ARS Certified CSR Program

 

 

Track:                        Data Quality

Lesson:                    Data Entry Standards

 

 

ARS needs quality and consistent customer and sales information throughout all branches, regardless of the computer system used.  Although there are many different ways to capture customer and sales information, it’s very important to focus on a single standard that we all can use.  To improve the quality and consistency of our information, we are adopting the US Postal Service guidelines for mailing addresses.  Certified CSRs need to consistently follow these guidelines, as shown below.

 

Consistency and quality of data is vital to good customer service.  If a customer tells us that they are a repeat customer but we can’t locate them in our files, it’s usually because we entered their name and address information poorly on the previous job.  This can be particularly frustrating if the customer has a question or issue with the previous work. 

 

When we add a customer record that actually is already in our files, it creates a duplicate customer record.  This makes it very hard to understand the complete customer picture and leads to duplicate customer statements, split sales history records, and other customer problems.

 

ARS uses customer and sales information for national marketing efforts.  We have made great strides in building a central customer database for our company, but nearly one million sales records had to be rejected because they failed to meet minimum quality standards.  We know we can do better than that!

 

 

This lesson has no pre-requisites.  The lesson and test can be completed in 2 hours.  The courseware consists of a training document on data entry standards and a quick reference guide.

 

 

You will learn the format in which ARS requires customer and sales information to be entered. This information is not specific to any particular computer system – you will not learn how to use your particular system to add or edit customer data in this lesson.

 

Certified CSRs must be proficient in providing high quality, consistent information for their system that follows US Postal Service standards.

 

 

 

A.        General Data Entry Guidelines

 

·        Use uppercase only for customer name and address information. 

 

·        Avoid special characters, like commas, periods, quotes, ampersands, stars, parentheses, and pound signs. 

 

·        Avoid double spaces, like “1234 Elm St     Apt 4”

 

·        Avoid special effects, like bold, italics, or underline

 

·        Avoid short cuts – please take the time to accurately and completely enter the name and address information.  For example, you may know that CDRS means “Camino Del Rio South” but we would not know this, and neither would the post office.  Abbreviations are generally ok in notepads if everyone knows and understands them. 

 

·        While you should not abbreviate the name of the street, the type of street is always abbreviated – use ST not Street, DR not Drive, etc.

 

·        Use data entry fields for their intended uses only – do not put notes or messages into any data field that is part of the mailing address.  For example, “BAD DEBT” may be important to know but it’s not good to put this in the company name, as this will show on mail to the customer.

 

·        Always take your time and choose the right item in any list box or pull-down list that you see on your computer screen.  For example, you may be asked to select the customer source of sale from a list of choices.  Never just select the first or default choice just because you are too busy or not sure. These list box choices are needed by the system in order to make good decisions in Marketing and Operations, and you are responsible for accurately picking the correct list box choice.

 

B.        Customer ID Code

 

There is no standard for the customer ID code, but in general it should be 15 characters or less, all uppercase, and contain no special characters, like commas or quotes.

 

 

C.        Company Name

 

Company names are often typed a variety of ways, leading to duplicates and other problems.  A company named B. & K. Storage, Inc. might be entered as:

 

·        B AND K STORAGE INC

·        B&K STORAGE

·        B. & K. STORAGE, INC.

·        B and K Storage Inc

 

The only correct one above is the first choice – no special characters (including no periods), and all uppercase.  It may look odd at first with a total lack of punctuation, but that is the US Postal standard and it really helps to have a consistent look.  If you had to find B. & K. Storage, Inc. in a system that was USPS compliant, you would know exactly how the company name would appear.

 

It is very important to spell the company name correctly.  This is a big problem with many systems, and it’s understandable when things get busy.  Certified CSRs must take their time and enter the names right with the correct spelling.  If you are not sure, ask the customer to spell the name, or offer to spell it back to the customer to confirm that you have it right. 

 

A common problem with company names is that the contact name entered where the company name should be entered, and the contact name is either blank or the same as the company name.  Please be sure to always leave the company name blank if the customer is a residential customer.  Our systems use the company name as a key criterion in determining residential and commercial customers. 

 

Below are examples of wrong ways to enter company and contacts for residential customers:

 

Company:          Bob Smith

Last Name:         Smith              First name:               Bob

 

Company:          Bob Smith

Last Name:                                 First Name:

 

Company:         

Last Name:        Bob Smith      First Name:

 

The correct way to do it is:

 

Company:

Last Name:        Smith              First Name:              Bob

 

 

D.        Contact Name

 

This is tricky as many systems separate the contact name into first and last name, whereas others just have you type the entire name into one area.  If the contact name is John Smith, Jr., then the correct entry is:

 

·        Last:    SMITH JR       First: JOHN

 

However, if your computer system does not separate first and last names as separate entry items, then depending on your system, either of the following could be acceptable:

 

·        Contact:  SMITH JR, JOHN

·        Contact:  JOHN SMITH JR

 

One common system in the field, TMS, often uses the “Last Name, First Name” method, which is perfectly acceptable.  The important thing is to be consistent – if you normally enter last name first then be consistent. 

 

Another common problem is that “JOHN SMITH” is entered as the first name, and nothing (or SMITH) as the last name.  Make sure you keep first and last names separated when entering contact information.

 

If the customer uses “Dr”, “Mrs.”, “Reverend”, etc. in his/her name, then it would normally go in the title or salutation field if your system supports it.  Otherwise, it should be part of the first name – as follows:

 

            Last:    SMITH JR       First:  DR JOHN

 

Notice that there is no period between DR and JOHN, just a single space.

 

E.        Address

 

The street address, like other customer information, should have no punctuation at all – just the address information separated by single spaces.  The address “5545 Elm St. Apt #102” could be typed:

 

·       5545 ELM ST APT 102

·       5545 ELM STREET APT 102

·       5545 ELM ST    APT 102

·       5545 ELM STREET #102

 

Only the first one is correct.  Again, it may look strange with no punctuation or extra spaces but that’s the correct format for the US Postal Service. 

 

Notice that street suffixes are always abbreviated.  Here are a few examples:

 

·       Street                         ST

·       Avenue                       AVE

·       Drive                          DR

·       Boulevard                  BLVD

·       Circle                         CIR

·       Cove                          CV

·       Parkway                     PKWY

·       Road                          RD

 

A complete list of US Postal abbreviations is in Attachment A of this document.

 

Although you may think typing out “Drive” instead of the “DR” abbreviation is better, it is actually better to abbreviate.  For example, if someone else were searching for a customer with the address 5545 Elm Dr. Apt 102, they would type:

 

Find?  5545 ELM DR APT 102

 

The computer would not find it if you had entered it originally as “5545 ELM DRIVE APT 102”

 

Additionally, you might see addresses that look like this:

           

·        5455 N ELM STREET APT 102

·        5455 NORTH ELM STREET APT 102

·        5455 NO. ELM STREET APT 102

 

Anytime an address contains a directional reference, like North, South, East, West, etc., the first address above is the only correct way to enter it.  Only the first letter of the direction should be used, with no punctuation following it.  In cases where the reference is multi-directional, like Northeast or Southwest, NE or SW is the proper way to enter it.  Of course, this only applies to street names, as directional references within company names (such as Northwest Tires, etc.) should be spelled out.

 

Some addresses will have the direction at the end:

 

·        5455 ELM ST WEST

·        5455 ELM ST WE

·        5455 ELM ST W

 

Only the last choice is correct.  One exception to this rule is when the street direction is the street name – like “1234 WEST ST”.  In this example, you would not abbreviate “West”.

 

 

F.         Second Address Line

 

Often a customer has a two-line address, as shown in the address below:

 

            John Smith Jr

            B. & K. Storage Inc

            Accounts Payable Dept

            1123 Elm St

            Dallas, Tx 77020

 

The first address line above is “Accounts Payable Dept”.  A very important standard is that the second address line must be the street number and street name – if there are two address lines as in the above example, the non-street name line must come first, not last.  Therefore, if your system allows for two address lines AND if you customer has two lines, be sure that second line contains the street information, as shown above.

 

G.        City, State, and Zip

 

This also can be tricky because in many systems these are three separate items, but in some systems they are together as one entry.  If the city is Dallas, Texas, 77020, then the correct entry is:

 

Separated City:         DALLAS        St:       TX       Zip:      77020

Combined:                 DALLAS TX 77020

 

We were always taught to put commas in, but they are no longer desirable.  Always use 2-character state codes and use zip+4 codes if available.  For zip+4 codes, use a hyphen to separate the first five digits (77020-0102, for example).  Currently, one field system, Dandy, only accepts the 5-digit zip code.

 

H.        Phone Numbers

 

The phone number should always include the area code and follow the format:

 

901-820-8888 or 901-820-8888 x1234

 

However, the format (901) 820-8888 is fine for branches that use the TMS system or other locations that require this format.   However, consistency is very important and having the area code is equally important. 

 

In many systems, you actually type the phone number digits without any formatting, and the system supplies the format when you complete the entry.  This makes it easy – just type in the area code and number and you’re done!

 

I.           Dates

 

Our business is time- and date-sensitive; so all dates must be entered completely and accurately.  Many computer systems allow just about anything in the date fields, but we always need the correct month, day, and year.  Too often, we see dates like “12/12/12” or “99/99/99”.  These cause information to get lost in the system or rejected altogether.  

 

Depending on your system, you might enter March 7, 2003 as:

 

            03/07/03

            03/07/2003

3/7/03

            3-07-03

 

The first two choices are acceptable, but the others generally are not.  It’s best to always use two digits always for month, day, and year, even if the first digit is a zero (use 03 for March not just 3). 

 

It is equally important not to enter a future date for a past sale.  Please take the time to properly enter the date, as it is critically important to the business.

 

J.         Customer Types

 

Most systems require the Customer Type – Is the customer residential or commercial?  Is it a restaurant, hotel, or hospital?  Generally, the system supplies a customer type code, so be sure you become familiar with these codes and capture this information correctly.  Much of our business processes require us to know whether or not the customer is residential, so it’s critical that we accurately record this information.

 

K.                Location of Problem or Diagnosis Code

 

Because our service technicians are specialists in a particular trade or service line, we need to know the nature of the customer problem in order to send a qualified technician that can perform the necessary work.  If the customer complains about a water leak, it’s probably a plumbing issue but it could easily be an air conditioning problem.  It is up to the CSR to make sure we have properly identified the service line of the customer problem – Plumbing, Heating/Cooling, Electrical, Appliance Repair, or some other service line that the local branch offers.

 

Many field systems use different techniques for capturing this information, but the most common is a pull-down list of choices.  Make sure you don’t just pick the first or default choice.  Take your time and select the appropriate choice – this will eliminate sending the wrong technician to the job site.

 

 

 

The ARS Communication Policies prohibit the use of profanity or inappropriate comments in any form, including in data entry records or notepad entries. 

 

CSRs may be tempted to enter personal comments or observations about customers or the situation, but you must not enter anything that could prove embarrassing if revealed to the customer or made public.  Use good judgment, including “stick to the facts”, and “when in doubt, don’t”.

 

 

 

Some systems in the field give you instant feedback if you enter certain items incorrectly or omit required items, but in general your local system has a very limited ability to measure and compare the quality of data entry.

 

On a weekly basis, all information from field systems are exported and merged into CIDARS – our national marketing database.  Here, records that are unacceptable are rejected, and the reject rate is tracked by branch.  On occasion, we have been able to provide individual CSRs with feedback on data entry quality issues that they have.  More in this area is needed.

 

In the near future, Data Quality will be measured by counting the number of defects per 1000 customers or work orders entered.  Defects include:

• Missing required information, like the phone number or zip code
• Duplicate Customers
• Typos in the name or address field
• Addresses that do not conform to US Postal standards
• Inappropriate entries, like putting the company name in the address field, or entering the contact name in the company name and again in the contact name.
• Dates that are impossible – either in the future or many years in the past
• List box choices that are incorrect or impossible, like choosing “Restaurant” for a residential customer with no company name.