Chapter 5 - Listening to the Customer

information overload

refers to having too many messages coming together and causing confusion, frustration, or an inability to act

responding

refers to sending back verbal and nonverbal messages to a message originator

faulty assumptions

service provider projections made about underlying customer message meaning based on past experience

memory

the ability to gain, store, retain and recall information in the brain for later application

listening gap

the difference in the speed at which the brain can comprehend communication and the speed at which the average adult speaks in the US

lag time

the term applied to the difference in the rate of which the human brain can receive and process information and at which most adults can speak

hearing

a passive physiological process of gathering sound waves and transmiting them to the brain for analysis. It is the first phase of the listening process.

recognition

a process that occurs in thinking when a previously experienced pattern, event, process, image, or object that is stored in memory is encountered again.

listening

an active, learned process consisting of four phases; receiving, attending, comprehending, and responding

biases

beliefs or opinions that a person has about an individual or group that are often based on unreasonable distortions of prejudice

employee assistance programs (EPA's)

benefits package offered to employees by many organizations that provide services to help employees deal with personal problems that might adversely affect their work performance

external obstacles

factors outside an organization or the sphere of one's influence that can cause challenges in delivering service

personal obstacles

factors that can limit performance or success in life (disabilities, lack of education, biases)

congruence

in communication, this relates to ensuring that verbal messages sent match or are in agreement with the nonverbal cues used.

psychological distracters

mental factors that can cause a shift in focus in interacting with others (health, personal, etc.)

customer needs

motivators or drivers that cause customers to seek out specific types of products or services

closed-ended questions

questions that result in a "yes" or "no" answer

open-ended questions

questions with more possibilities than "yes" or "no"

objections

reasons given by customers for not wanting to purchase a product or service

attending

the phase of the listening process in which a listener focuses attention on a specific sound or message being received from the environment

comprehending or assigning meaning

the phase of the listening process in which the brain attempts to match a received sound or message with other information stored in the brain in order to recognize or extract meaning from it

circadian rhythm

the physiological 24-hour cycle associated with the earth's rotation that affects metabolic and sleep patterns in human as day displaces night

service recovery

the process of righting a wrong or correcting something tat has gone wrong involving provision of a product or service to a customer

thought speed

the rate at which the human brain processes information