BMS®: How to deliver an Attentive customer service

The dictionary definition for Attentive is ‘paying attention; listening carefully; observant’. But what, specifically, does this mean? HOW do you pay attention and listen carefully in someone or something in a customer facing role? WHAT do you have to do?

Why is it important to be Attentive?

Showing Attentiveness is a cornerstone of excellent customer service. It fosters connection, ensures effective problem-solving, and ultimately contributes to a better customer experience, which is key to business success. Attentiveness allows you to listen actively and understand the customer’s concerns, preferences, or problems. This ensures that you can offer solutions tailored to their specific needs. When customers feel heard and valued, they’re more likely to trust your company and form a positive impression of your brand. This trust fosters long-term loyalty.

How to define ‘Attentive’

The dictionary definition for Attentive is ‘paying attention; listening carefully; observant’. But what, specifically, does this mean? HOW do you pay attention and listen carefully in someone or something in a customer facing role? WHAT do you have to do?

Tips for delivering an Attentive customer service

At Performance in People (PiP), we’ve defined ‘Attentive’ as ‘Didn’t unduly keep me waiting, totally focused on me as a person, made me feel like their only customer’. By analysing thousands of customer experiences (collected through mystery shopping), we’ve identified a set of key characteristics that contribute to delivering an 'Attentive' level of service, including:

  • Made the customer physically comfortable throughout
  • Took time with the customer
  • Engaged quickly
  • Focused solely on the customer

Delivering an ‘Attentive’ customer service should be easy – and that’s why we’ve broken it down and simplified it into a specific characteristic library. Incorporate attentiveness into your service delivery to increase your chances of creating repeat business and their likelihood to recommend to others.

BMS Characteristics and logo

Attentive – A Core Behaviour in the Award-Winning BMS® Methodology

PiP has created an objective approach to measuring how specific behaviours influence customer experience. The Behavioural Measurement Score (BMS®) is proven to link directly to improvements in independent CSS, voice of the customer and NPS measures. It analyses the 6 key behaviours that impact most on the customers’ experience: Friendly, Enthusiastic, Professional, Interested, Attentive and Helpful.

This methodology is used by over 100 UK organisations, offering valuable benchmarking data to identify areas of behavioural performance and understand how they compare both within and beyond their industry.

Recognised at the UK Customer Experience Awards, BMS® won the title of ‘UK’s Best Customer Experience Measurement’ and the award for ‘Best Customer Experience Innovation.’ It is now celebrated as “the science behind delivering a great customer experience.”

Contact us to find out more about how our BMS® methodology can help improved your customer service!