In soccer, the ball may be out of control at certain times during the game. The ball could be up in the air or bouncing freely on the field and not in possession by either team.
A player must settle the ball at this point. Settling is “the act of gaining control over the ball before playing it” sourced from Google’s AI Overview with content provided by soccerdrive.com and United FA Futbol Academy.
The player uses their skill to take possession of the ball so they can begin to pass, dribble or shoot.
Similarly, settling is a main task of a CSM. Our customers come to us with requests that are up in the air and need resolution. It’s our job to gain control over the situation by helping our customers settle their needs.
This post will discuss why it’s important to settle, an approach to settling and example tasks CSMs settle regularly.
Let’s review.
Why CSMs Should Settle Customer Requests
Our customers come to us to help solve their problems and create solutions. When we complete tasks successfully with a customer we are seen as a reliable partner that can help the customer reach their goals.
When tasks go unresolved we may face consequences such as customer dissatisfaction. This dissatisfaction can reduce our customer’s trust in us and our company putting the business relationship at risk.
Therefore, our customer requests are like Moments of Truth in small or large ways and it’s a CSM’s job to settle these requests to show we are a problem solver that helps the customer progress toward their goals.
How CSMs Can Settle Tasks
When settling, a CSM may want to think of phrases like “take control of a situation,” “get your arms around a task” or “be responsible.”
We want to show the customer that we are on top of their request.
Another mindset we want to incorporate is seeing things through. We want to finish tasks to completion. This may require the CSM to be persistent to get things done and stay with a task until resolved.
One challenge CSM’s face is considering the importance of small and large requests. Missing a number of small requests for our customer could add up to a major miss. Or likewise, the inability to settle a small request could spiral into a larger issue. The CSM must stay focused on settling tasks of various importance which is not an easy job at times.
Tasks CSMs Settle Regularly
Let’s close out by reviewing examples of what a settled tasks looks like.
1. Onboarding: a customer successfully completes onboarding and is ready to take on tasks with our software and explore additional use cases.
2. Training and Knowledge: the customer receives teaching from us and support resources to further their knowledge.
3. Questions: a customer gets a reply from the CSM that provides the best available information.
4. Support Challenges: the CSM provides the customer with continuous updates during downtime. The CSM keeps the support task top of mind until resolved.
5. Concerns: the CSM fully vets the concern such as workaround suggestions, evaluation of the software compared to competitor or showcasing ideas on how receive more value.
CSMs should take a mindset of settling our tasks to help build trust with our clients and move our customers towards their goals.