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The Green Sheet Online Edition

August 8, 2007 • 07:08:02

Feed your reps, and they'll feed you

In the payments industry, customer service is paramount. The quality of your day-to-day interactions with clients can mean the difference between having a bevy of contented, loyal customers who provide residuals for years to come and a churning group of disgruntled merchants who bad-mouth you every chance they get.

To ensure client stickiness, learn the foundations of effective customer service, and put them into practice. For example:

But unless you're a superhero, you can't maintain superior performance levels by yourself, especially if you're growing a business to sustain you now and through retirement.

If you try to go it alone, Murphy's Law will inevitably come into play, as it always does. And when that happens, you'll be stretched too thin to take care of problems before they frustrate merchants beyond the breaking point.

You'll burn out eventually and possibly even leave the industry with shoulders slumped in discouragement.

Many routes to rewarding results

So, how do you keep a smile on your retailers' faces and a spring in your step?

Hire the best help available, prepare them well and keep them motivated. It sounds simple enough. But once you've hired the right customer service reps and trained them, how, exactly, do you keep your crew inspired?

After all, it's not their business; it's yours. How can you expect them to care as much about your company as you do? Here are some tips:

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