“Hello, Sinocare, how can I help you?” As the phone rang, a smiling young lady responded immediately with a clear and friendly voice.

The phone rings hundreds or even thousands of times every day, and it has been lasting since 2005, that is, the third year after the foundation of the company. For every answer, there is a customer service staff who listens carefully and gives explanations patiently, and the service team who provides silent support has developed from one member at the very first to 53 people.

Over the past 17 years, Sinocare customer service staff has served tens of millions of users, with a satisfaction rate of 99.3%, and won numerous honors, such as the Excellent Service Team of 2017 and the Best Service Team of 2020.The service work is not only piecemeal and cumbersome, like dealing with daily chores, but also very tense and full of pressure, just like on the battlefield. In this ordinary position, every customer service staff devotes their love and responsibility to building a heaven for users with a “sense of security”. Besides, many touching stories happened these years.

No matter how many times customers have broken our hearts, we will always treat them like our first love

Yao Wei joined the customer service department in July 2013. She has taken this position for over 9 years and is still enthusiastic and energetic. There has been a famous saying in the customer service department: “No matter how many times customers have broken our hearts, we will always treat them like our first love”, which means we practice customer-oriented philosophy, and we are obliged to address everything important for customers. We will make every effort to solve problems for customers when they think they have concerns. We all have to “love” our customers and care about them as we “love” our first love, which is our attitude and mindset!

“Then, how can we manage to treat customers like our first loveno matter how many times they have broken our hearts?” Yao Wei thought it over and believed that treating customers is just like when we are chasing a girl. Let's see how she handles it.

Conversation 1—Customer consulting test strips

Customer service: Hello, Sinocare, how can I help you?

Customer: Hey, Sinocare, I want to buy some test strips, could you please send me a box of them?

Customer service: OK, Sir, do you have any instruments with you? Let me help you check which blood glucose meter it is.

Customer: It is a Sinocare device.

Customer service: Sorry, Sir, Sinocare is the brand name of our company, and our company has many different models of glucometers on which test strips cannot be shared.

Customer: It is just Sinocare, why are you so difficult? (“Snap”, the customer hangs up)

Although differentiated names of the brand name and the instrument are provided on the packaging of test strips, sometimes the customer is anxious and does not give enough accurate information in the conversation, which is common to see in our work. In this case, we have the responsibility to call the customer again to help him solve the problem and get the product successfully. Then we come into the next round of communication.

Conversation 2—Verifying the model of test strips

Customer service: Hello, sir, may I ask if you have the glucometer or the instruction manual by your hand? Does it say safe or safe code-free blood glucose meter or other instruments?

Customer: It says safe code-free blood glucose meter.

Customer service: OK, thank you for your cooperation. I got it. Could you please provide your specific address so that I can find the nearest pharmacy for you and give you its contact information, then you can call the pharmacy to make a purchase, is that OK for you?

Customer: OK, thanks, sorry for the trouble.

For our customer service staff, we need to accept and understand customers' emotions, attentively listen to and patiently answer them; while it is a test for us to improve our capability by solving problems with wisdom and being professional and service-oriented.

“We will always treat customers like our first loveno matter how many times they have broken our hearts”, it is not only a kind of mindset development but also a demonstration of our professional and excellent image as required by our great products. The number of customers has been increasing yearly, and we have also been growing. We hope to have long-term “love” and maintain a long-lasting relationship with our customers. 

One can also reap achievements and surprises on ordinary posts 

Huang Lan joined the user center in 2013. Looking back on the past of serving users, what she feels most is that she can have many surprising moments even in an ordinary position. Her job was to call back customers who purchased blood glucose meters to see how they used the instruments when she came to work in the customer service department on the first day.

She made the first call with worries: “Hello, this is the customer service department for the Sinocare glucose meter. I’m just calling for after-sales. May I ask if you are satisfied with the operation of the Sinocare Blood Glucose Meter you bought at the Great Forest Pharmacy?” Then a hearty and kind voice came out of the phone: “ Oh, Sinocare, the one we bought at the Great Forest Pharmacy works very well. I appreciate your call back to ask, sweet girl. Thank you so much, I really appreciate your excellent service!”

Just at that moment, all Huang Lan's worries were dispelled and she switched back into a perfect mood. It is excellent to feel recognized by customers, needed by society and thus accumulate a strong sense of value. Another example is that she once received a call from a customer in Changsha asking for guidance as he didn't know how to operate the Sinocare blood glucose meter. As the older man has poor hearing, Huang Lan tried four or five times on the phone at the highest volume before getting him to understand how to use the blood glucose meter. She was so relieved the moment when she heard his positive feedback. At the end of the call, he asked whether Sinocare was in Changsha, and he would like to invite Miss Huang to visit his family at her convenience as they live in Tianxin District, Changsha, Hunan Province. Although she declined, she felt so warm in her heart.

Huang Lan recalled that a predecessor once had asked her during an interview if she would feel like a loser when being only an ordinary employee for her whole life. “No, there is no distinction between high and low occupations. As long as it is an industry needed by this society, it is a great cause.” Huang Lan said firmly. For the customer service that Huang Lan is working for now, being able to solve all kinds of problems raised by customers and embracing surprises and a sense of accomplishment is enough to make her feel happy as always. Though it is an ordinary position in the eyes of peers, it may be a “savior” and “hope” for customers who seek help.     

It is fantastic to be moved by users as we go in both directions

Xia Jing joined the customer service team in 2022. She always takes her as the one who sowed love serving users, but it is proven that the users on the other end of the phone also gave her many touches with love. There’s an elderly in his 80s. He called for the Sinocare Safe+ blood glucose meter he bought for the first time. He encountered some difficulties in operation and was not satisfied during the phone communication, and then he proposed to add a WeChat account to ask for guidance on the operation of the instrument.

When she first added the older man as a WeChat friend, she just regarded him as an ordinary user, but later found in the communication that everything was quite different from what she thought. As it is not easy for the older man to type and speak through WeChat, Xia Jing used video calls to instruct him to use the blood glucose meter. During the video conversation, she realized that the older man was learning how to operate the blood glucose meter for his wife instead of testing for himself.

The older man carefully followed her instructions step by step on the small screen. He was slow and a little “clumsy”, but always patient and gentle. He also politely explained that he was too old to move fast and asked for Xia Jing’s understanding. Xia Jing replied immediately: “It's OK, take it easy! It’s easy to operate this blood glucose meter and you will learn it soon.” Standing by his wife, the older man took the test strips from here and picked the alcohol cotton from there, then carefully disinfected her fingers. From installing the blood lancet and taking blood samples to check the test results, the old nanny just sat in the chairs, being cared for like a little princess.

Just imagine the view, it feels full of romance and love! Not to mention that Xia Jing had witnessed the whole process with her own eyes. The older man's love and care for his spouse made her truly understand the meaning of the sentence “every test is love”! Because of these loving users, she has a new understanding and impression of her occupation. A small blood glucose meter is not only a “supervisor” for diabetes to monitor their blood sugar but also a “helper” for family members to express love.

From this seemingly ordinary customer service, she understands that it is never unilaterally solving users’ problems but to win trust, respect and a sense of accomplishment in customer service, and more deeply felt the most simple love from users. Every year, the customer service department receives hundreds of letters from customers all over the country, telling their experience in using Sinocare blood glucose meters, expressing their recognition and gratitude to Sinocare and the customer service staff, and also putting forward pertinent suggestions, all of which condense the joint efforts of all Sinocare people. As one of the bridges connecting the company and users, the customer service team will continue to shoulder the heavy responsibility, move forward with love and determination, and spread the warmth.

“We have stayed side by side and moved forward among trials and hardships for 20 years. I wish the company to forge ahead with persistent efforts, being pioneering and innovative, and make more achievements!” said Zhu Jie, a senior staff who have been joined the company for 19 years and worked in the customer service department for 10 years, delivering a blessing speech on the 20th anniversary to encourage all customer service staff to make progress together and write a lifelong growth story with love!