward.
Follow Up
Lastly, follow up with the customer’s progress. You’re their support for encouragement and coaching even after you’ve helped them find a solution.
Take detailed notes of your interactions if your role doesn’t allow for ongoing customer contact. This allows others who are in contact with them to follow up and ask about your recommendation. This can break the ice, build trust, and show the customer that every person they interact with at your company is aware of their progress, account, and needs.
Focusing on preparing, engaging, and recommending is the best way to approach any difficult conversation—expected or unexpected.
Keep calm, focus on listening, exercise empathy, and ask questions to find the best resolution for the customer’s frustrations.