A week ago Tuesday my roommate was rushed to the hospital in an ambulance. After hours in emergency, she spent three days in critical care and three days in intermediate care. She is currently in rehab. During some very tense hours, I had several conversations with medical personnel, some of which were helpful and some frustrating. Reflecting upon these interactions, I was reminded of the importance of listening. I wanted to share my thoughts with you on the parts of the conversations that were not helpful and those that were positive.
The most frustrating and least helpful part of these conversations was too much talking at me. Instead of taking time to listen, these people just kept pushing and reiterating what they wanted to say. They were consumed with stating their points of view. They did not seem interested in hearing what I had to say. If I had the audacity to question what they said, they dismissed me. Their message that they were right and anything I had to say was wrong came through loud and clear. Talking to them was not a two-way communication; it was like talking to a wall.
They made me remember a quote from Zig Ziglar. “We have two ears and one mouth. We ought to use them in that ratio. We should listen twice as much as we talk.”
Those who did listen asked questions. They used the questions to clarify what I had asked, reflect back what I had said, and gather additional information. All of these moved our communications forward and truly created an exchange. I felt engaged, not isolated. They gained information that could help my roommate.
As a result of these exchanges, they showed genuine interest in helping her and in speaking with me to do so.
In the hurried pace of our lives, sometimes we don’t intend not to show interest. We just neglect to take time to listen and ask questions. We may not intend to frustrate our customers.
But we do.
Being the recipient of not being heard prompted me to think about listening. I was reminded how much we like and respect those who take the time to listen. I realized how differently the customer feels when he or she thinks that a complaint is heard. While you as a businessperson may not be able to change a situation for various reasons, the customer will likely accept the result more easily when you have a two-way communication.
Take time to listen to your customers. Don’t pretend to listen. Actually engage your customers by asking questions and showing genuine interest. If you have truly listened, after every interaction you will be able to state what you learned.
End your conversations by asking yourself, “What do I know now that I didn’t know before that conversation?”
This week's marketing trivia challenge is What example do you have of how listening built a customer relationship? E-mail me your answer.
The most frustrating and least helpful part of these conversations was too much talking at me. Instead of taking time to listen, these people just kept pushing and reiterating what they wanted to say. They were consumed with stating their points of view. They did not seem interested in hearing what I had to say. If I had the audacity to question what they said, they dismissed me. Their message that they were right and anything I had to say was wrong came through loud and clear. Talking to them was not a two-way communication; it was like talking to a wall.
They made me remember a quote from Zig Ziglar. “We have two ears and one mouth. We ought to use them in that ratio. We should listen twice as much as we talk.”
Those who did listen asked questions. They used the questions to clarify what I had asked, reflect back what I had said, and gather additional information. All of these moved our communications forward and truly created an exchange. I felt engaged, not isolated. They gained information that could help my roommate.
As a result of these exchanges, they showed genuine interest in helping her and in speaking with me to do so.
In the hurried pace of our lives, sometimes we don’t intend not to show interest. We just neglect to take time to listen and ask questions. We may not intend to frustrate our customers.
But we do.
Being the recipient of not being heard prompted me to think about listening. I was reminded how much we like and respect those who take the time to listen. I realized how differently the customer feels when he or she thinks that a complaint is heard. While you as a businessperson may not be able to change a situation for various reasons, the customer will likely accept the result more easily when you have a two-way communication.
Take time to listen to your customers. Don’t pretend to listen. Actually engage your customers by asking questions and showing genuine interest. If you have truly listened, after every interaction you will be able to state what you learned.
End your conversations by asking yourself, “What do I know now that I didn’t know before that conversation?”
This week's marketing trivia challenge is What example do you have of how listening built a customer relationship? E-mail me your answer.
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