Customer service models: heart & learn

I picked up an Uber rider last night and they had apparently just had a job interview. She was on the phone with what sounded like her spouse or significant other and was sharing how it went. I wasn't really paying attention, but I did hear her mention that they used the customer service acronym L.E.A.R.N. and she was familiar with H.E.A.R.T. This sort of intrigued me so this morning I did a brief google wander.

I happened upon the Cleveland Metro Schools customer service department and found it quite interesting. They utilize this approach:

S.T.A.R.T. with Heart^®

Upfront Customer Experience Model

S mile and greet warmly

T ell your name, role and what to expect

A ctive listening and assist

R apport and relationship building

T hank the person 

Respond with H.E.A.R.T.

Experience Recovery Model

H ear

E mphatize

A pologize (some others use "Assess")

R espond

T hank the person

I like that. I dug a little deeper and found these two more detailed explanations:

Post this acronym by your office phones to remind employees how to effectively deal with customer complaints:

H ~ Hear the customer. Take time to really listen to his or her gripe. Many times, the customer just needs to vent. Sometimes, he or she will work out a solution in the telling of the tale. Jumping in with a solution or counterargument before your client has finished complaining makes him or her feel you have not listened and fully understood the problem.
E ~ Empathize. Famous psychologist Carl Rogers perfected the art of the “say back” technique in conflict. After listening carefully, “say back” what your client has told you in terms he or she will agree to, and offer your empathy or condolences. This affirms that you have listened carefully and that you take the customer’s feelings and frustrations seriously. Assure the client you want to remedy the situation. For example, “I understand, Mrs. Johnson, that you are upset because you ordered 12 gizmos and only 11 arrived. I agree, that is very frustrating. I assure you I’ll do everything possible to make this right for you.”
A ~ Agree on a solution. Stay calm and keep your vocal inflections positive and the customer will usually settle down and be ready to work out a solution. Besides remedying the current situation, offer a freebie, a do-over, a discount, or a credit towards another purchase. 70% of complaining customers will do business with you a second time when you deal with the problem and offer them some compensation for their trouble.
R ~ Relationship build by thanking and following up. Oftentimes, a negative experience that a customer has with your business can be salvaged and turned into an opportunity to win them over for life. Thank the client for drawing your attention to the problem, explaining that he or she has given you valuable insight into how to better serve all customers in the future. If appropriate, follow-up by phone or email within a few days to see how the solution is working out.
T ~ Think as a team. Don’t cease to talk about the complaint once you have hung up the phone with your client. Share the issue in team meetings and make changes or adjustments in company policies or customer service where needed. Learn from the experience, and improve!

And...

H = Help and Hear - You are there to Help the customer. Plain and simple. And the first (and most important) thing you do is listen. Hear the customer fully before responding. This may be the toughest part of listening. We have to make the choice to listen, especially when we are busy, preoccupied, stressed, and distracted. When you focus on the Other, pay attention to What is being said, as well as What is not being said. This includes the non-verbal signs the person is displaying, plus their feelings and tone of voice.
E = Empathy - The customer has come to you with a need, a question, a problem. Empathize with their feelings and point of view. Empathy doesn't mean agreement. It means trying to see (and feel) what the Other Person is going through. 
A = Assess the situation - Analyze what the customer is saying. Ask questions to find out: What is the problem? What does he/she need from me? Apologize as necessary.
R = Respond - Once you get what the customer needs, Respond so they know the action you are going to take. Let them know what to expect next.
T = Take action - Do what you said you would do. Then, if the situation calls for it, follow up later to see where things stand.

In addition to H.E.A.R.T. I also like the L.E.A.R.N. model:

Listen – Listen to what the customer has to say identifying the problem. 

Empathize – Empathize with the situation. 

Apologize – Apologize. 

React by giving an efficient solution. 

Notify – Notify the rest of the team about the problem so that can follow-up with the customer.

I'm not sure why this interested me, nor why I took the time to look into it, but if you need a little customer service crash-course... there ya go!