How To Find Mobile No From Customer Name?

Customer Relations - Phone Calls?

• I work for a Mercedes-Benz dealership in British Columbia and I am the Customer Relations Manager. So my job is strictly on the customer level. The dealership I work for is always striving to build a close "relationship" with our customers and most of our customers come back time after time whether it's to say hi to their service advisor or salesmen, so we usually end up knowing a customer by their first name. I call customers every day to remind them their vehicles are due in for service and typically I ask for the customer by their first name or leave a message using it too. Example: "Hi may I please speak with Gerald?" or "Hi is Gerald there?" Due to the higher end vehicles and obviously more wealthy clients, put yourself in their situation for my sake for a second, would you feel offended if someone called you by your first name? We have so many clients who are foreign, Chinese, German, East Indian etc... and I find their first names easier to pronounce than some of their last names, so a first name basis is less embarassing for me. I have also encountered the issue of asking for "Mr.Smith" when I am unsure if the customer is a woman or man, and getting the response that "Mr.Smith has passed away". What do you think is more proper? I haven't had a negative response or received negative feedback from me using a clients first name (With the exception of any Doctors or miltary clients we have, we have a few and I thankfully know how to pronounce their last names haha) Do you think using their first name is more appropriate or chance it and try to pronounce their last name and guess (if not obvious) if they are Mr. Ms. Mrs.?

• Answer:

  If you are strictly on the customer level you should do "May I please speak with Gerald?" HOWEVER, if your local company is trying to GET to the "first name basis" type thing, maybe you could try something like "Hi, is Gerald there please?", it's something like your second example, but it's not like your calling your buddy, your working for a company so just stick the "please" on the end and you should be fine. Yeah calling for something like "Mr. Smith" is sometimes difficult, unless the widow or whatnot calls to let you know that someone has passed away it's kind of awfull when you ask for him and getting "He has passed away". I know a couple of people who's "better halfs" have passed away and when they are asked if the company can speak with them some of them start to cry. I don't think I would be offended no, but i'm not like some "rich snobs" so to speak, try to get to know the more "pig-headed" clients, maybe you should really ask them what you are doing now considering you've had no complaints... but the more fun folks you can be easier like your second example. If you ever get some doctor or someone you don't know the last names of, if you have microsoft windows there's a speech thing on it, it's in Control Panel, and then click speech, in there you can type in the name, it may not be right, so you could double-check somehow, either with them or some other way. You may not be able to go into the control panel on a company computer, so if you have a computer at home try it when you get home. It's a rarity but some people get offended even with you making a mistake with their name!. Good Luck with your job and hope this helped!