Product Overview

Summary: This Customer Liaison and Service Standards SOP sets out a clear, repeatable framework for how your team engages with customers across every touchpoint. It defines service expectations, communication protocols, and escalation pathways that reflect Australian consumer expectations and support your WHS and quality obligations.

Australian customers expect timely, respectful and consistent service, and regulators expect businesses to have systems that support fair treatment and accurate information. This Customer Liaison and Service Standards SOP provides a structured, organisation-wide approach to how your people interact with customers—whether in person, over the phone, by email, or online. It defines what ‘good service’ looks like in your business, how staff should respond to common scenarios, and how to manage complaints and difficult interactions in a way that protects both staff and the organisation.

The procedure helps you move away from ad-hoc, person‑dependent service and towards a professional, documented standard that can be trained, audited, and continuously improved. It supports compliance with Australian Consumer Law, privacy obligations and, where relevant, your WHS duties to manage psychosocial risks arising from customer aggression or unreasonable behaviour. By implementing this SOP, you create clarity for staff, confidence for customers, and a defensible record of how your organisation manages customer contact and service quality.

Key Benefits

• Standardise customer interactions so every client receives a consistent, professional experience regardless of who they speak to.
• Reduce customer complaints and escalations by setting clear response times, communication scripts, and resolution pathways.
• Support compliance with Australian Consumer Law and privacy obligations through defined information, disclosure and record‑keeping practices.
• Protect staff wellbeing by providing structured guidance for managing difficult customers, aggressive behaviour and unreasonable demands.
• Improve training and onboarding by giving new staff a clear, step‑by‑step reference for expected service behaviours and standards.

Who is this for?

• Customer Service Managers
• Frontline Customer Service Representatives
• Account Managers
• Sales Consultants
• Reception and Front-of-House Staff
• Practice Managers (medical, allied health, professional services)
• Operations Managers
• Contact Centre Supervisors
• Client Relationship Managers
• Business Owners and Directors

Included Sections

• 1.0 Purpose and Scope
• 2.0 Definitions and Key Terms
• 3.0 Roles and Responsibilities
• 4.0 Customer Contact Channels and Service Hours
• 5.0 Service Level Targets and Response Timeframes
• 6.0 Customer Greeting and Identification Protocols
• 7.0 Standard Communication Practices (Phone, Email, In‑Person, Online)
• 8.0 Enquiry Handling and Information Provision
• 9.0 Complaint Handling and Escalation Procedure
• 10.0 Managing Difficult or Aggressive Customers
• 11.0 Privacy, Confidentiality and Record‑Keeping Requirements
• 12.0 Cultural Sensitivity and Inclusive Communication
• 13.0 Monitoring, Feedback and Continuous Improvement
• 14.0 Training, Induction and Competency Requirements
• 15.0 Document Control and Review

Legislation & References

• Australian Consumer Law (Schedule 2 of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010)
• Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and Australian Privacy Principles (APPs)
• Fair Work Act 2009 (with respect to managing unreasonable customer behaviour and psychosocial risks)
• Safe Work Australia – Model Code of Practice: Managing psychosocial hazards at work
• AS/NZS ISO 9001:2016 Quality management systems – Requirements
• AS ISO 10002:2022 Quality management – Customer satisfaction – Guidelines for complaints handling in organizations