Customer Service Week: Exemplary Training Key to Service

Expedience Shares Four Core Training Philosophies that Have Helped Drive a +94% Retention Rate

It’s Customer Service Week – an international celebration of the importance of customer service – and a big component of Expedience service begins with how we train clients on our proposal automation software and empower them to own this tool. Known for its ease of use, Expedience operates where proposal folks already work – in Microsoft® Word. With an over 94% retention rate, Expedience believes that its success is based on our software’s stickiness – that is, customers feeling invested enough to maintain, use and own these tools in their organizations. If you’ve implemented our software, you likely know our training sessions are a well-oiled machine. That’s probably because we go beyond the basics. In fact, our entire implementation and ongoing customer service methodology is rooted in education principles. We embrace four core philosophies detailed below. We begin with informal learning before moving on to formal training during implementation, and finally focus on ongoing skill development to keep our clients’ skills sharp.  What type of learner are you? Let us know in comments.

1. Start small

When we start an implementation, we introduce our software and then build. Every meeting from that point adds on a few additional vocabulary terms and functional elements. Even with the simplest, most intuitive software, there is a learning curve, and this approach prevents newbies from becoming overwhelmed.

2. I like your (learning) style

Are you a visual/audio learner? Do you need time to digest new information? That’s why we supply information in multiple formats. So you can read and write and watch and talk throughout the process.

3. Save the best for last

Our formal training sessions are done at the end of the implementation. Why? Adoption! We want you to use the software immediately, so we provide training on a just-in-time basis to help maximize your success. And, because we have led up to the formal training phase by doing informal sessions in smaller phases to introduce clients to the software, our customers tell us that they feel ready. BONUS: This approach also allows us to customize the training to your specific implementation.

4.Ongoing pursuit of knowledge

The implementation has an end, but you can’t get rid of us that easily! We want to continue to see you improve and succeed with Expedience and beyond. There are also advanced features that make more sense to add into your repertoire of knowledge over time. The answer – the Expedience User Group webinar series. Offered approximately monthly, this series often includes training topics, new features and your FAQs.Finally, no Customer Service Week would be complete without turning the tables to recognize YOU, the Customers we Serve. You inspire us every day to keep improving! To learn more about Expedience Software and our training program, visit us at www.expediencesoftware.com.   Diane Loudenback serves as Expedience’s VP of Client Services.