I know a good Christian lady who cuts hair for a living. That’s her occupation. That’s how she makes a living. She is very good at it. Why is it that when Christians come to her shop they expect a “discount” just because they go to the same Church that she attends? There are some who refer to this practice as a “believer discount”.

Now I am not opposed to finding discounts and deals, but not at someone else’s expense. If someone decides that they want to give me a haircut at no charge, or half price, out of love, then that’s fine. But to just expect that Christian businesses are supposed to give discounts to all the “brothers and sisters” is not love. It’s actually an indication of a poverty mind set. I’ll explain that later.

For me to think that my Christian brothers and sisters are obligated to give me a cheaper price is selfish and it takes money away from them. Suppose you couldn’t find a Christian for the service or product you needed? What would you do? You would end up paying someone the price they charged.

I know some Christians who are very good at doing car repairs and some of them even do it as a business. And hardly a week or two goes by that another Christian asks them for help in fixing their car, expecting to pay little or nothing for services rendered. That is very selfish and, again, an indication of a poverty mentality.

Here’s a startling thought: pay your Christian brother or sister more than they normally charge! Now that’s a concept that has love written all over it. Why would you do that? First of all it is indeed a blessing to have a Christian provide a service or a product. If they operate their business with integrity and love, that love will have an impact on my life. Secondly, by believing God’s promises of abundance you can go over and beyond and give more to the person who is providing you the service or product. That increases their prosperity. But, if you have a poverty mentality, you are always looking for someone to charge you less for everything and expecting any Christian to give you a discount. Why not believe God’s promises of prosperity, receive His abundance, and then share that abundance with others?

Now I would rather pay a Christian for a product or service, but there is another side to this coin. Just because I am a Christian does that mean I have to find another Christian to provide my products and services? Suppose I know a Christian who could get the job done, but not with the quality I require? Am I obligated to hire a Christian anyway and then have inferior work done? Some say that would be the “Christian thing to do.” I say, “No.”
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When you listen to a customer (or co-worker, spouse, significant other), your brain is constantly making hundreds of assumptions. Each word, inflection, and tone of voice is interpreted, but not always as the speaker intended. Research shows that 2/3rd of all employees feel management isn’t listening.*

We all think we know how to listen, yes? The fact is that very few people know how to truly listen. In our earnestness to serve, we get pulled out of a conversation by preparing for the answer while the other person is still talking. We wait for a pause and when the person takes a breath, we jump in to improve or remedy the situation.

Or, we worry about the question that we may be asked that we might not be able to answer intelligently. Will we know the answer? Will we be able to respond appropriately? What if I am asked a question I don’t know the answer to? What if I don’t understand the question? What if they find out that I’m new on the job/on the equipment/at this company? What if they get angry at me? What if I frustrate them? What if, what if, you fill in the blank. We are anywhere but listening to the other person.

Our intentions are good. We want to give the best response we can, hopefully the right answer. However, if we are not present to the conversation, the other person feels not heard, unimportant, ripped off, and the like. If there was no upset on their side to begin with, it now exists big time. Fact: if you are not listening to the customer, there is no way you can answer the question. The truth is you probably haven’t even heard it.
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Have you ever thought about how much rudeness may be affecting your bottom line? What is the cost to your company when you or the people who represent you lack proper manners? Do you know how many clients are turned off by employees who would rather carry on a conversation with each other than with the person who came to purchase your service or product? Can you count the number of people who hang up and call someone else because the person who answered your phone put them on hold without asking permission? How does the client rate your professionalism when the employee who welcomes him to your office looks as if she is dressed for a day at the beach? Do your employees understand that it is more offensive then friendly to call the client by first name unless asked to do so? Are your employees treating each other with courtesy and respect? Do they honor the invisible walls of each other’s cubicles? Do they work as a team and help each other or do they act like cast members on Survivor?

In today’s fast-paced business world where too many people claim that they don’t have time to be nice, it’s easy to overlook the details that can help you grow your business, increase your profits and build long lasting client relationships.

Try taking this quick true/false quiz to test your own business etiquette expertise. Then run it by your employees.

1. Business etiquette is based on rank and hierarchy. True/False
2. If the information on your business card is incorrect, draw a line through it and write the correct information on the card. True/False
3. Business casual means dressing down one notch from business professional. True/False
4. In today’s relaxed business environment, it is not necessary to ask your clients’ permission before using their first names. True/False
5. Callers do not mind holding for information as much as holding for a person. True/False
6. You don’t have to smile or make eye contact with your customers unless you feel like it. True/False
7. Handwritten notes are out of place in the business world. True/False
8. A man should wait for a woman to put out her hand in business before offering his. True/False
9. When composing an e-mail message, complete the “To” line last. True/False
10. Small talk around the office is a waste of time. True/False
11. People can hear you eating, drinking and chewing over the phone. True/False
12. If you receive a call on your cell phone when you are with a client, look to see who is calling, but don’t answer it. True/False
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Call center monitoring software provides quality monitoring that improves the life cycle performance of campaigns. Phone calls received by a call center are monitored to make sure that customers are given the appropriate and correct information for solving their problems. Monitoring tools can track calls from the time they are received by the call center agent to completion.

Call monitoring can be live or recorded. Most call center systems provide for both ways to monitor live calls. The “barge in” facility means that a supervisor is able to join the call in a conference, while “listen in” means that a supervisor can only listen to the call, and cannot talk with the customer or the representative. In addition to these monitoring options, some systems allow a supervisor to take over and close the call.

Some clients require full monitoring and recording of calls. This typically happens in highly regulated industries like telephone service sales where third party verification (TPV) systems are in place to guard against fraud. Another area requiring complete call monitoring is market research where response is evaluated based on both content and inflection.

In addition to call monitoring systems, the centers themselves use monitoring technology to ensure performance and security. Many call centers handle sensitive client data like credit card numbers and client identity information. In order to safeguard this information as required by law, call centers use access controls for both people and data.
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